Pisica fuge de ploaie.

Because pisica means the cat, while pisică means a cat or just cat in a dictionary form.

Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun:

• pisică = cat / a cat
• pisica = the cat

So this sentence is talking about the cat, not just any cat.

Fuge is the 3rd person singular present form of the verb a fugi (to run away, to flee).

So:

• eu fug = I run / I flee
• tu fugi = you run
• el/ea fuge = he/she runs

Here, pisica is singular, so fuge matches it.

Usually a fugi has the sense of running away, escaping, or fleeing, not just running as physical exercise.

So in this sentence, it suggests the cat is trying to get away from the rain.

If you wanted a more neutral idea of running in general, Romanian often uses a alerga.

Because Romanian uses a fugi de... to mean to run from..., to flee from..., or to avoid... something.

So:

• a fugi de câini = to run from dogs
• a fugi de pericol = to flee danger
• a fugi de ploaie = to run from the rain

This is a normal fixed pattern: a fugi + de.

Ploaie means rain, while ploaia means the rain.

In Romanian, after de, it is very natural to use the noun without the definite article when speaking generally:

• fuge de ploaie = runs from rain / from the rain

You could sometimes hear de ploaia asta (from this rain) or another more specific form in context, but de ploaie is perfectly normal here.

Yes. Romanian present tense often covers both:

• The cat runs from the rain
• The cat is running from the rain

The exact meaning depends on context. Romanian does not have a separate required form like English is running in this sentence.

No, Romanian word order is fairly flexible, though Pisica fuge de ploaie is the most neutral and natural order here.

You may also see different orders for emphasis, such as:

• De ploaie fuge pisica.
• Fuge pisica de ploaie.

These are possible, but they sound more marked or context-dependent. For a learner, subject + verb + complement is the safest default.

Fuge is pronounced roughly FOO-jeh.

A useful point: in Romanian, g before e or i sounds like the j in job.

So:

• ge = like je
• gi = like ji

That is why fuge is not pronounced with a hard g like in go.

A rough English-friendly pronunciation is:

pee-SEE-kah FOO-jeh deh PLOH-aye

More exactly:

• Pisica = pee-SEE-kah
• fuge = FOO-jeh
• de = deh
• ploaie = roughly PLOH-ah-yeh, often said smoothly as PLOH-aye

The stress is:

• piSIca
• FUge
• PLOAie

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

So instead of saying:

• Ea fuge de ploaie. = She runs from the rain.

Romanian can simply say:

• Fuge de ploaie. = Runs from the rain / She runs from the rain

In your sentence, the noun pisica is already there, so there is no need for ea.

Yes. That would mean A cat is running from the rain or A cat runs from the rain.

Compare:

• Pisica fuge de ploaie. = The cat runs/is running from the rain
• O pisică fuge de ploaie. = A cat runs/is running from the rain

So the difference is definite vs. indefinite.

The word de can mean several things in Romanian, including of, from, and others depending on the structure.

In this sentence, you should not translate word by word too rigidly. The important thing is that a fugi de is a normal Romanian pattern meaning:

• to run from
• to flee
• to avoid

So here de is best understood as part of the expression a fugi de.

It might sound odd or unnatural in most contexts.

That is because:

• a alerga = to run
• a fugi de = to run away from / flee / avoid

Since the sentence is about escaping the rain, a fugi de ploaie is the natural choice.

So for this meaning, fuge is better than aleargă.