In English you never say "the this man" — a demonstrative like this already makes the noun definite, so adding the is ungrammatical. Romanian works on a different principle: under the right word order, definiteness is marked twice, once by the enclitic article on the noun and once by the demonstrative. This is called double determination (dubla determinare). The whole system turns on one precise mechanic that competing grammars usually state vaguely: a demonstrative placed after the noun forces the definite article onto that noun, while a demonstrative placed before the noun does not. Master that rule and the rest follows.
Two word orders, one meaning
Romanian lets you say "this man" in two ways, and they mean the same thing but differ in register and in where the article goes.
| Order | Form | Article on noun? | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| preposed demonstrative | acest om | no — bare noun | more formal / written |
| postposed demonstrative | omulacesta | yes — definite article required | neutral / everyday |
Notice the demonstrative also changes shape: the preposed form is the shorter acest, the postposed form is the longer acesta (with a final -a). The long form is the one that pairs with the articled noun.
Acest om m-a ajutat enorm anul trecut.
This man helped me enormously last year. (preposed — bare noun, more formal)
Omul acesta m-a ajutat enorm anul trecut.
This man helped me enormously last year. (postposed — articled noun, everyday)
Mașina aceasta consumă prea mult.
This car uses too much fuel. (postposed: mașin-a + aceasta)
The everyday spoken default is the postposed order (omul acesta, mașina aceasta). The preposed order (acest om, această mașină) sounds more deliberate and is common in writing, news, and careful speech.
Why the postposed demonstrative forces the article
Here is the underlying logic. The postposed demonstrative is, historically and structurally, a second element added to an already-complete definite noun phrase. The noun phrase omul ("the man") stands on its own; acesta is then appended to point at it more precisely — roughly "the-man, this-one-here". Because omul is the actual host noun phrase, it must be fully formed, and a fully formed definite noun phrase in Romanian carries its enclitic article. The demonstrative leans on a definite phrase; it does not replace its definiteness.
The preposed demonstrative, by contrast, sits in the determiner slot at the front of the phrase — the same slot the indefinite un/o occupies — and a filled front determiner slot blocks the enclitic article, exactly as un băiat (not un băiatul) blocks it. One determiner per slot.
Cartea aceasta merită citită de două ori.
This book is worth reading twice.
Această carte merită citită de două ori.
This book is worth reading twice. (preposed equivalent)
The same pattern with acel (that)
Everything above applies identically to the "that" series (acel/acea preposed, acela/aceea postposed) and to all genders and numbers.
Acel restaurant s-a închis acum un an.
That restaurant closed a year ago. (preposed — bare noun)
Restaurantul acela s-a închis acum un an.
That restaurant closed a year ago. (postposed — articled noun)
Copiii aceia se joacă în curte toată ziua.
Those children play in the yard all day long. (plural, postposed)
Cel + adjective: another face of double determination
A close relative of this construction uses cel (and its forms cea, cei, cele) to attach an adjective to an already-definite noun: fata cea frumoasă ("the beautiful girl", literally "the-girl the beautiful-one"). Here the noun carries its own definite article (fata) and the adjective is introduced by cel, so definiteness surfaces twice again — once enclitically, once in cel.
Fata cea frumoasă din clasă s-a mutat la altă școală.
The beautiful girl in the class moved to another school.
Băiatul cel mare are deja permis de conducere.
The older boy already has a driving licence.
Ne-a povestit despre vremurile cele bune de odinioară.
He told us about the good old days of long ago.
This cel + adjective pattern feels slightly literary or emphatic; in plain everyday speech you would more often say fata frumoasă (article on the noun, adjective bare) or fata aia frumoasă (informal). The cel construction singles the quality out — "the beautiful one specifically" — which is why it shows up in storytelling (Făt-Frumos, băiatul cel mic in fairy tales) and in fixed labels like Ștefan cel Mare ("Stephen the Great"). The full mechanics of cel live on the cel buffer-article page.
Common Mistakes
❌ om acesta
Incorrect — a postposed demonstrative forces the article on the noun: omul acesta.
✅ omul acesta
this man
❌ acest omul
Incorrect — a preposed demonstrative blocks the enclitic article; the noun stays bare: acest om.
✅ acest om
this man
❌ omul acest
Incorrect — the postposed form is the long acesta, not the short acest: omul acesta.
✅ omul acesta
this man
❌ fata frumoasă cea (or cea fata frumoasă)
Incorrect word order — cel/cea sits between the articled noun and the adjective: fata cea frumoasă.
✅ fata cea frumoasă
the beautiful girl
❌ această cartea
Incorrect — preposed demonstratives, like all front determiners, take a bare noun: această carte.
✅ această carte
this book
Key takeaways
- Romanian can mark definiteness twice — that is double determination.
- Postposed demonstrative → noun must carry the article (omul acesta); the demonstrative takes its long form (acesta, not acest).
- Preposed demonstrative → noun stays bare (acest om); the filled front slot blocks the enclitic article.
- Cel
- adjective (fata cea frumoasă, Ștefan cel Mare) is a second double-determination pattern, slightly literary, used for emphasis and epithets.
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Start learning Romanian→Related Topics
- Romanian Articles: An OverviewA1 — A map of Romanian's article system, whose standout feature is the enclitic definite article attached to the end of the noun — there is no separate word for 'the'.
- The Definite Article: Masculine (-ul, -le)A1 — How the enclitic definite article attaches to masculine and neuter singular nouns — -ul after a consonant, -l after final -u, -le after final -e — and why the choice is phonologically predictable.
- Demonstratives: acest/acel (this/that)A2 — Romanian 'this' (acest/această/acești/aceste) and 'that' (acel/acea/acei/acele) agree in gender and number and live in two positions — a short preposed form on a bare noun (acest om) and a long postposed form that forces the definite article onto the noun (omul acesta) — plus the everyday colloquial ăsta/ăla.
- The cel Buffer Article in Complex PhrasesB2 — How cel/cea/cei/cele re-marks definiteness on a modifier that has become detached from its noun — omul cel bătrân ('the old man'), the ordinals cel de-al doilea ('the second'), counting phrases cei trei muschetari ('the three musketeers'), and epithets Ștefan cel Mare ('Stephen the Great'). cel is the buffer that reactivates 'the' on a separated adjective, ordinal, or numeral.
- When the Article Lands on the AdjectiveB1 — Why the Romanian definite article docks on whatever comes first in the noun phrase — a fronted adjective takes it (frumoasa fată, marele om) while the default order keeps it on the noun (fata frumoasă).