Andrei vorbește cu Ana în parcul mare.

Andrei is talking with Ana in the big park.

Breakdown of Andrei vorbește cu Ana în parcul mare.

• Ana: Ana
• Andrei: Andrei
• mare: big
• cu: with
• a vorbi: to speak
• în: in
• parcul: the park

Questions & Answers about Andrei vorbește cu Ana în parcul mare.

How is the verb vorbește formed from the infinitive a vorbi, and what is its person/number/tense?

The infinitive a vorbi (“to speak”) belongs to the third conjugation (-i verbs). In the present tense the forms are:

• eu vorbesc
• tu vorbești
• el/ea vorbește
• noi vorbim
• voi vorbiți
• ei/ele vorbesc

So vorbește is third person singular, present tense, meaning “he/she speaks” or “is speaking.”

How do you pronounce the letter ș in vorbește?

The letter ș (s with a comma) is pronounced like English “sh” in “ship.” Thus vorbește sounds roughly like “vor-BEH-shteh.”

What does the preposition cu mean in vorbește cu Ana, and why is it used here?

cu means “with.” In Romanian, when two people are talking together, you use a vorbi cu + the other person in the accusative. So vorbește cu Ana = “(he) is talking with Ana.”

Why isn’t Ana preceded by pe (as in pe Ana)?

pe marks a definite human direct object in Romanian (e.g. Văd pe Ana = “I see Ana”). But when you already have a preposition like cu, you don’t add pe. The phrase cu Ana is complete on its own.

Why is parc written as parcul in în parcul mare?

Romanian definite articles for nouns are enclitic (attached at the end). For masculine singular, you add -ul. So:
parc + ul → parcul = “the park.”
Since the sentence refers to the big park, you need the definite form parcul.

Why is the adjective mare placed after parcul, and why doesn’t it change form to match masculine?

1. Word order: Romanian typically places adjectives after the noun (noun + adjective).
2. Agreement: mare is an irregular adjective that has the same form for masculine and feminine singular in nominative/accusative. Hence you say parcul mare (“the big park”) and casa mare (“the big house”) without changing mare.

Could you say la parcul mare instead of în parcul mare, and what’s the difference?

• în parcul mare = “inside the big park.”
• la parcul mare = “at the big park” (more generally at that location, not necessarily within).
  Use în to emphasize being within the park; la covers the broader notion of “at/to” a place.

How do you say “in a big park” (indefinite) instead of “in the big park”?

Use the indefinite article un and the contraction în + un → într-un:
într-un parc mare = “in a big park.”

How do you ask “With whom is Andrei speaking in the big park?”

Place the question word for “who” (cine) after the preposition and keep the rest of the sentence:
Cu cine vorbește Andrei în parcul mare?

How do you ask “Where is Andrei speaking with Ana?”

Use Unde (“where”) at the start:
Unde vorbește Andrei cu Ana?

How would you express “Andrei speaks to Ana” in the sense that he addresses or speaks at her, rather than “with” (a mutual conversation)?

You drop cu and use the dative:

• Andrei vorbește Anei
  If you want to include the pronoun:
• Andrei îi vorbește Anei
  Both mean “Andrei speaks to Ana.”