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Questions & Answers about Am doi câini acasă.
What does Am mean in this sentence?
Am is the first-person singular present tense of the verb a avea (to have). It literally means I have.
Why isn’t there a subject pronoun like eu?
Romanian is a “pro-drop” language: the verb ending (-m in am) already indicates the subject (“I”), so you normally omit eu unless you want extra emphasis.
Why is the numeral doi used instead of două?
Romanian numerals agree in gender with the noun. doi is the masculine form of “two,” used with masculine nouns like câini. două is the feminine form, for feminine nouns.
Why is the noun câini not câinii?
câini is the indefinite plural “dogs.” Romanian definite articles attach to the noun (câinii = “the dogs”). When you say “two dogs,” you use the indefinite form câini.
What part of speech is acasă, and why isn’t it preceded by a preposition?
acasă is an adverb meaning at home. Like in English (“I am home”), no preposition or article is needed to express location.
Can you change the word order, e.g. say Acasă am doi câini?
Yes. The neutral order is Verb–Object–Adverb (Am doi câini acasă). Moving acasă to the front (Acasă am doi câini) adds emphasis on “at home.”
How are the diacritics â and ă pronounced in câini and acasă?
â (and î) is pronounced [ɨ], a close central unrounded vowel, so câini is [ˈkɨjni].
ă is pronounced [ə], a mid-central vowel, so acasă is [aˈkasə].