English "so (that)" hides two different ideas under one phrase: a purpose ("I studied so that I'd pass" — the goal I was aiming at) and a result ("I studied so much that I passed" — the consequence that actually happened). Romanian keeps them apart, and the mood tells you which is which. Purpose uses ca să (or heavier pentru ca…să) with the subjunctive, because the goal is not yet real. Result uses așa că, încât, or astfel încât with the indicative, because the consequence is a fact that occurred. Once you feel that intended-vs-achieved contrast, the conjunction picks itself.
Purpose: ca să (+ subjunctive)
A purpose clause answers "what for? / to what end?" The goal is something you are steering toward — by definition not yet accomplished — so Romanian marks it with the subjunctive after ca să. The light ca să is the everyday choice; the full pentru ca…să is its more formal, emphatic variant (and note the word order: pentru ca + subject + să + verb).
Învăț în fiecare seară ca să trec examenul.
I study every evening in order to pass the exam.
Ți-am lăsat un bilet ca să știi unde sunt.
I left you a note so that you'd know where I am.
Vorbește mai tare, ca să te audă toată lumea.
Speak up, so that everyone can hear you.
Am venit mai devreme pentru ca toți să apucăm locuri bune.
I came early so that we'd all get good seats. (formal — pentru ca…să)
When the subject of the goal is the same as the main subject, Romanian also allows the prepositional infinitive pentru a in formal/written style: Învăț pentru a trece examenul (see the conjunctive-vs-infinitive guide). But in speech, ca să + subjunctive is the default for both same-subject and different-subject purposes. The deeper machinery of purpose clauses — negative purpose (ca să nu), and when să alone suffices — is covered in purpose clauses.
Result: așa că, încât, astfel încât (+ indicative)
A result clause answers "and what happened as a consequence?" The consequence is a fact that came about, so it takes the indicative. Three connectors do this job, with a difference in tightness:
așa că ("so / and so") is the loose, conversational "and as a result" — it links two clauses almost like a coordinating conjunction:
Era târziu, așa că am luat un taxi.
It was late, so I took a taxi.
încât ("such that / so…that") is the tight result tied to a degree in the main clause — typically atât de…, așa de…, un asemenea… ("so much / so… that"):
A învățat atât de mult încât a trecut examenul fără emoții.
He studied so much that he passed the exam without a worry.
Era așa de cald încât nu puteam respira.
It was so hot that I couldn't breathe.
astfel încât ("so that / in such a way that") is the formal/written cousin of încât; it can lean either toward result (indicative) or, less commonly, toward intended manner (subjunctive), but its core result use takes the indicative:
Datele au fost organizate astfel încât oricine le poate citi ușor.
The data were arranged so that anyone can read them easily. (formal — result, indicative)
These degree-and-result patterns connect to the broader exclamative and degree constructions; the atât de … încât frame is the neutral statement version of the exclamative "so…!".
The contrast, side by side
The same opening clause can branch into purpose or result, and only the mood differs:
Vorbește tare ca să-l audă toți.
Speak loudly so that everyone hears him. (purpose — intended, subjunctive: audă)
Vorbește atât de tare încât îl aud toți.
He speaks so loudly that everyone hears him. (result — actual, indicative: aud)
Read them together. The first is a goal: the hearing has not happened yet, it is what the loudness is for. The second is a fact: the loudness is so great that the hearing does happen. Romanian writes that difference into the verb — audă (subjunctive, wished-for) vs aud (indicative, real).
Selector table
| You mean… | Conjunction | Mood | Register |
|---|---|---|---|
| purpose — the intended goal ("in order to / so that") | ca să | subjunctive | neutral, everyday |
| purpose — emphatic / formal | pentru ca…să | subjunctive | (formal) |
| purpose — same subject, written | pentru a
| infinitive | (formal) |
| result — loose "and so" | așa că | indicative | (informal)/neutral |
| result — tied to a degree ("so…that") | încât (atât de… încât) | indicative | neutral |
| result — formal "in such a way that" | astfel încât | indicative | (formal) |
Why the mood does the work
The purpose/result split is the same irrealis logic that runs through Romanian's whole subordination system. A purpose is by definition not yet achieved — it is the not-yet-real target of the main action — so it lives in the subjunctive's territory of wishes and aims. A result is something that actually came to pass — a fact about the world — so it takes the indicative, the mood of asserted reality. English flattens both into "so (that)" and leaves you to infer which one from context; Romanian refuses to flatten them, and rewards you with a verb form that says outright whether the second clause is a goal or an outcome.
