Copilul este speriat.

Because -ul is the definite article in Romanian here.

• copil = a child
• copilul = the child

Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun, unlike English, which puts the before it.

So:

• copilul este speriat = the child is scared
• un copil este speriat = a child is scared

That is a normal feature of Romanian grammar. Romanian has a postposed definite article, which means the article is added after the noun instead of appearing as a separate word before it.

Examples:

• băiat = boy

• băiatul = the boy

• copil = child
• copilul = the child

This is one of the first big differences English speakers notice in Romanian.

Este means is. It is the 3rd person singular form of the verb a fi = to be.

So the sentence breaks down like this:

• copilul = the child
• este = is
• speriat = scared

Together: The child is scared.

Yes. Very often, Romanians use e instead of este in everyday speech.

So both are correct:

• Copilul este speriat.
• Copilul e speriat.

The version with e is more common in conversation.
The version with este can sound a bit more careful, neutral, or formal.

Because speriat agrees with copilul, which is masculine singular here.

Romanian adjectives often change form to match the noun in gender and number.

For speriat:

• speriat = masculine singular
• speriată = feminine singular
• speriați = masculine plural
• speriate = feminine plural

Examples:

• Copilul este speriat. = The child is scared.
• Fata este speriată. = The girl is scared.
• Copiii sunt speriați. = The children are scared.
• Fetele sunt speriate. = The girls are scared.

Copil is treated as masculine in the singular.

That is why you get:

• copilul
• este speriat

In the plural, Romanian masculine nouns often pattern differently, but for this sentence the important point is that copilul is masculine singular, so the adjective is speriat.

It can mean either, depending on context. In many cases, scared and frightened are both good translations.

So:

• Copilul este speriat. can be understood as
• The child is scared. or
• The child is frightened.

English choice depends more on style than on a big difference in Romanian meaning.

Yes, but Copilul este speriat is the most straightforward, neutral order.

Romanian word order is often more flexible than English. You may also see:

• Este speriat copilul.

This can sound more marked or context-dependent, often with emphasis.

For a beginner, the safest pattern is:

subject + este/e + adjective

So:

• Copilul este speriat.

Normally, in a full sentence like this, no.

Romanian usually keeps the verb to be in the present tense:

• Copilul este speriat.
• Copilul e speriat.

If you say only copilul speriat, that usually sounds like a noun phrase, not a complete sentence:

• copilul speriat = the scared child

So:

• Copilul este speriat. = full sentence
• copilul speriat = noun phrase

You put nu before the verb:

• Copilul nu este speriat.
• Copilul nu e speriat.

That means:

• The child is not scared.

This is the normal Romanian way to negate the sentence.

In Romanian, you can often make a yes/no question just by changing intonation:

• Copilul este speriat?
• Copilul e speriat?

This means:

• Is the child scared?

Romanian does not usually need an extra helping verb like English is at the front. The word order can stay the same.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation guide is:

• Copilul ≈ ko-PEE-lool
• este ≈ YES-te
• speriat ≈ spe-ree-AHT

A few useful notes:

• copilul has the stress on -pil-
• este is often pronounced with an initial y sound: YES-te
• speriat has three syllables: spe-ri-at, with the stress on the last one

So the whole sentence sounds roughly like:

ko-PEE-lool YES-te spe-ree-AHT

You would use un instead of the definite noun form:

• Un copil este speriat.

That means:

• A child is scared.

Compare:

• copilul = the child
• un copil = a child

This is a very useful contrast to learn early in Romanian.