Copiii se îmbracă înainte de școală.

the school

Breakdown of Copiii se îmbracă înainte de școală.

• copilul: the child
• înainte de: before
• a se îmbrăca: to get dressed

Questions & Answers about Copiii se îmbracă înainte de școală.

What does Copiii mean and why does it end with -ii?

Copiii is the definite plural of copil (child). In Romanian you form the indefinite plural by adding -i (copii = children) and then add another -i to make it definite (copiii = the children).

What is the role of se in se îmbracă?

Se is the reflexive pronoun for a se îmbrăca (to dress oneself). It shows that the children are dressing themselves, not someone else dressing them.

Why is the verb form îmbracă the same for both singular and plural?

In Romanian present tense, many verbs have identical 3rd person singular and plural endings. For a se îmbrăca:

• el/ea se îmbracă = he/she gets dressed
• ei/ele se îmbracă = they get dressed
  The subject (copiii) tells you it’s plural.

Why is îmbracă spelled with î at the beginning and ă inside?

Romanian orthography uses:

• î at the beginning or end of words
• â inside words
• ă as a separate vowel (schwa)
  So îmbracă starts with /ɨ/ (î) and has /ə/ (ă) in the stressed syllable.

How do you pronounce școală, îmbracă, and copiii?

• ș = /ʃ/ (like English “sh”)
• ă = /ə/ (like the ‘a’ in “sofa”)
• î = /ɨ/ (no exact English equivalent; a central unrounded vowel)
  Thus:
  • școală [ˈʃko.a]
  • îmbracă [ɨmˈbrə.kə]
  • copiii [koˈpi.i]

Why isn’t there a definite article before școală (i.e. why not școala)?

After the preposition înainte de (“before”), the noun is used generically and stays indefinite. So înainte de școală = “before school” in general, without -a.

Can you express “before school” in other ways in Romanian?

Yes. Besides înainte de + noun, you can say:

• înainte să meargă la școală (using the subjunctive)
• înainte de a merge la școală (using the infinitive with a)
  Both mean “before going to school.”

Could the word order change? For instance, can you start with Înainte de școală?

Yes. Romanian word order is flexible. You can say:
Înainte de școală, copiii se îmbracă.
This foregrounds the time (“before school”) but means the same.

Why do we use înainte de + noun and not înainte la + noun?

Înainte de introduces a time expression (“before something”). La would express location (“at something”), so it doesn’t work for “before school.”