Romanian phrasebook

Romanian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Romania and Moldova, as well as in some parts of Hungary, Serbia and Montenegro, Bulgaria and Ukraine. It is useful to know the language if travelling in Romania, especially in rural areas, and even though nowadays nearly everyone knows some English, your experience in the country will be so much better and friendlier if you speak the local language.

Romanian is a fairly difficult language to learn and speak, due to its complicated grammar. It is, however, fairly similar to Italian, and, to an extent, other Romance languages (French, Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, etc.), so speakers of these languages are more at an advantage.

Note that in Romanian, there is a formal and informal form when addressing people. The informal is tu (you) and the formal is dumneavoastra. There is also a formal way of speaking about other people, not just when addressing them. When referring to she use dumneaei; for he use dumnealui; and for them use dumnealor. Note that the formal form should be used with the plural form of the verb, at the appropriate person. This is similar to the construction in most other Romance languages, and, to an extent, German, although Germans usually make less use of the informal forms. Use tu when addressing friends or people you know well. When addressing strangers or speaking about strangers, use the formal forms.

Background

Attention, avoid the confusion with Romani language which is a gypsy language. The name similarity is only formal and coincidental. The English word for the european Gypsy is Romani and comes from an Indian root. The ethnic name Romanian/Rumanian and its derivatives come from the Latin word Romanus and it is etymologically related to Rome, the capital city of the Roman empire and now the capital city of Italy.
Even if, in the past, Romania had a sizable German minority, nowdays the population of native German speakers is dwindling. Most of the former Saxon minority left for Germany and the Saxons villages are merely deserted. However, German language is still widely studied as a foreign language, and, due to residing cultural influence of the formerly large minority, it is used as a second or third official language is many parts of Transylvania.
Romanian is easy for Italians, Spanish and Portuguese people. However Romanian is not so easy for French because of the influx of neighbouring countries' vocabulary, especially words coming from Old Slavonic. Neologisms have been imported from French, Italian, German, and recently English. The slang has either French, German or Gypsy origin. The language uses the Latin alphabet, the Latinate roots from Latin helping tourists to understand signs like Alimentara (a place where you can buy aliments, food) Farmacie (Pharmacy, Drugstore), Poli?ie (Police), etc. Some signs are just false friends, for example Libr?rie means in Romanian bookstore not library, Teatru, theatre hall not cinema and so on. If you have a decent conversation guide you can avoid such funny confusions.
Hungarian is used in Eastern Transylvania and in some cities like Miercurea-Ciuc, Targu-Mures, Oradea, Cluj-Napoca, Satu-Mare, and if you know it, then you are at an advantage. Hungarian it is widely used as a second language in counties such as Covasna and Harghita.
The Romanian language is generally seen as a language with difficult grammar. It is an easy language to pronounce being a very phonetic language (for people who speak a native phonetic language like Italians: don't expect English people to be comfortable with phonetic when they learn the spelling for each word - the spelling is not needed in Romanian - you can write in instant whatever you hear in Romanian). Romanian language is abundant in vowels, it can have series of diphthongs and even triphthongs, that gives the language a melodious sound and makes it very musical.
Trying to learn or speak Romanian can have mixed receptions - most people will love you for it and strongly appreciate the fact that you are making an effort to speak their language, while others will sneer at you for not properly being able to speak what they see as a very 'easy' and phonetic language. The fact that Romanian is phonetic is true, and its written form is fairly easy to grasp. The Romanian alphabet is nearly exactly the same as the English alphabet, even though it has five extra accented letters, or diacriticals, ? (like the a in english word musical), ? (like the sh in english), ? (like the ts in english), â, î (have the same reading, like a short ?).

Romanians have a special native skill for speaking foreign languages, and English has become compulsory for getting a better job and it is the second language spoken after Romanian. Consequently, it is usually good to ask before starting to speak English, but other than that, it is safe to go ahead. French and German are also learnt by most people in schools and are therefore spoken with some level of fluency by some people, but make sure you ask before you start speaking to people in foreign tongue. But globalization have made these languages less and less attractive.

Some people however feel that Romanian is an extremely easy language to learn if you already speak a Latin based language such as Spanish, French or Italian. This is especially so in contrast to Romania's Slavic neighbors. Romanian linguists are proud that Romanian is a Romance language in a sea of Slavs.

Pronunciation Guide

Even though Romanian pronunciation is very phonetic, a lot of foreigners find it hard to speak it, especially English speakers. The accent and sounds are very similar to Italian (with slight Slavic influences), so remember to sound every letter clearly. Also, sounds very rarely differ between words (i.e. the letter i is always pronounced the same, everytime, unlike in English).

Like English, Romanian has secondary stresses in words. We have not attempted to represent those here.