Note also the near-homonym from the causal page: pentru că (+ indicative) means "because" (a cause), while pentru ca…să (+ subjunctive) means "so that" (a purpose). One is the reason behind an action, the other the goal ahead of it — and again, the mood keeps them apart.
Common Mistakes
❌ Învăț ca să trec examenul, încât să iau o notă mare.
Muddled — purpose is ca să + subjunctive (trec), but a result tied to a degree is încât + indicative, not încât să. For a second goal, keep ca să: …ca să iau o notă mare.
✅ Învăț ca să trec examenul și să iau o notă mare.
I'm studying to pass the exam and get a high grade.
❌ A învățat atât de mult încât să treacă examenul.
Wrong mood for a result — the passing actually happened, so it's indicative: încât a trecut examenul. (încât + subjunctive would force a purpose reading, which clashes with 'atât de mult'.)
✅ A învățat atât de mult încât a trecut examenul.
He studied so much that he passed the exam.
❌ Era târziu, încât am luat un taxi.
Stilted — a loose 'and so' result is așa că, not bare încât (încât needs a degree word like atât de): Era târziu, așa că am luat un taxi.
✅ Era târziu, așa că am luat un taxi.
It was late, so I took a taxi.
❌ Vorbește tare pentru că toți să-l audă.
Confused with cause — 'so that' (purpose) is ca să, not pentru că (which means 'because'): Vorbește tare ca să-l audă toți.
✅ Vorbește tare ca să-l audă toți.
Speak loudly so that everyone hears him.
Key Takeaways
- Purpose (the intended goal, not yet real) → ca să + subjunctive; formal variant pentru ca…să, written same-subject pentru a + infinitive.
- Result (the achieved consequence, a fact) → așa că (loose "and so"), încât (tied to atât de…), or astfel încât (formal) — all
- indicative
- The mood encodes the meaning: subjunctive = aim, indicative = outcome. English blurs both into "so (that)".
- Keep the family straight: pentru că = because (cause), ca să = so that (purpose), încât = so that (result).
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Start learning Romanian→Related Topics
- Conjunctions: An OverviewA1 — A map of the Romanian conjunction system — the coordinators (și, sau/ori, dar/iar/însă, deci, nici) that join equals, and the subordinators (că, să, dacă, când, pentru că, deși) that hang one clause off another. The organizing insight is the că vs să split: că introduces asserted facts and takes the indicative, while să introduces wanted, possible, or commanded actions and takes the conjunctiv — the very same fact/non-fact decision that runs the whole mood system.
- Causal Conjunctions (pentru că, fiindcă, deoarece, căci)A2 — The Romanian 'because' family — pentru că (neutral), fiindcă (colloquial), deoarece (formal/written), căci (literary), din cauză că / datorită faptului că — all taking the indicative, graded by register, plus the dangerous near-homonym pentru ca…să (so that).
- Conjunctiv in Purpose Clauses (ca să, pentru ca să)B1 — How Romanian expresses purpose ('in order to'): ca să + conjunctiv, the bare să after motion verbs, pentru ca…să with an intervening element, and the formal pentru a + infinitive alternative.
- Degree Exclamatives and Intensity (ce de, atâta, așa de)B2 — Romanian splits intensity exclamatives along a degree/quantity line: atât de / așa de + adjective expresses degree ('so beautiful'), while atâta / atâția + noun expresses quantity ('so much / so many'). The particle 'de' surfaces in the quantitative ce de ('Ce de oameni!') and in vivid idiomatic intensifiers like 'frumos de pică'. This page sorts ce, ce de, atât de, așa de, and atâta so you stop confusing 'so' with 'so much'.
- să-Subjunctive vs InfinitiveB1 — When to chain verbs with the să-subjunctive (Vreau să plec) and the narrow set of cases where Romanian still uses the bare infinitive — almost exclusively after prepositions (pentru a reuși, fără a ști) and after a putea.