Șoferul remediază nu numai stopul, ci și ștergătorul.

In Romanian, -ul is the definite article attached to the end of a masculine singular noun.

• șofer = driver / a driver
• șoferul = the driver

Unlike English, Romanian usually puts the at the end of the noun instead of before it.

remediază is the 3rd person singular present tense of the verb a remedia (to repair, to remedy, to fix in a somewhat formal or technical sense).

So:

• eu remediez = I repair
• tu remediezi = you repair
• el/ea remediază = he/she repairs

Here it agrees with șoferul (the driver), which is third person singular.

This is a very common Romanian correlative structure meaning not only ... but also ...

• nu numai stopul = not only the tail light
• ci și ștergătorul = but also the wiper

So nu numai ... ci și ... works much like English not only ... but also ....

You may also see the variant:

• nu doar ... ci și ...

Both are natural.

In this sentence, ci is part of the fixed pair nu numai ... ci și ...

On its own, ci often means something like but rather after a negative idea. For example:

• Nu e greu, ci ușor. = It is not hard, but rather easy.

In your sentence, it helps introduce the second item in the contrast/addition: not only X, but also Y.

For the same reason as șoferul: they are definite singular masculine/neuter nouns.

• stop → stopul = the tail light / brake light
• ștergător → ștergătorul = the wiper

Romanian often uses the definite form when referring to a specific object, especially in practical contexts like talking about parts of a car.

In this context:

• stopul usually means a rear light, often understood as a brake light or tail light
• ștergătorul means a windshield wiper / wiper

A useful note: Romanian car vocabulary sometimes uses everyday shortened terms. So stop in Romanian does not mean the English verb stop here; it is a noun referring to the car light.

Romanian does have case, but for many masculine and neuter nouns, the direct object form in the singular is often the same as the nominative form.

So:

• șoferul = the driver (subject)
• stopul = the tail light (direct object)
• ștergătorul = the wiper (direct object)

Even though stopul and ștergătorul are objects, their forms do not visibly change here.

Yes, Romanian word order is somewhat flexible, but this version is the most neutral and natural:

• Șoferul remediază nu numai stopul, ci și ștergătorul.

You could move things around for emphasis, but learners should stick with this pattern for now.

For example, a more marked version might emphasize the subject:

• Șoferul remediază nu numai stopul, ci și ștergătorul.

Since Romanian uses intonation and context a lot, the standard written order is usually the safest choice.

Not always. A remedia is correct, but it sounds a bit more formal, technical, or specialized.

In everyday speech, Romanians often use:

• a repara = to repair
• a fixa = to fix
• sometimes other context-specific verbs

So this sentence is perfectly grammatical, but remediază may sound slightly more technical than the most casual everyday option.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

Sho-fe-rul re-me-di-A-ză nu nu-MAI sto-pul, ci și șter-gă-TO-rul.

A few helpful sounds:

• ș = sh as in shoe
• ț = ts as in cats
• ă = a short central vowel, somewhat like the a in sofa
• ci here sounds like chee

So:

• Șoferul ≈ SHO-fe-rul
• și = shee
• ștergătorul begins with shter-

You can get close, but not perfectly. A word-for-word breakdown is:

• Șoferul = the driver
• remediază = repairs / remedies
• nu numai = not only
• stopul = the tail light / brake light
• ci și = but also
• ștergătorul = the wiper

A natural English translation would be:

The driver repairs not only the tail light, but also the wiper.

Or, more naturally in everyday English:

The driver fixes not only the tail light, but also the windshield wiper.