Fileul este pe masa de joc.

The net is on the playing table.

Breakdown of Fileul este pe masa de joc.

• a fi: to be
• pe: on
• masa de joc: the playing table
• fileul: the net

Questions & Answers about Fileul este pe masa de joc.

Why does fileu become fileul here?

Because -l / -ul is the Romanian definite article, which is attached to the end of the noun instead of being a separate word like English the.

So:

• fileu = net / a net
• fileul = the net

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

Why is it masa, not masă?

For the same reason: masa is the definite form of masă.

• masă = table / a table
• masa = the table

So in this sentence, both main nouns are definite:

• fileul = the net
• masa = the table

This is very normal in Romanian.

Why isn’t there a separate word for the, like in English?

Romanian normally uses a postposed article: the article is added to the end of the noun.

Compare:

• English: the net

• Romanian: fileul

• English: the table
• Romanian: masa

This is one of the biggest structural differences between English and Romanian.

What exactly does mean here?