Questions in Romanian that end with a verb often use a rising tone on the last syllable or two.

Vowels

a

like 'a' in "father"
Hear the sound for a

e

like 'e' in "ten". When the word begins with an 'e' and it is a form of "a fi" (to be) or a pronoun it is like 'ye' in "yell"
Hear the sound for e

i

like 'i' in "dip" when in the middle or start of a word. When at the end, it is barely sounded - for example, in the word Bucureşti, it is pronounced Boo-KOO-resht with a very short and slight i - never pronounce it as Boo-KOO-reshtee. The terminal "i" causes a slight "softening" of the preceding consonant. The few Romanian words with a very strong terminal "i" sound are spelled with a double "i" ("ii").
Hear the sound for i

o

like 'o' in "chlorine", rounded, fairly short sound
Hear the sound for o

u

like 'oo' in "broom", but much shorter
Hear the sound for u

ă

like 'a' in "digital". This sound is usually mispronounced (people tend to pronounce it like 'u' in 'cup', but in fact, this sound is frequently found in English.) When seeing ă always think of the sound in the rather than in bra. Similar to French 'e' in word 'je'.
Hear the sound for ă

â, î

no precise English equivalent - it's best to hear it being spoken. â and î are the same sound in Romanian. î is used at the beginning and at the end of words, â in all other cases. The closest American English sound is the ""oo"" in "book", but it's a bit shifted toward a "soft 'i'", as in "it". Similar to French 'u' in word 'rue'.
Hear the sound for â, î

Consonants

b

like 'b' in "bed"

c

like 'ch' in "cheese" (like Italian 'c') when followed by 'e' or 'i', otherwise like 'k'

d

like 'd' in "dog"

f

like 'f' in "federation"

g

like 'g' in "gym" when followed by 'e' or 'i', otherwise like 'g' in "gear"

h

like 'h' in "help" (never silent in Romanian)

j

like the French 'j' in "Bonjour" - closest English equivalent is the "s" in "pleasure"
Hear the sound for j

k

like 'c' in "cat"

l

like 'l' in "love"

m

like 'm' in "mother"

n

like 'n' in "nice"

p

like 'p' in "pig"

q

like 'k' in "king" (this sound is rarely used in Romanian)

r

like 'r' in "row", but slightly harsher (similar to the Italian r)
Hear the word 'Reşiţa' in Romanian, note the 'r' sound

s

like 's' in "snake"

ş

like 'sh' in "lush"

ţ

like 'ts' in "bits"

t

like 't' in "knit"

v

like 'v' in "very"

w

like 'v' in "very"

x

like 'cks' in "picks", sometimes 'gs' in "pigs"

y

like 'i' in "dip"

z

like 'z' in "fizz"

Common diphthongs

oi

like 'oy' in "boy"

ea

usually dipthongized, like the "a" in the East-coast American English "cat" or "sat". However, this letter pair is not always a diphthong.

Common digraphs

ch

like 'c' in "collar" (hard sound)

gh

like 'g' in "giving"

Phrase list

NOTE: The pronunciation guides in brackets beside each word only act as guides, due to the fact that they will make the Romanian word have a strong English accent. To get a better pronunciation, it is generally better to look at the Pronunciation Guide above and learn the right pronunciation for each letter (this is easier than it sounds). Throughout the following, "ooh" is pronounced roughly as in "oo" in "book"; "oo" without the "h" is as in "boot".

Basics

Hello.

"Salut." (sah-LOOT)

How are you?

"Ce mai faci?" (cheh my FAHTCH)

Fine, thank you.

"Mulţumesc, bine." (mool-tzu-MESK BEE-nay)

What is your name? (formal)

"Cum vă numiţi? (coom vuh noo-MEETZ)

What's your name? (informal)

"Cum te cheamă? (coom teh KYAHM-uh)

expensive

scump (SCOOMP)

cheap

ieftin (yef-TEEN)

I can't afford it.

Nu-mi permit. (NOO MEE pehr-MEET)

I don't want it.

Nu vreau aceasta. (noo VREH-ow ah-CHA-stuh)

You're cheating me.

M? în?ela?i. (muh uhn-sheh-LUH-tze)

I'm not interested.

Nu sunt interesat. (noo soont een-teh-reh-SAHT)

OK, I'll take it.

Bine, îl iau. (bee-neh, uhl YA-oo.); also "Bine, o iau" (depends on the gender, this would be feminine)

Can I have a bag?

Îmi pute?i da o pung? ? (UH-me poo-TEH-tzee duh oh POON-guh ?)

Do you ship (overseas)?

Trimite?i (în str?in?tate)? (tree-ME-teh-tzee(oohn strah-ee-nuh-TAH-teh)?)

I need...

Am nevoie de ... (AHM neh-VOY-eh deh...)

