Fratele meu este englez.

to be

Breakdown of Fratele meu este englez.

• meu: my
• fratele: the brother
• englez: English

Questions & Answers about Fratele meu este englez.

Why is it fratele and not just frate?

Frate means brother in general (indefinite).
Fratele means the brother (definite).

In Romanian, the definite article is attached to the end of the noun:

• frate = brother
• fratele = the brother

Because you are talking about a specific person (my brother), Romanian uses the definite form: Fratele meu… = My brother… (literally “The brother my…”).

Why is it fratele meu and not meu frate?

In Romanian, possessive adjectives like meu (my) usually come after the noun they modify:

• fratele meu = my brother (literally: the brother my)
• cartea mea = my book (literally: the book my)

Saying meu frate is not correct in standard Romanian. There are some fixed expressions and poetic uses where the order can change, but for normal speech you almost always put the possessive after the noun.

What does meu mean exactly, and does it change form?