The subject pronouns are the eu, tu, el, ea of Romanian — the words for "I, you, he, she" when they do the acting. They look like the friendliest thing in the language, and in a way they are: the list is short and there's nothing tricky to conjugate. But two facts make them less English than they appear. First, Romanian is pro-drop — you usually leave the pronoun out entirely, because the verb ending already tells you who's speaking. Second, "you" is not one word but a ladder of politeness — tu, dumneata, dumneavoastră — and each rung commands a different verb agreement that you have to get right. This page covers both.
The nominative pronouns
Here are the eight subject pronouns. Romanian splits "they" by gender — ei (masculine or mixed) and ele (all feminine) — a distinction English collapses into one "they."
| Pronoun | Meaning | Example verb |
|---|---|---|
| eu | I | eu vorbesc — I speak |
| tu | you (familiar sg.) | tu vorbești — you speak |
| el | he | el vorbește — he speaks |
| ea | she | ea vorbește — she speaks |
| noi | we | noi vorbim — we speak |
| voi | you (familiar pl.) | voi vorbiți — you speak |
| ei | they (m./mixed) | ei vorbesc — they speak |
| ele | they (f.) | ele vorbesc — they speak |
Ei merg la munte, ele rămân la mare.
They (the men) are going to the mountains, they (the women) are staying at the seaside. (gendered ei vs ele)
Pro-drop: why you usually leave the pronoun out
This is the deep structural point. Every Romanian verb ending is unambiguous about person — vorbesc can only be "I speak," vorbești only "you speak," vorbim only "we speak." Because the ending already carries that information, the subject pronoun is redundant in a plain statement, and Romanian simply drops it. The natural way to say "I'm reading" is Citesc, not Eu citesc; "Where are you going?" is Unde mergi?, not Unde mergi tu?. Including the pronoun in neutral speech sounds heavy and faintly un-native, the way English "I, I am going to the store" would sound insistent. This is the opposite of the English rule, where the subject is almost always obligatory, so it takes deliberate effort to stop saying eu.
Vorbesc puțin românește, dar înțeleg destul de bine.
I speak a little Romanian, but I understand fairly well. (no eu — the endings -esc, -eg carry the person)
Unde mergi după muncă?
Where are you going after work? (no tu — mergi is unambiguously 'you')
When the pronoun does appear: emphasis and contrast
You bring the pronoun back precisely when you want to put weight on the subject — to contrast it with someone else, to single it out, to correct. EU plătesc, nu tu ("I'm paying, not you"). El a spus asta, nu eu ("He said that, not me"). The spoken stress lands on the pronoun. So the rule is clean: drop it by default, restore it to emphasize or contrast. This makes the explicit pronoun a real piece of meaning, not filler — when a Romanian uses eu, they are usually pointing at themselves as opposed to someone else.
Eu plătesc cina, tu plătești taxiul, de acord?
I'll pay for dinner, you pay for the taxi, deal? (contrast — both pronouns explicit)
Nu știu cine a spart geamul, dar eu sigur nu.
I don't know who broke the window, but it certainly wasn't me. (emphatic eu)
The full mechanics — including the cases where you must keep the pronoun to avoid ambiguity — live on the dropping subject pronouns page.
The politeness ladder for "you"
Now the part with real social stakes. Romanian does not have one "you"; it has a graded ladder, and choosing the wrong rung can sound either rude or stiff.
- tu — familiar singular. For friends, family, children, peers, anyone you're on first-name terms with. Takes the ordinary 2nd-person singular verb (tu vii).
- dumneata — semi-formal singular. A middle rung: more respectful than tu but not fully deferential — used between acquaintances, by older people to younger ones, sometimes with a slightly old-fashioned or condescending tint. Its quirk: it takes a singular verb (dumneata vii), unlike the fully formal pronoun.
- dumneavoastră — formal, singular or plural in meaning. The standard polite "you" for strangers, officials, customers, elders, anyone you'd address by title. Its quirk: it always takes the 2nd-person plural verb (dumneavoastră veniți), even when you're addressing one person.
| Pronoun | Register | Verb agreement | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| tu | familiar | 2sg | tu vii — you come |
| dumneata | semi-formal | 2sg | dumneata vii — you come |
| dumneavoastră | formal | 2pl | dumneavoastră veniți — you come |
Dumneavoastră ce doriți să comandați?
What would you like to order? (formal dumneavoastră + 2pl verb doriți, comandați — addressed to one customer)
Dumneata ce părere ai despre asta?
What's your opinion on this? (semi-formal dumneata + singular verb ai)
The choice between tu and dumneavoastră is a whole social skill in itself, covered on the tu vs dumneavoastră page.
