Conjunctiv After Modals: a putea, a trebui, a vrea | Romanian Grammar

This is the page where the Romanian subjunctive earns its place as the most-used construction in the language. Every time you want to say "I want to sleep," "I can help you," or "I have to leave," Romanian replaces the English infinitive with a little clause introduced by să plus a conjugated verb. I want to sleep is not vreau a dormi — it is vreau să dorm, literally "I want that I sleep." Once you internalise this single substitution, you unlock most everyday speech, because the verbs that trigger it — a vrea, a putea, a trebui, a încerca, a reuși, a spera — are among the most common in the language.

The core swap: English infinitive → Romanian să-clause

In English, a modal or "wanting" verb is followed by an infinitive: want to go, try to call, hope to win. Romanian — like Greek, Bulgarian, and Albanian, its Balkan neighbours — largely lost the infinitive in this slot and rebuilt it with a finite verb inside a să-clause. The verb after să is fully conjugated for person, and it agrees with the subject of the main verb.

Vreau să dorm, sunt frânt de oboseală.

I want to sleep, I'm dead tired.

Încerc să sun, dar nu am semnal aici.

I'm trying to call, but I have no signal here.

Sperăm să ajungem înainte de ploaie.

We hope to get there before the rain.

Notice there is no separate "to" and no infinitive form anywhere. The action verb (dorm, sun, ajungem) is conjugated to match the subject, even though the subject never changes between the two verbs.

💡

The mental rule for English speakers: wherever you would say "to + verb" after want/can/must/try/hope, swap it for să + conjugated verb. I want to eat → vreau să mănânc. Don't translate "to."

a vrea + să — wanting

A vrea ("to want") is the textbook trigger. With a following action, it always takes să; with a plain noun, it takes a direct object and no să (vreau o cafea).

Vrei să mergem la film diseară?

Do you want to go to a movie tonight?

Nu vreau să te deranjez, dar am o întrebare.

I don't want to bother you, but I have a question.

Copilul vrea să se joace afară.

The child wants to play outside.

a trebui + să — obligation

A trebui ("must / have to / need to") is impersonal in form for most uses — the 3sg trebuie covers all persons — and it is followed by să plus the conjugated main verb, which carries the person.

Trebuie să plec, am întârziat deja.

I have to leave, I'm already late.

Trebuie să vorbim despre asta mai serios.

We need to talk about this more seriously.

Trebuie să-ți cumperi bilet înainte să urci în tren.

You have to buy a ticket before you get on the train.

The person of the obligation lives in the să-verb (plec = I, vorbim = we, cumperi = you), never in trebuie, which stays frozen.

a putea + să — ability (the special case)

A putea ("to be able / can") also takes să — but it is the one modal that still tolerates a bare short infinitive as a Romance-era relic. So both of the following are correct and interchangeable in everyday speech:

Pot să te ajut cu bagajele.

I can help you with the bags. (să-clause)

Pot să te ajut.

I can help you.

Te pot ajuta, nicio problemă.

I can help you, no problem. (bare short infinitive — only after a putea)

With the infinitive option, the clitic pronoun (te) climbs in front of pot, and the main verb appears as its short infinitive (ajuta, not să ajut). This is a genuine alternative, not an error — but it is the only common modal where the infinitive survives. After a vrea, a trebui, a încerca, a spera, you cannot do this.

💡

A putea is the exception that proves the rule. Pot merge and pot să merg are both fine. Every other modal forces să — so default to să everywhere, and treat pot merge as a special licence rather than a pattern you can extend.

a încerca, a reuși, a spera + să

These three control verbs round out the everyday set. All take să; none take an infinitive in standard modern speech.

Am încercat să te sun de trei ori.

I tried to call you three times.

A reușit să termine lucrarea la timp.

She managed to finish the paper on time.

Sper să ne vedem curând.

I hope to see you soon.

Note a reuși in particular: English "succeed in doing" or "manage to do" both land on a reuși să + conjugated verb. There is no gerund and no infinitive — a reușit să termine, never a reușit terminând or a reușit a termina.

Same subject, still să

The hardest thing for a Romance-language background to accept is that Romanian uses să even when the subject of both verbs is identical. Spanish says quiero salir (one subject, infinitive); Romanian must say vreau să ies — a full clause, with ies conjugated for "I." There is no shortcut for same-subject sentences.

Vreau să plec singur.

I want to leave alone. (same subject — Spanish would use the infinitive 'salir', Romanian cannot)

Sper să reușesc.

I hope to succeed. (same 'I' subject in both verbs, yet să is obligatory)

Quick reference

Modal / control verb	Meaning	Pattern	Infinitive allowed?
a vrea	to want	vreau să + verb	No
a putea	can / be able	pot să + verb / pot + short inf.	Yes (only this one)
a trebui	must / have to	trebuie să + verb	No
a încerca	to try	încerc să + verb	No
a reuși	to manage / succeed	reușesc să + verb	No
a spera	to hope	sper să + verb	No

Common Mistakes

❌ Vreau a dormi.

Incorrect — a vrea never takes a bare infinitive in modern Romanian.

✅ Vreau să dorm.

I want to sleep.

❌ Vreau dormi.

Incorrect — you cannot drop să and put two verbs side by side; the clause needs să.

✅ Vreau să dorm.

I want to sleep.

❌ Trebuie plec.

Incorrect — a trebui requires să before the main verb.

✅ Trebuie să plec.

I have to leave.

❌ Încerc a învăța româna.

Incorrect — a încerca takes să, not an infinitive: încerc să învăț româna.

✅ Încerc să învăț româna.

I'm trying to learn Romanian.

❌ Trebuie să trebuie să plec.

Incorrect — trebuie is impersonal and frozen; do not also conjugate it for person. The person lives in the second verb.