A striga means to shout, to call out — and, very commonly, to call someone by name ("to call out to" them). It is a plain first-conjugation (-a class) verb with no -ez- infix and a single stem strig- throughout. The one spelling point to watch is the hard g: in the tu form the g stays hard before -i, written simply strigi (pronounced with a hard g, like in English get, not soft like in gem). Romanian keeps g hard before -i in -ga verbs without any spelling adjustment, so there is no -h- to insert (unlike Italian or Spanish orthography).
The verb's everyday range is wider than English shout suggests. A striga pe cineva means to call out to someone or address them — Cum te strigă prietenii? is "What do your friends call you?" Keep it apart from a chema, which is to summon / send for / call (over) someone: you strigi a friend across the street, but you chemi an ambulance.
Prezent indicativ
Stem strig-, plain Class I endings, bare 1st singular (strig), hard g before -i (strigi). As always, 3sg = 3pl (strigă).
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | strig |
| tu | strigi |
| el / ea | strigă |
| noi | strigăm |
| voi | strigați |
| ei / ele | strigă |
Nu striga, te aud foarte bine.
Don't shout, I can hear you perfectly well.
Mă strigă mama de la fereastră.
My mum's calling me from the window.
Imperfect
Regular Class I imperfect: stem strig- plus the -am endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | strigam |
| tu | strigai |
| el / ea | striga |
| noi | strigam |
| voi | strigați |
| ei / ele | strigau |
Striga după noi, dar eram deja prea departe.
He was shouting after us, but we were already too far away.
Perfect compus
Auxiliary a avea plus the invariable participle strigat.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | am strigat |
| tu | ai strigat |
| el / ea | a strigat |
| noi | am strigat |
| voi | ați strigat |
| ei / ele | au strigat |
M-a strigat pe nume, dar nu l-am recunoscut.
He called me by name, but I didn't recognise him.
Mai-mult-ca-perfectul
The synthetic pluperfect, on the participle stem strigase-.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | strigasem |
| tu | strigaseși |
| el / ea | strigase |
| noi | strigaserăm |
| voi | strigaserăți |
| ei / ele | strigaseră |
Strigase de câteva ori înainte să-i deschidă cineva.
He had called out a few times before anyone opened up for him.
Viitor
The formal voi + infinitive future and the colloquial o să + conjunctiv.
| Person | Viitor (voi-form, formal) | Colloquial (o să) |
|---|---|---|
| eu | voi striga | o să strig |
| tu | vei striga | o să strigi |
| el / ea | va striga | o să strige |
| noi | vom striga | o să strigăm |
| voi | veți striga | o să strigați |
| ei / ele | vor striga | o să strige |
O să te strig când e gata masa.
I'll call you when the meal's ready.
Conjunctiv prezent
Identical to the indicative except in the 3rd person, where the indicative -ă of strigă flips to -e: (să) strige — the classic plain -a class alternation.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | să strig |
| tu | să strigi |
| el / ea | să strige |
| noi | să strigăm |
| voi | să strigați |
| ei / ele | să strige |
Spune-i să strige dacă are nevoie de ajutor.
Tell him to shout if he needs help.
Condițional prezent
The conditional auxiliary (aș, ai, ar, am, ați, ar) plus the short infinitive striga.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| eu | aș striga |
| tu | ai striga |
| el / ea | ar striga |
| noi | am striga |
| voi | ați striga |
| ei / ele | ar striga |
Aș striga după ajutor, dar nu e nimeni prin preajmă.
I'd shout for help, but there's no one around.
Imperativ
The singular imperative is strigă! (identical to the 3sg present); the plural is strigați! The negative singular uses the bare infinitive: nu striga!
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| tu (sg.) | strigă! | nu striga! |
| voi (pl.) | strigați! | nu strigați! |
Strigă-mă dacă ai nevoie de ceva.
Call out to me if you need anything.
Forme nepersonale
| Form | Romanian |
|---|---|
| Infinitiv | (a) striga |
| Gerunziu | strigând |
| Participiu | strigat |
| Supin | de strigat |
Usage
When a striga takes a person as its object, that person is in the accusative and triggers the doubling clitic familiar from any direct object: mă strigă ("he's calling me"), te strig ("I'm calling you").
Cum te strigă prietenii, Alex sau Alexandru?
What do your friends call you, Alex or Alexandru?
A strigat după ajutor, dar nimeni nu a auzit-o.
She called for help, but no one heard her.
The frame a striga după = "to shout after / call after" someone moving away:
Vânzătorul a strigat după el că și-a uitat restul.
The shopkeeper called after him that he'd forgotten his change.
Contrast with a chema, "to summon / send for / call over":
Strig copiii la cină, nu chem pe nimeni la telefon.
I'm calling the kids to dinner, I'm not phoning anyone.
Common Mistakes
Inserting an unnecessary -h- before -i (a Romance-orthography habit) — Romanian keeps strigi as is:
❌ Tu strighi prea tare.
Incorrect — Romanian writes strigi; the g is already hard before -i, no h needed.
✅ Tu strigi prea tare.
You're shouting too loudly.
Confusing it with a chema when summoning is meant:
❌ Strigă o ambulanță, repede!
Incorrect — to summon help you need a chema, not a striga.
✅ Cheamă o ambulanță, repede!
Call an ambulance, quick!
Dropping the accusative clitic when a person is the object:
❌ Mama strigă de afară.
Incomplete if you mean she's calling someone — add the clitic: mă strigă.
✅ Mama mă strigă de afară.
Mum's calling me from outside.
Carrying the indicative -ă into the subjunctive 3rd person:
❌ Lasă-l să strigă cât vrea.
Incorrect — the 3rd-person subjunctive is strige.
✅ Lasă-l să strige cât vrea.
Let him shout all he wants.
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- 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.
- a țipa — to screamB1 — Full conjugation of a țipa (to scream, to yell), a plain first-conjugation verb with ț throughout, the frame a țipa la cineva (to scream at someone), and its intensity contrast with a striga and a vorbi tare.
- a cânta — to singA1 — Full conjugation of the regular first-conjugation verb a cânta (to sing, to play an instrument), the model plain Class I verb with a bare 1st-person singular cânt.
- a suna — to ring, to callA2 — Full conjugation of a suna (to ring, to phone, to sound), the plain first-conjugation verb that is the everyday word for phoning someone — Te sun mai târziu.
- Conjunctiv Present: FormationA2 — How to form the present conjunctiv — identical to the indicative except for the 3rd person, which flips the theme vowel.