Polite third person: dânsul, dânsa
There's a parallel courtesy form for talking about someone (not to them). Instead of el/ea ("he/she"), polite or respectful speech often uses dânsul ("he," respectful) and dânsa ("she," respectful), with plurals dânșii / dânsele. They take an ordinary third-person verb. In much of the country they simply mark politeness toward an absent third party — a teacher referring to a parent, a clerk referring to a customer; in some regions (notably Moldova) dânsul/dânsa are used more loosely, almost as neutral he/she. As a learner, treat them as the respectful alternative to el/ea.
Domnul Ionescu a sunat; dânsul vrea să vă vorbească.
Mr. Ionescu called; he wants to speak with you. (respectful dânsul for an absent third person)
Doamna doctor nu e azi la cabinet; dânsa revine luni.
The doctor isn't at the office today; she'll be back on Monday. (respectful dânsa)
Common Mistakes
Don't pepper every sentence with subject pronouns — it's an English reflex that sounds heavy:
❌ Eu cred că eu am dreptate și eu nu mă răzgândesc.
Overloaded — Romanian drops the pronoun; one emphatic eu at most.
✅ Cred că am dreptate și nu mă răzgândesc.
I think I'm right and I'm not changing my mind.
Don't give dumneavoastră a singular verb — it always takes the plural:
❌ Dumneavoastră ești foarte amabil.
Incorrect — dumneavoastră takes a 2pl verb: sunteți, not ești.
✅ Dumneavoastră sunteți foarte amabil.
You are very kind. (formal, addressing one person)
Don't give dumneata a plural verb — it's grammatically singular:
❌ Dumneata sunteți de aici?
Incorrect — dumneata takes a singular verb: ești.
✅ Dumneata ești de aici?
Are you from around here? (semi-formal)
Don't use familiar tu with a stranger or in a formal setting — switch to dumneavoastră:
❌ Tu ce recomanzi din meniu? (to a waiter you don't know)
Too familiar with a stranger — use the formal: Dumneavoastră ce recomandați?
✅ Dumneavoastră ce recomandați din meniu?
What do you recommend from the menu?
Don't drop the pronoun when contrast actually needs it — ambiguity creeps in:
❌ A plătit cina, nu a plătit taxiul. (meaning 'HE paid for dinner, not me')
Unclear without the pronouns — restore them for the contrast: El a plătit cina, nu eu.
✅ El a plătit cina, nu eu.
He paid for dinner, not me.
Key Takeaways
- The subject pronouns are eu, tu, el, ea, noi, voi, ei, ele; "they" splits by gender into ei (m./mixed) and ele (f.).
- Romanian is pro-drop: drop the pronoun by default (the verb ending shows the person) and restore it only for emphasis or contrast (EU plătesc, nu tu).
- "You" is a politeness ladder: tu (familiar) → dumneata (semi-formal, singular verb) → dumneavoastră (formal, plural verb even for one person).
- Dânsul / dânsa are the respectful third person ("he/she") for talking about someone politely.
- The classic error is agreement: dumneavoastră
- plural verb, dumneata
- singular verb.
- plural verb, dumneata
Now practice Romanian
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Start learning Romanian→Related Topics
- Romanian Pronouns: An OverviewA1 — A map of the whole pronoun system — personal pronouns (eu/tu/el) with separate strong (mine, ție) and clitic (mă, îți) forms for accusative and dative, plus reflexive clitics, possessives, demonstratives, relatives, interrogatives and indefinites — and why the clitic system is the hard core, because pronouns preserve the full case system that nouns mostly lost.
- The Politeness System (T/V) in UseB1 — When Romanians actually choose tu (intimacy, equality) versus dumneavoastră (distance, respect), who is allowed to propose the switch to tu, why dumneavoastră is the safe default with anyone unfamiliar or senior, and where the fading middle form dumneata fits — the social logic behind a choice English speakers don't have to make.
- Why Romanian Drops Subject PronounsA1 — Romanian is a pro-drop language: the verb ending already names the subject, so eu, tu, and noi are normally left out — and adding them sounds emphatic, not casual.
- Mistake: Politeness Agreement with *dumneavoastră*B1 — English speakers make *dumneavoastră* take a singular verb (*dumneavoastră este) and overuse *tu* with strangers. The fix pairs a grammar rule — dumneavoastră ALWAYS takes 2nd-person PLURAL agreement, even for one person — with a social rule: use it with anyone unfamiliar or higher-ranking.
- Case Marking on PronounsB1 — Why Romanian pronouns preserve a far richer case system than nouns — distinct nominative (eu, tu, el), accusative (mă/pe mine, te/pe tine), and dative (îmi/mie, îți/ție) forms, split into clitic and strong sets — and how this is where most of the real case-learning happens.