A schimba ("to change") covers the whole spread of English change: swapping money, changing trains, changing your clothes, changing your mind, and the weather turning. The grammar splits along the familiar transitive/reflexive line. Used transitively, a schimba ceva is to change something — you act on an object (the money, the train, the subject). Used reflexively, a se schimba turns the action back on the subject: to change one's clothes, to change (as a person), or — with an inanimate subject — to change in the intransitive sense, as in vremea se schimbă, "the weather is changing."
It is a plain first-conjugation verb (the -a class, no -ez- infix). The stem schimb- is stable — no vowel alternation — which makes it an easy paradigm to learn; the only real challenge is choosing between the transitive and reflexive uses.
Prezent indicativ
Drop the -a to reach the stem schimb- and add the plain Class I endings. The 1st singular has no ending: schimb.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | schimb |
| tu | schimbi |
| el / ea | schimbă |
| noi | schimbăm |
| voi | schimbați |
| ei / ele | schimbă |
Schimb banii la casa de schimb de lângă gară.
I'll change the money at the exchange office near the station.
Te schimbi acum sau mergem așa cum suntem?
Are you changing now, or are we going as we are?
Imperfect
Regular first-conjugation imperfect: stem schimb- plus the -am endings. It describes habitual or ongoing change in the past.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | schimbam |
| tu | schimbai |
| el / ea | schimba |
| noi | schimbam |
| voi | schimbați |
| ei / ele | schimbau |
Pe vremuri schimbam mașina la fiecare doi ani.
Back then I used to change my car every two years.
Perfect compus
The auxiliary a avea plus the invariable participle schimbat.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | am schimbat |
| tu | ai schimbat |
| el / ea | a schimbat |
| noi | am schimbat |
| voi | ați schimbat |
| ei / ele | au schimbat |
Și-a schimbat numărul de telefon și nu l-am mai putut găsi.
He changed his phone number and I couldn't reach him anymore.
Mai-mult-ca-perfectul
A single synthetic word, built on the participle stem schimbase-.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | schimbasem |
| tu | schimbaseși |
| el / ea | schimbase |
| noi | schimbaserăm |
| voi | schimbaserăți |
| ei / ele | schimbaseră |
Când am ajuns, deja schimbaseră încuietoarea de la ușă.
By the time I arrived, they had already changed the door lock.
Viitor
Romanian has a formal future with voi + infinitive and a colloquial everyday future with o să + conjunctiv.
| Person | Viitor (voi-form, formal) | Colloquial (o să) |
|---|---|---|
| eu | voi schimba | o să schimb |
| tu | vei schimba | o să schimbi |
| el / ea | va schimba | o să schimbe |
| noi | vom schimba | o să schimbăm |
| voi | veți schimba | o să schimbați |
| ei / ele | vor schimba | o să schimbe |
O să schimbăm subiectul, văd că nu-ți face plăcere.
Let's change the subject, I can see you don't enjoy it.
Conjunctiv prezent
Identical to the indicative except in the 3rd person, where the final -ă flips to -e: schimbă → să schimbe.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | să schimb |
| tu | să schimbi |
| el / ea | să schimbe |
| noi | să schimbăm |
| voi | să schimbați |
| ei / ele | să schimbe |
E timpul să schimbăm ceva în felul în care lucrăm.
It's time we changed something about the way we work.
Condițional prezent
Formed with the conditional auxiliary (aș, ai, ar, am, ați, ar) plus the short infinitive schimba.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | aș schimba |
| tu | ai schimba |
| el / ea | ar schimba |
| noi | am schimba |
| voi | ați schimba |
| ei / ele | ar schimba |
Dacă aș putea, n-aș schimba nimic din ce s-a întâmplat.
If I could, I wouldn't change a thing about what happened.
Imperativ
The singular imperative is schimbă!; the plural is schimbați! With the reflexive, the clitic glues on: schimbă-te! / schimbați-vă! The negative uses the bare infinitive: nu schimba! / nu te schimba!
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| tu (transitive) | schimbă! | nu schimba! |
| tu (reflexive) | schimbă-te! | nu te schimba! |
| voi (reflexive) | schimbați-vă! | nu vă schimbați! |
Schimbă-te repede, te așteaptă toți afară.
Get changed quickly, everyone's waiting for you outside.
Nu te schimba pentru nimeni — ești bine așa cum ești.
Don't change for anyone — you're fine the way you are.
Forme nepersonale
The reflexive gerund glues the clitic on with a linking -u-: schimbându-mă.
| Form | Romanian |
|---|---|
| Infinitiv | (a) schimba / (a se) schimba |
| Gerunziu | schimbând / schimbându-mă |
| Participiu | schimbat |
| Supin | de schimbat |
Usage
Transitive a schimba takes a direct object — you change something: money, a train, the subject, a tire, your mind (a-și schimba părerea):
Trebuie să schimb trenul la Brașov ca să ajung la Sibiu.
I have to change trains in Brașov to get to Sibiu.
Mi-am schimbat părerea după ce am citit articolul.
I changed my mind after reading the article.
Reflexive a se schimba with a person means to change clothes:
Mă schimb și vin imediat, dă-mi două minute.
I'll get changed and come right away, give me two minutes.
With a person as subject but no clothing context, it means to change as a person — to become different:
S-a schimbat mult de când s-a mutat în străinătate.
He's changed a lot since he moved abroad.
With an inanimate subject, a se schimba is intransitive to change:
Vremea se schimbă de la o oră la alta în munți.
The weather changes from one hour to the next in the mountains.
And the fixed phrase a schimba bani is to change / exchange money:
Unde pot să schimb niște euro în lei pe aici?
Where can I exchange some euros for lei around here?
Common Mistakes
Don't use the bare verb for changing your own clothes — that needs the reflexive clitic:
❌ Schimb și vin imediat.
Incorrect — without the clitic this means 'I change (something)'; for clothes use mă schimb.
✅ Mă schimb și vin imediat.
I'll get changed and come right away.
Don't add a clitic when there's a direct object — exchanging money is transitive:
❌ Mă schimb banii la bancă.
Incorrect — with an object (banii) the verb is transitive: schimb banii.
✅ Schimb banii la bancă.
I'll change the money at the bank.
Don't carry the indicative -ă into the subjunctive 3rd person:
❌ Vreau să schimbă ceva.
Incorrect — the subjunctive 3rd person is schimbe.
✅ Vreau să schimbe ceva.
I want him to change something.
Don't add the -ez- infix — a schimba is a plain Class I verb:
❌ Eu schimbez trenul aici.
Incorrect — a schimba takes no -ez- infix.
✅ Eu schimb trenul aici.
I change trains here.
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Start learning Romanian→Related Topics
- Class I Present: Regular -a VerbsA1 — How to conjugate plain Class I (-a) verbs in the present indicative, including the bare-stem first person and the 3sg = 3pl syncretism.
- Accusative Reflexive VerbsA2 — The accusative reflexive clitics mă, te, se, ne, vă, se — true reflexives and the large class of verbs that are reflexive in form only.
- a pregăti — to prepareB1 — Full conjugation of the fourth-conjugation -esc verb a pregăti (to prepare), with the reflexive a se pregăti de/pentru (to get ready for) and the participle pregătit used as an adjective meaning ready.
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- a plăti — to payA1 — Full conjugation of the fourth-conjugation verb a plăti, which takes the -esc infix in the present and subjunctive and governs a direct object (plătesc factura).