Sticking to some of the easier parts of Romanian grammar, there is a curious construction involving personal pronouns. Although the forms used are standard Romanian, this particular bit of syntax comes straight from Slavic languages. What am I talking about? A venit la mine In the above sentence, “la mine” (literally at my or perhaps at me) actually means “my house” or “my apartment” or … Continue reading A Venit La Mine
There’s plenty of confusing elements to Romanian grammar but luckily one of the easier parts is constructing comparatives. What am I talking about? More All you do is add the word mai (more) to any adjective. Verde – green. Mai verde – Greener Bun – good. Mai bun – Better Inalt – tall. Mai inalt – Taller Dulce – sweet. Mai dulce – Sweeter Less … Continue reading When Less is More (Less)
In Romanian, the (standard) word for cork, as in the buoyant bark of a certain tree, is pluta (plew-tuh). When referring to the stopper in the top of a wine bottle (made from cork) however, the word is dop (dope). There are some interesting euphemisms using the word pluta. The one I’m most familiar with – and it may just be a regional variant – … Continue reading Word of the Day: Pluta
Whew mercy, that’s a handful isn’t it? Just the title alone gives me the shivers. What am I talking about? I’m talking about phrases like Mi-e foame (I am hungry) versus Eu sunt mai român decât tine (I am more Romanian than you). Please understand that what follows isn’t comprehensive, that is to say, it doesn’t cover all situations of similar usage (the dative case … Continue reading The Impersonal Construction With the Dative Indicating a State of Being
Many of you are outstanding experts in the field of Romanian language, grammar and usage and I thank you for all of your help in this regard. But some of you are not native Romanian speakers. I was looking through some of my notes here to see what topics I’d like to write about and I’d like your input. Is there any particular part of … Continue reading Grammar/Language Questions
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