When a speaker backs up a general claim with a concrete instance — "for example," "such as," "let's say" — they use exemplifying markers. English mostly gets by with "for example" and "such as." Romanian draws finer lines: it has a whole register ladder for "for example" (neutral, bookish, literary) and keeps a single illustration distinct from a list of types. Choosing the right one signals not just meaning but tone — reaching for bunăoară in casual chat sounds as quaint as an English speaker saying "to wit." This page sorts the family by register and by the kind of example it introduces.
The register ladder of "for example"
Romanian has three words that all mean "for example," differing almost entirely in how formal and old-fashioned they sound. Picturing them as rungs on a ladder is the cleanest way to learn them.
de exemplu ("for example") is the neutral, universal one — the default you reach for in any register, spoken or written. If in doubt, use this.
Îmi plac fructele de vară, de exemplu pepenele și caisele.
I like summer fruit, for example watermelon and apricots.
Poți plăti în mai multe feluri, de exemplu cu cardul sau cu telefonul.
You can pay in several ways, for example by card or by phone.
de pildă ("for instance") is a notch more bookish — slightly literary, common in careful writing and elevated speech, but not archaic. It is a graceful variant of de exemplu that a well-read speaker uses to avoid repetition.
Multe verbe sunt neregulate — de pildă, 'a fi' și 'a avea'.
Many verbs are irregular — for instance, 'a fi' and 'a avea'. (bookish)
bunăoară ("for instance") is distinctly (literary) / older — markedly old-fashioned in everyday speech, the kind of word you meet in literature, in the speech of older speakers, or in deliberately elevated prose. Recognizing it is useful; using it in casual conversation sounds quaint.
Unii scriitori, bunăoară Caragiale, au schimbat limba literară.
Some writers, for instance Caragiale, changed the literary language. (literary/older)
ca de exemplu — "such as, like for example"
ca de exemplu ("such as, like for example") combines ca ("like/as") with de exemplu to introduce examples appended to a noun — "things such as, for example…". It is neutral and very common in speech, a slightly more colloquial run-up to a list.
Caut un cadou, ca de exemplu o carte sau un joc.
I'm looking for a gift, such as a book or a game.
precum and cum ar fi — opening a list of types
These two introduce not a single illustration but a list of representative types — "such as," appended directly to a noun to give a few exemplary members of a category. This is a different job from de exemplu: where de exemplu spotlights one case, cum ar fi and precum open a small set of typical instances.
cum ar fi ("such as, like") is the neutral, everyday one — literally "as would be," it's the spoken default for "such as."
Avem nevoie de provizii de bază, cum ar fi apă, conserve și baterii.
We need basic supplies, such as water, canned food, and batteries.
Limbi romanice, cum ar fi italiana și spaniola, sunt înrudite.
Romance languages, such as Italian and Spanish, are related.
precum ("such as, like") is the more (formal) / literary equivalent — tighter and more elevated than cum ar fi, common in written and careful registers.
Orașe mari precum București și Cluj atrag tinerii.
Large cities such as Bucharest and Cluj attract young people. (formal)
The contrast to fix in mind: de exemplu introduces an illustration ("here's a case: …"), while cum ar fi / precum introduce a list of types glued to a noun ("X's, such as A, B, C"). English uses "such as" for the second and "for example" for the first, so the line maps cleanly — but Romanian learners often default to de exemplu for both, which sounds clumsy when a cum ar fi is wanted.
să zicem — the hypothetical "let's say"
să zicem ("let's say, say…") introduces a hypothetical or estimated example — a figure or case offered for the sake of argument rather than as a real instance. It is conversational and neutral, the exact match for English "say" / "let's say."
Dacă pleci mai devreme, să zicem pe la șase, eviți traficul.
If you leave earlier — let's say around six — you'll avoid the traffic.
Imaginează-ți o sumă mare, să zicem zece mii.
Imagine a large sum, say ten thousand.
| Marker | Job | Register |
|---|---|---|
| de exemplu | for example (single illustration) | neutral / universal |
| de pildă | for instance | bookish / (formal) |
| bunăoară | for instance | (literary) / older |
| ca de exemplu | such as, like for example | neutral / spoken |
| cum ar fi | such as (list of types) | neutral |
| precum | such as (list of types) | (formal) / literary |
| să zicem | let's say (hypothetical) | neutral / conversational |
Common Mistakes
The signature errors are reaching for the literary bunăoară in casual talk, confusing the single-illustration de exemplu with the list-introducing cum ar fi, and overusing de exemplu as a filler.
❌ Hai să luăm ceva de băut, bunăoară o bere.
Register clash — bunăoară is literary/old-fashioned and jars in a casual offer. Use de exemplu: …de exemplu o bere.
✅ Hai să luăm ceva de băut, de exemplu o bere.
Let's get something to drink, for example a beer. (informal)
❌ Avem nevoie de provizii, de exemplu apă, conserve și baterii.
Clumsy — a list of representative types glued to a noun wants cum ar fi (such as), not the single-instance de exemplu.
✅ Avem nevoie de provizii, cum ar fi apă, conserve și baterii.
We need supplies, such as water, canned food, and batteries.
❌ De exemplu, de exemplu, păi de exemplu nu știu ce să zic.
Filler overload — de exemplu used as verbal padding. One example marker is enough, and only when an actual example follows.
✅ Nu știu, de exemplu, dacă mai sunt bilete.
I don't know, for example, whether there are still tickets. (informal)
❌ Costă mult, precum o mie de lei.
Wrong marker for a hypothetical figure — precum introduces a list of types, not an estimate. Use să zicem: …să zicem o mie de lei.
✅ Costă mult, să zicem o mie de lei.
It costs a lot — let's say a thousand lei.
Key Takeaways
- Romanian has a register ladder for "for example": neutral de exemplu (use anywhere), bookish de pildă (a touch of polish), literary/older bunăoară (quaint in casual speech).
- cum ar fi and precum mean "such as" — they open a list of representative types glued to a noun, distinct from the single-illustration de exemplu. precum is the more formal/literary of the two.
- ca de exemplu is the colloquial run-up to a list; să zicem introduces a hypothetical "let's say" figure or case.
- Match both register (how bookish) and scope (one illustration vs a list of types) to the situation — and don't let de exemplu become a filler.
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Start learning Romanian→Related Topics
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- Sentence Connectors (deci, totuși, prin urmare, așadar)B1 — The connectors that link whole sentences rather than join clauses — deci (so/therefore), prin urmare and așadar (consequently, formal), totuși (however), de aceea (that's why), în plus (moreover), de altfel (besides) and pe de altă parte (on the other hand) — with their clause-initial position, comma punctuation, and the register signal that separates casual deci from formal așadar.
- Spoken vs Written RomanianB2 — Medium (spoken vs written) and formality (informal vs formal) are two independent axes. Spoken Romanian favors the o-să future, ăsta/asta, dropped final -l, clitic fusion, fillers, repair, and dislocation (Cartea, am citit-o); written Romanian favors the voi-future, acesta, full forms, dense subordination, and — in narrative — the perfectul simplu. Crucially, even a formal SPEECH keeps some spoken features that a formal LETTER would not, so 'spoken vs written' is not the same cut as 'informal vs formal'.