Breakdown of Copiii se trezesc devreme în fiecare dimineață.
dimineața
in the morning
în
in
copilul
the child
a se trezi
to wake up
Questions & Answers about Copiii se trezesc devreme în fiecare dimineață.
Why does copiii have three i’s? What’s the difference between copii and copiii?
Romanian marks the definite article at the end of the noun, not as a separate word.
- copil = child (singular, indefinite)
- copilul = the child (singular, definite)
- copii = children (plural, indefinite)
- copiii = the children (plural, definite)
So:
- The first two i’s in copiii are part of the plural form (copii).
- The last i is the definite article for masculine/feminine plural (-i).
That’s why you see copiii with three i’s: copii (children) + -i (the) → copiii (the children).
Where is the English the in this Romanian sentence?
Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun, not before it.
In copiii se trezesc...:
- copiii already means the children.
- There is no separate word equivalent to the.
This happens with most nouns:
Why do we say se trezesc and not just trezesc?