Breakdown of Meniul are supă de legume și un desert dulce.
a avea
to have
un
a
și
and
leguma
the vegetable
de
of
meniul
the menu
supa
the soup
desertul
the dessert
dulce
sweet
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Questions & Answers about Meniul are supă de legume și un desert dulce.
Why is the verb are used here instead of este, and what does are mean in this context?
The verb are is the third-person singular present of a avea (to have). In this sentence it literally means has or contains. Romanians often use a avea to list what something offers, so Meniul are supă de legume… translates as “The menu has vegetable soup…”.
Why is there no indefinite article (o) before supă de legume? Shouldn’t it be o supă de legume?
While you would normally say o supă (“a soup”), Romanian often drops the indefinite article when describing menu contents or listing items for brevity and style. If you wanted to be more explicit, you could say Meniul are o supă de legume și un desert dulce, but omitting o is typical in menu contexts: Meniul are supă de legume.
What is the function of de in supă de legume, and how is it different from cu?
In supă de legume, de links the noun to its type or flavour—literally “soup of vegetables,” i.e. vegetable soup. If you say supă cu legume, it means “soup with vegetables,” emphasizing the ingredients rather than simply naming the variety. Both are correct, with de more often used for naming a category.
Why is the adjective dulce placed after desert instead of before it? English puts adjectives first.
Romanian adjectives usually follow the noun, so desert dulce is the standard word order. Placing an adjective before the noun (e.g. dulce desert) is possible but gives a poetic or emphatic nuance.
Why does desert have an article (un) but supă de legume does not?
The indefinite article un marks desert as a specific countable item. Supă could also take o, but as mentioned, menu-style phrasing often omits the article for items like soups. It’s a stylistic choice rather than a strict grammatical rule.
How do adjectives agree with nouns in Romanian? Why is dulce not dulci here?
Adjectives must match the noun’s gender and number. Desert is masculine singular, and dulce is the invariant singular form for both genders. In the plural you would say deserturi dulci (masculine/feminine plural form).
How is Meniul are supă de legume și un desert dulce pronounced?
Approximate phonetics:
- meniul: MEH-nyool
- are: AH-reh
- supă: SOO-puh
- de: deh
- legume: leh-GOO-meh
- și: shee
- un: oon
- desert: deh-SERT
- dulce: DUL-cheh
Note that ă is like the “a” in “sofa,” and ș is like English “sh.”
What is the role of the enclitic article in meniul, and why is it attached to the end?
Romanian forms the definite article by attaching it to the noun. Meniu (“menu”) + -l yields meniul (“the menu”). When a noun ends in a vowel (like u), you add just -l; if it ends in a consonant you add -ul.
Can you use other verbs like include or oferă instead of are? Do they change the meaning?
Yes. You can say Meniul include supă de legume și un desert dulce (“The menu includes…”), which is slightly more formal, or Meniul oferă supă de legume și un desert dulce (“The menu offers…”), which emphasizes what’s on offer. All three verbs are interchangeable here, with minor stylistic differences.
How would you ask “What does the menu have?” in Romanian?
You can ask Ce are meniul? (“What does the menu have?”). Other options include Ce include meniul? or Ce oferă meniul?.