Catalogul este în sala de lectură.

Because -ul is the definite article attached to the end of the noun in Romanian.

• catalog = a catalog / catalog
• catalogul = the catalog

Romanian usually puts the definite article after the noun, unlike English, which uses a separate word the before it.

Este is the 3rd person singular form of the verb a fi (to be) in the present tense.

So here it means is:

• eu sunt = I am
• tu ești = you are
• el/ea este = he/she/it is

In everyday speech, Romanians also often say e instead of este:

• Catalogul e în sala de lectură.

This means exactly the same thing, just a little more natural in casual speech.

Because Romanian usually expresses the by adding it to the end of the noun.

In this sentence:

• catalogul = the catalog
• sala = the room

This is one of the biggest differences from English word order and article use.

Yes. The base noun is sală, meaning room or hall.

When it becomes definite, it changes like this:

• sală = a room
• sala = the room

So în sala de lectură means in the reading room.

Notice that the final ă of sală changes when the definite article is added.

Literally, de lectură means of reading.

So:

• sală de lectură = reading room

This is a very common Romanian structure:

• sală de sport = sports hall / gym
• masă de scris = writing desk
• ochelari de soare = sunglasses

Romanian often uses de + noun where English uses a noun as an adjective.

Because in sală de lectură, the second noun is part of a fixed descriptive phrase, not a separate definite noun.

So:

• sală de lectură = reading room
• sala de lectură = the reading room

The definiteness is carried by sala, the main noun. The word lectură stays indefinite here.

În means in or inside.

So:

• în sala de lectură = in the reading room

It is the normal preposition to use for being inside a place.

Compare:

• în casă = in the house
• în clasă = in the classroom
• în bibliotecă = in the library

Yes. Romanian often leaves out subject pronouns when they are not needed.

In this sentence, there is no separate word for it because the subject is already expressed by the noun catalogul.

So Romanian does not need something like:

• Catalogul el este... ✘

That would be wrong here.

The noun itself is enough:

• Catalogul este în sala de lectură. ✔

The normal, neutral word order here is:

• Catalogul
  • este
    • în sala de lectură

That is the most natural way to say it.

Romanian word order is somewhat flexible, but changing it usually affects emphasis. For example:

• În sala de lectură este catalogul.

This can sound more marked, like emphasizing where the catalog is.

For a learner, the original order is the safest choice.

The most important ones here are:

• ă in sală = a very short, neutral vowel, like the a in English about
• î in în = a close central sound that English does not really have
• ă in lectură = again that short neutral vowel

A rough learner-friendly approximation might be:

• în ≈ un but not exactly
• sală ≈ SA-luh
• lectură ≈ lek-too-ruh

These are only approximations, but they help at the start.

• catalog is masculine
• sală is feminine
• lectură is feminine

You can see this in the definite forms:

• masculine singular often takes -ul
  
  • catalog → catalogul
• feminine singular often takes -a
  
  • sală → sala

Knowing gender helps you learn article patterns more easily.

Yes. That is completely natural.

• este = more full/formal
• e = shorter, very common in everyday speech

Both mean the same thing:

• Catalogul este în sala de lectură.
• Catalogul e în sala de lectură.

Not always. In Romanian, catalog can sometimes mean more than just a printed or online catalog.

Depending on context, it can also refer to something like a grade book, class register, or school record book.

So the exact meaning depends on context. That is something worth remembering, because it may not match English perfectly every time.