Andrei are un prieten bun.

Andrei

Breakdown of Andrei are un prieten bun.

• a avea: to have
• bun: good
• un: a

Questions & Answers about Andrei are un prieten bun.

What does are mean in this sentence? Is it the same as the English are?

In Andrei are un prieten bun, are is not the English plural of “to be.” It’s the third-person singular present of a avea (to have), so it means he has. The Romanian verb “to be” (a fi) uses forms like sunt, ești, este, etc. (“You are” = tu ești, not tu are.)

Why is the indefinite article un used here instead of o?

Romanian articles agree in gender. Prieten is a masculine noun, so it takes the masculine indefinite article un. Feminine nouns take o (e.g. o fată – a girl).

Why is the adjective bun placed after the noun prieten?

The normal word order in Romanian is noun + adjective, the reverse of English. So you say prieten bun (literally “friend good”). Placing the adjective before the noun (e.g. un bun prieten) is possible for emphasis or style, but the default is un prieten bun.

Why doesn’t Andrei have an article in front of it?