Romanian Verb Conjugation A Quick Guide

Romanian is a Romance language that retains many features of Latin while also showing influences from Slavic, Hungarian, and Turkish. One of the most distinctive aspects of Romanian grammar is its verb system. This page presents the essentials of Romanian verb conjugation for learners who already have a basic knowledge of the language.

1. What makes Romanian verbs special?

• Three conjugations verbs are grouped according to the infinitive ending: -a, -ea, and -i.
• Four moods indicative, subjunctive, conditional and imperative.
• Two voices active and passive (the passive is built with the auxiliary a fi + past participle).
• Four persons 1st, 2nd, 3rd; singular and plural.
• Seven tenses in the indicative mood: present, imperfect, perfect simple, perfect composite, pluperfect, future I, future II.

2. The infinitive classes

Class	Typical ending	Example
1st	-a	a iubi (to love)
2nd	-ea	a vedea (to see)
3rd	-i	a scrie (to write)

Most verbs follow a predictable pattern inside their class, but there are irregularities that must be memorised (e.g., a fi to be, a avea to have, a merge to go).

3. Present tense indicative

The present tense expresses habits, general truths, and actions happening now. Below are the regular endings for each class.

3.1. 1st conjugation (-a)

Person	Ending	Example with cnta (to sing)
eu	-	cnt
tu	-i	cni
el/ea	-	cnt
noi	-m	cntm
voi	-ai	cntai
ei/ele	-	cnt

3.2. 2nd conjugation (-ea)

Person	Ending	Example with vedea (to see)
eu	-d	vd
tu	-ezi	vezi
el/ea	-e	vede
noi	-em	vedem
voi	-ei	vedeai
ei/ele	-e	ved

3.3. 3rd conjugation (-i)

Person	Ending	Example with scrie (to write)
eu	-u	scriu
tu	-i	scrii
el/ea	-e	scrie
noi	-em	scriem
voi	-ei	scriei
ei/ele	-u	scriu

4. The imperfect (past habitual)

The imperfect is used for repeated or ongoing actions in the past, and for background descriptions. It adds the suffix -am, -ai, -a, -am, -ai, -au to the stem for 1st and 2nd conjugations, while the 3rd conjugation uses -eam, -eai, -ea, -eam, -eai, -eau.

Example a vorbi (to speak, 1st class)

• eu vorbeam
• tu vorbeai
• el/ea vorbea
• noi vorbeam
• voi vorbeai
• ei/ele vorbeau

5. The perfect (simple) and compound perfect

Romanian has two simple past tenses. The simple perfect (prezentul perfect simplu) is rare in spoken language and is preserved mainly in literary or historical contexts. The compound perfect (perfectul compus) is the everyday past.

5.1. Compound perfect formation

It uses the present tense of the auxiliary a avea + past participle.

Eu am cntat I sang / I have sung

5.2. Past participles

• 1st class: stem + -t (cnta cntat)
• 2nd class: stem + -t (vedea vzut)
• 3rd class: stem + -t (scrie scris)
• Irregulars may change the stem (ex.: nchide nchis).

6. The future tenses

Two future forms exist. Future I is the simple future formed with the infinitive + personal endings. Future II is a periphrastic future, built with the auxiliary a avea + past participle + infinitive.

Future I simple

Take the infinitive and add the endings -u, -i, -, -em, -i, - (the exact shape depends on the verb).

Eu voi cnta I will sing

Future II compound

Formed like the perfect but with the infinitive at the end.

Eu voi fi cntat I will have been sung (rare, formal).

7. Subjunctive mood

The subjunctive expresses wishes, doubts, or indirect commands. It is formed from the present stem plus the endings - s + verb (personal). In practice, the particle s precedes the verb in the present subjunctive, and the past subjunctive uses the auxiliary a fi + past participle.

S vin mine! May he come tomorrow!

8. Conditional mood

The conditional indicates hypothetical actions. It adds the same personal endings as the future I to the infinitive.

A cnta dac a avea timp I would sing if I had time.

9. Imperative

Commands use the verb stem directly for the 2nd person singular, and the 2nd person plural adds -i or -ii for the 1st conjugation, -i for the 2nd, and -ii for the 3rd.

Cnt! (Singular) Sing!
Cntai! (Plural) Sing, you all!

10. Passive voice

The passive is formed with the auxiliary a fi (conjugated in the required tense) + past participle, which agrees in gender and number with the subject.

Cntecul este cntat de cor The song is sung by the choir.

11. Common irregular verbs

Infinitive	Present (eu)	Past participle	Notes
a fi	sunt	fost	Highly irregular; used as auxiliary.
a avea	am	avut	Used as auxiliary for perfect.
a merge	merg	mers	3rd class, stem change in some forms.
a vrea	vreau	vrut	Irregular in future and conditional.
a ti	tiu	tiut	Changes in 2nd person singular (tii).

12. Quick cheatsheet

• Identify the class by the infinitive ending.
• Learn the present indicative endings they are the basis for most other forms.
• Use a avea + past participle for the compound perfect, pluperfect and future II.
• Remember s before the verb for the subjunctive.
• Check irregular verbs individually; they often appear in the most common verbs.

With these patterns in mind, you can start building sentences and recognizing verbs in Romanian texts. Practice by conjugating a handful of verbs from each class and then try to use them in simple dialogues. Over time the irregularities will become familiar, and the regular patterns will feel natural.