Questions & Answers about Telefonul meu este pe masă.
What does the suffix -ul do in telefonul?
The suffix -ul is the masculine singular definite article in Romanian. Instead of saying the phone, you attach -ul to telefon to get telefonul (“the phone”).
Why is meu placed after telefonul, and why not before like in English?
In Romanian the possessive adjective follows the noun. It must agree in gender and number with the noun. Since telefonul is masculine singular, you use meu (“my”). If the noun were feminine, you would use mea.
Could meu change if there were more phones (“my phones”)?
Yes. Romanian has a neuter gender for nouns like telefon, which behaves as masculine in singular and feminine in plural. So:
• One phone: telefonul meu (“my phone”) – meu is masculine singular.
• Phones: telefoanele mele (“my phones”) – mele is the feminine plural form of the possessive.
Why is pe used before masă here, and what does it mean?