Voluntarul așteaptă la linia de start.

Because Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun, not before it.

• voluntar = a volunteer
• voluntarul = the volunteer

So -ul is the masculine singular definite article here.

Romanian normally uses an enclitic definite article, which means the article is attached to the noun.

Compare:

• băiat = a boy
• băiatul = the boy
• voluntar = a volunteer
• voluntarul = the volunteer

So instead of saying a separate word like English the volunteer, Romanian says voluntarul.

Așteaptă is the 3rd person singular present form of the verb a aștepta, meaning to wait.

So it can mean:

• he waits
• she waits
• it waits

In this sentence, it matches voluntarul, so the meaning is the volunteer waits.

Romanian often leaves out subject pronouns when they are not needed, because the verb form already gives useful information.

So instead of saying:

• El așteaptă = He waits

Romanian can simply say:

• Așteaptă = He/She is waiting / waits

Here, the subject is already stated as voluntarul, so no pronoun is necessary.

Here la means something like at.

So:

• la linia de start = at the starting line

Romanian uses la in many location expressions, especially with places, points, counters, stations, doors, tables, and similar locations.

Because linia is the definite form of linie.

• linie = a line
• linia = the line

This is a feminine noun. In the singular, many feminine nouns form the definite article with -a.

So:

• linia de start = the start line / the starting line

Because both nouns are specific in this sentence:

• voluntarul = the volunteer
• linia = the line

Romanian often marks definiteness directly on the noun, so if both nouns are definite in English, both may also be definite in Romanian.

De start means of start literally, but in natural English it corresponds to starting or start in a phrase like starting line.

So:

• linia de start = the starting line

This is a common Romanian structure:

• sală de sport = sports hall / gym
• masă de lucru = work table
• linie de start = starting line

Yes. Start is a common borrowed word in Romanian, especially in sports or race-related contexts.

So linia de start is very natural. You may also sometimes see other expressions depending on context, but this one is standard and common.

Roughly like uh-SHTEAP-tuh.

A few useful sound notes:

• ă is a short central vowel, similar to the a in sofa
• ș is pronounced like English sh
• ea in așteaptă forms a diphthong, something like eah

So așteaptă is approximately:

• uh-SHTEAP-tuh

Yes, Romanian word order is somewhat flexible, although the neutral order here is very natural:

• Voluntarul așteaptă la linia de start.

You could also move parts around for emphasis, for example:

• La linia de start, voluntarul așteaptă.

That might emphasize where the volunteer is waiting. But the original sentence is the most straightforward version.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Romanian present tense often covers both:

• waits
• is waiting

So Voluntarul așteaptă la linia de start can mean:

• The volunteer waits at the starting line
• The volunteer is waiting at the starting line

English chooses between simple present and present continuous more strictly than Romanian does.

Yes. Because of voluntarul, it refers to a specific volunteer: the volunteer.

If you wanted to say a volunteer waits at the starting line, you would normally say:

• Un voluntar așteaptă la linia de start.

So the difference is:

• un voluntar = a volunteer
• voluntarul = the volunteer