Breakdown of Vântul aduce nisip pe plajă, dar scuturăm sandalele înainte să plecăm.
dar
but
a pleca
to leave
a aduce
to bring
pe
on
sandala
the sandal
plaja
the beach
vântul
the wind
nisipul
the sand
a scutura
to shake
înainte să
before
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Questions & Answers about Vântul aduce nisip pe plajă, dar scuturăm sandalele înainte să plecăm.
Why is there no article before nisip?
Because nisip is an uncountable (mass) noun in this context. Romanian typically drops the article with mass nouns when they’re used in a general sense—just like you say sand in English, not the sand, when speaking about sand in general.
Why does sandalele carry a definite article?
Romanian uses enclitic definite articles attached to the end of nouns. Here -le marks the plural definite form: sandalele means the sandals. We’re referring to specific sandals that we intend to shake before leaving.
What’s the difference between a aduce and a duce?
Aduce means to bring (motion toward the speaker or reference point), whereas a duce means to take or to carry away (motion away from the speaker). In our sentence, the wind brings (aduce) sand onto the beach.
Why is pe plajă used instead of la plajă?
To express “on the beach,” Romanian uses pe with surfaces or open spaces. Pe plajă literally means “on the beach.” While la plajă can colloquially mean “at the beach,” pe plajă is more specific about being on the sand itself.
Why are the verbs aduce and scuturăm in the present tense, even though one action happens before leaving?
Romanian often uses the simple present tense both for ongoing/habitual actions and for events in a near-future sequence. Here the present tense conveys what typically or currently happens: the wind brings sand … we shake the sandals … before we leave.
What is the structure înainte să plecăm, and why use să + subjunctive?
Înainte să introduces a temporal clause meaning “before doing something.” It’s always followed by the subjunctive form of the verb. So plecăm here is the first-person plural subjunctive of a pleca (to leave).
Could you replace înainte să plecăm with înainte de a pleca?
Yes. Înainte de a pleca + infinitive is a perfectly correct, slightly more formal alternative. Both mean “before leaving,” but înainte să + subjunctive is very common in everyday speech.
What role does dar play in this sentence?
Dar is the conjunction “but,” creating a contrast between two related clauses: the wind brings sand to the beach, but we shake the sandals before we go.