Learn Hardcore Romanian: Studentul scrie răspunsuri scurte acum. - The student is writing short answers now.

In Romanian the definite article is a suffix attached to the noun. So student (meaning “a student”) becomes studentul to mean “the student.” English uses a separate word “the,” but Romanian “-ul” (for masculine singular) does the same job.

What form is scrie, and how do we express “is writing” (the progressive aspect) in Romanian?

scrie is the third-person singular present indicative of a scrie (“to write”). Romanian does not have a distinct continuous (progressive) tense like English “is writing.” Instead, the simple present covers both:

“Studentul scrie” can mean “The student writes” or “The student is writing.”
To emphasize that it’s happening right now, you add an adverb like acum (“now”) or use a periphrastic phrase such as este în curs de a scrie (“is in the process of writing”).

What is the case and number of răspunsuri in this sentence?

Here răspunsuri is plural in the nominative/accusative case, functioning as the direct object (“answers”). In Romanian, the form for plural nominative and plural accusative of feminine nouns ending in “-ă” is -uri, so răspunsuri.

Why is the adjective scurte placed after the noun, and how does it agree with răspunsuri?

Romanian adjectives usually follow the noun they modify. scurte is the plural form of scurt (“short”) and agrees with răspunsuri in:

Number: both are plural
Gender: răspunsuri is neuter (behaves like masculine in the singular, feminine in the plural), so the plural adjective form is scurte.

Why is there no preposition before răspunsuri? When would you use pe with direct objects?

Romanian generally places the direct object right after the verb with no preposition. You use pe only when the direct object is:

A specific person or pet (e.g. Îl văd pe profesor – “I see the teacher”)
A pronoun in certain contexts. Since răspunsuri (“answers”) are inanimate, no pe is needed.

Why is răspunsuri indefinite (no “-le” ending), and how would the meaning change if we say răspunsurile scurte?

Without the definite article, răspunsuri scurte means “short answers” in a generic or indefinite sense (“some short answers”). If you say răspunsurile scurte, you add the plural definite article -le, so it becomes “the short answers,” referring to a specific set of answers already known or mentioned.

What is the role of acum and can its position change in the sentence?

acum is an adverb of time meaning “now.” It tells us the action is happening at this moment. Romanian word order is fairly flexible, so you could also say:

Acum studentul scrie răspunsuri scurte.
Studentul acum scrie răspunsuri scurte.
All versions are correct; moving acum simply shifts the emphasis slightly.

Can we literally translate it as “The student writes short answers now,” and is that natural in English versus Romanian?

You can literally translate “Studentul scrie răspunsuri scurte acum” as “The student writes short answers now.” In English, to sound more natural you’d likely say “The student is writing short answers now,” using the continuous form. Romanian doesn’t require a special continuous tense. The simple present plus acum adequately conveys the ongoing action.