...toothpaste.

...past? de din?i. (PAH-stuh deh DEENTS)

...a toothbrush.

...periu?? de din?i . (peh-ree-OO-tsuh deh DEENTS)

...tampons.

...tampoane. (tum-POAH-neh)

...soap.

...s?pun. (suh-POON)

...shampoo.

...?ampon. (shahm-POHN)

...pain reliever. (e.g., aspirin or ibuprofen)

anti-inflamator (ahnt-eehn-FLAH-mah-tohr)

...cold medicine.

...medicamente de r?ceal?. (meh-dee-cah-MEN-teh deh ruh-CHA-luh)

...stomach medicine.

...medicamente de stomac. (meh-dee-cah-MEN-teh deh stoe-MACK)

...a razor.

o lam? de ras. (oh lah-MUH deh RAHS)

...an umbrella.

...o umbrel?. (oh oom-BREH-luh)

...sunblock lotion.

...bronzator. (brohn-zah-TOHR)

...a postcard.

...o carte po?tal? (oh Car-TEH poe-SHTA-luh)

...postage stamps.

...timbre (TEAM-breh)

...batteries.

...baterii (baah-TEH-ree)

...writing paper.

...hârtie de scris. (hoohr-TEE-eh deh SCREESS)

...a pen.

un stilou / un pix (OOHN stee-LOW / OOHN PEEKS)

...English-language books.

...c?r?i în limba englez?. (KAHR-tzee oohn LEEM-bah een-GLEHZ-ah)

...English-language magazines.

...reviste în limba englez?. (reh-VEES-teh oohn LEEM-bah een-GLEHZ-ah)

...an English-language newspaper.

...un ziar în limba englez?. (uhn zee-AHR oohn LEEM-bah een-GLEHZ-ah)

...a Romanian-English dictionary.

...un dic?ionar român-englez. (OOHN deek-tsee-oh-NAHR ro-MOOHN ehn-GLEHZ)

Driving

I want to rent a car.

A? dori s? închiriez o ma?in?. (AH-sh doh-REE sah uhn-KEE-ree-ehz oh mah-SHE-nah...)

Can I get insurance?

Pot ob?ine asigurare? (pot ohb-tseen-eh ah-see-goo-RAH-reh?)

stop (on a street sign)

STOP

one way

sens unic (SEHNS oo-NEEK)

yield

cedeaz? trecerea (cheh-DAA-zah treh-CHER-aa)

no parking

Nu parca?i (noo pahr-KATS)

speed limit

viteza maxim? (vee-TEH-zah MAH-ksee-mah)

gas (petrol) station

sta?ie de benzin? (STAHTS-see-eh deh ben-ZEE-nuh)

petrol

benzin? (ben-ZEE-nuh)

diesel

motorin? (moh-toh-REE-nah)

detour

ocolire (oh-koh-LEE-reh)

Authority

I haven't done anything wrong.

N-am facut nimic r?u. (NAHM fah-COOT nee-MEEC RUH-oh)

It was a misunderstanding.

A fost o neîn?elegere. (AH fohst oh neh-uhn-tzeh-leh-geh-reh)

Where are you taking me?

Unde m? duce?i? (OON-deh muh DOOH-chets)

Am I under arrest?

Sunt arestat? (SOONT ah-rest-AHT ?)

I am an American/Australian/British/Canadian citizen.

Sunt cet??ean american/canadian/australian/britanic. (SOONT cheh-tuh-tseh-AHN ah-meh-ree-KAHN/kah-nah-dee-AHN/ah-oo-strah-lee-AHN/bree-TAH-nik)

I want to talk to the American/Australian/British/Canadian consulate.

Vreau s? vorbesc cu consulatul american/canadian/australian/britanic. (VROW suh vohr-BESK koo COHN-soo-LAH-tool ah-meh-ree-KAHN/kah-nah-dee-AHN/ah-oo-strah-lee-AHN/bree-TAH-nik)

I want to talk to the American/Australian/British/Canadian embassy.

Vreau s? vorbesc cu ambasada american?/canadian?/australian?/britanic?. (VROW suh vohr-BESK koo AHM-bah-SAH-dah ah-meh-ree-KAHN-uh/kah-nah-dee-AHN-uh/ah-oo-strah-lee-AHN-uh/bree-TAH-nik-uh)

I want to talk to a lawyer.

Vreau s? vorbesc cu un avocat. (VROW suh vohr-BESK koo oohn ah-voh-CAHT)

Can I just pay a fine now?

A? putea doar s? pl?tesc o amend? acum ? (AH-sh poo-TEAH DOO-arr sah plah-TEH-sk oh ah-MEN-duh ah-COOM ?)

Learning more

External links

• Online Romanian-English
• Romanian-English-Hungarian dictionary

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