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Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii.

Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii.
Tomorrow my sister has a day off and is visiting our grandparents.
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Questions & Answers about Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii.

Why is it “sora mea” and not “mea soră” like in English “my sister”?

Romanian normally puts the possessive after the noun, not before it.

  • soră = sister (indefinite)
  • sora = the sister (definite, article attached to the end)
  • mea = my (feminine singular form of meu/mea)

So “sora mea” is literally “the sister my”, which corresponds to “my sister” in English.

Putting the possessive before, “mea soră”, is wrong in normal Romanian. The standard order is:

noun (often with definite article) + possessive
casa mea = my house
fratele tău = your brother
prietena lui = his girlfriend

Why does “soră” become “sora” in “sora mea”? What is that -a at the end?

Romanian uses a postposed definite article, attached to the end of the noun.

  • soră = a sister / sister (indefinite)
  • sora = the sister (definite)

When you say “sora mea”, you’re talking about a specific, known sister, so it takes the definite form sora. This is very common with family members:

  • mama mea = my mother (from mamă → mama)
  • tatăl meu = my father (from tată → tatăl)
  • fratele meu = my brother (from frate → fratele)

So “sora mea” literally is “the sister of mine,” i.e. my sister.

Why is there no word for “her/my” before “grandparents” in “vizitează bunicii”? How do we know whose grandparents they are?

In Romanian, when it’s obvious from context whose close relatives we’re talking about, the possessive is often omitted, especially with family words:

  • Merg la părinți. = I’m going to (my) parents.
  • Vorbește cu bunicii. = He/She is talking to (his/her) grandparents.

In your sentence, the subject is “sora mea” (my sister). So “vizitează bunicii” is naturally understood as:

(She) visits her (or our) grandparents.

If you want to be explicit, you can say:

  • vizitează bunicii ei = she visits her grandparents
  • vizitează bunicii noștri = she visits our grandparents

But in everyday speech, “bunicii” alone is enough when it’s clear whose grandparents you mean.

What is the difference between “bunici” and “bunicii”? Why does the sentence use “bunicii”?

The difference is indefinite vs. definite plural:

  • bunici = grandparents / some grandparents (indefinite)
  • bunicii = the grandparents (definite plural)

In this sentence, we are talking about specific grandparents (the family’s grandparents), so Romanian uses the definite form:

vizitează bunicii = she visits the grandparents
≈ she visits her grandparents

If you said “vizitează bunici”, it would sound like “she visits grandparents (in general),” which is odd unless she visits random elderly people in a home or similar.

Why is it “are zi liberă” and not something like “este liberă” for “is free”?

Both exist, but they are not the same:

  • are zi liberă

    • literally: has free day
    • idiomatic meaning: has a day off (from work / school)
    • focuses on having a day off in the schedule

  • este liberă

    • literally: is free
    • can mean she is not busy / not occupied, or that she’s not in a relationship, depending on context

So:

  • Mâine sora mea are zi liberă.
    = Tomorrow my sister has a day off (from work).

  • Mâine sora mea este liberă.
    = Tomorrow my sister is free (not occupied). This can be used in scheduling, but doesn’t strongly carry the “day off from work” idea.

In the original sentence, “are zi liberă” fits very well with the idea of a planned day off, which is why it’s used.

Could we say “are o zi liberă” or “are ziua liberă” instead of “are zi liberă”?

Yes, but the nuances change slightly:

  1. are zi liberă

    • very common idiomatic phrase
    • means “has a day off” in general, not stressing “one” specific unit

  2. are o zi liberă

    • literally “has one free day”
    • can emphasize that she has one single day off (e.g. out of many working days)

  3. are ziua liberă

    • literally “has the day free”
    • sounds more like a specific day that both speakers know about
    • often used when the particular day has been identified:
      • Mâine are ziua liberă. = Tomorrow she has the day off.

All three are grammatically correct, but “are zi liberă” is a very natural, neutral way to express “has a day off”.

