Yes! Today you get not one but two awesome Romanian words explained, thus doubling your pleasure! The first one is a common phrase: a freca menta. You might recognize the word mentă because it comes from the same Latin root as in English, meaning “mint”, whether the savory plant or the flavor that we derive from it. The verb freca however means to “rub” or … Continue reading Double Your Pleasure
Every morning when I wake up, I follow a little ritual. The alarm sounds and my very first thought is, “Holy shit, where am I?” Yeah I know that’s a little odd but I guess I’ve lived in a lot of places so it happens even when I’m at home. The second thing that happens is that I get out of bed and then there’s … Continue reading Quick, Henry, the Flit!
It’s really interesting understanding the etymology (origin) of words. In both Romanian and English the word film came from French, originally meaning a “thin coating” or a thin layer on the surface of something. The first films (referring to photographs or movies) were a special kind of paper which had a thin layer of chemicals on the top, hence the name. Later in English the … Continue reading WOTD: Film vs. Film Serial
I keep being surprised (and slightly puzzled) that certain foreigners genuinely want to learn Romanian. Obviously it’s good to know how to ask for directions or count numbers but some people I meet want to take it to the next level and actually have a conversation. In my unofficial role as “Dat Engrish Speaker Who Also Speakee Romanian” I hereby present a little lesson on … Continue reading The Many Faces of ING
The other day I came across a Romanian news article with the acronym “ș.a.m.d” tacked onto the end of a sentence and it made me laugh. Lately I’ve been hearing from a few people who (unbelievably!) are actually trying to learn Romanian so I thought I’d add this one to the repertoire in case you find this little phrase and wonder what it means. Simply … Continue reading Ș.A.M.D
All Things Romania 