Why is the verb “vizitează” in the present tense if the sentence talks about tomorrow? Should it be a future tense like “va vizita”?

Romanian often uses the present tense with a future time word (like mâine = tomorrow) to talk about planned or scheduled future actions, just like English does (“Tomorrow I leave,” “I’m visiting them tomorrow”).

So:

  • Mâine sora mea … vizitează bunicii.
    = Tomorrow my sister visits the grandparents.

This is completely normal.

You can also use a future tense:

  • Mâine sora mea va vizita bunicii.
  • Mâine sora mea o să viziteze bunicii.

These are correct too, but sound a bit more formal or more strongly future-focused. In everyday speech, the simple present with “mâine” is very common and natural.

Is it correct to say “vizitează pe bunicii” with “pe” before “bunicii”?

You may hear both with and without “pe” here:

  • vizitează bunicii
  • vizitează pe bunicii (mei/noștri)

In general:

  • The preposition “pe” is mandatory before most personal pronouns and proper names in direct object position:

    • Îl vizitează pe Andrei.
    • O vizitează pe mama.

  • With common nouns like “bunicii”, “pe” is often optional. Using “pe” tends to:

    • emphasize that the object is specific and personal, and/or
    • sound a bit more careful/formal.

So both are accepted:

  • (Ea) vizitează bunicii. – perfectly fine and very common.
  • (Ea) vizitează pe bunicii ei. – also correct, a bit more explicit/emphatic.

In your textbook-style sentence, leaving out “pe” is absolutely natural.

Could I move “mâine” to another place, like “Sora mea mâine are zi liberă” or “Sora mea are mâine zi liberă”?

Yes, word order with time adverbs like “mâine” is fairly flexible. All of these are grammatical:

  • Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii.
  • Sora mea mâine are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii. (less common, a bit marked)
  • Sora mea are mâine zi liberă și vizitează bunicii.

The most neutral and natural versions are usually:

  • Mâine sora mea are zi liberă… (time at the start)
  • Sora mea are mâine zi liberă… (time after the verb)

Putting “mâine” at the very beginning is very common because it sets the time frame for the whole sentence.

Should there be a comma after “Mâine” or before “și” in this sentence?

The sentence is fine without extra commas:

Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii.

Two comma-related points:

  1. After “Mâine”

    • You can write:
      • Mâine, sora mea are zi liberă…
    • This slightly emphasizes “Tomorrow” as a detached element, but it’s not required. Both with and without the comma are acceptable in practice.

  2. Before “și”

    • In this sentence, the subject (sora mea) is shared by both verbs (“are” and “vizitează”).
    • Romanian normally does not use a comma before “și” in such a case.
    • So “...are zi liberă, și vizitează bunicii” is not standard here.

So the original punctuation is correctly minimalist.

Why is it “mea” and not “meu” in “sora mea”? How do these change?

Romanian possessive adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.

Forms of “my”:

  • meu – masculine singular

    • fratele meu = my brother
    • telefonul meu = my phone

  • mea – feminine singular

    • sora mea = my sister
    • mașina mea = my car

  • mei – masculine plural

    • frații mei = my brothers
    • prietenii mei = my (male/mixed) friends

  • mele – feminine plural

    • surorile mele = my sisters
    • mașinile mele = my cars

Since “soră” / “sora” is feminine singular, you must use “mea”:

sora mea = my sister

How would I say “Tomorrow my sister has a day off and visits my grandparents” explicitly, not just “the grandparents”?

You can make the possessive explicit by adding “mei” (my) after “bunicii”:

Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii mei.
= Tomorrow my sister has a day off and visits my grandparents.

Other related options:

  • bunicii ei = her grandparents
    • Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii ei.
  • bunicii noștri = our grandparents
    • Mâine sora mea are zi liberă și vizitează bunicii noștri.

In everyday conversation, “vizitează bunicii” is usually enough, but adding “mei / ei / noștri” clarifies exactly whose grandparents you mean.