Vânzătoarea pune roșiile pe cântar și spune că nu avem încă un kilogram.

Vânzătoarea means the saleswoman / the female shop assistant / the seller.

The basic noun is vânzătoare = saleswoman.
Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun, so:

• vânzătoare = a saleswoman
• vânzătoarea = the saleswoman

So the final -a here is part of the attached definite article.

Because roșiile means the tomatoes, while roșii means just tomatoes.

Here is the pattern:

• roșie = tomato
• roșii = tomatoes
• roșiile = the tomatoes

The ending -le is the plural definite article.

Pune is the 3rd person singular present of a pune, which means to put / to place.

So:

• a pune = to put
• pune = he/she puts

Since the subject is vânzătoarea, the verb is she puts.

No. Here pe is the ordinary preposition meaning on / onto.

In this sentence:

• pune roșiile pe cântar = puts the tomatoes on the scale

This is not the special direct-object marker pe that learners meet in sentences like Văd pe Maria.

So in this sentence, pe simply tells you where the tomatoes are being placed.

Cântar means scale or weighing scale.

So:

• pe cântar = on the scale

In a shop context, this is the scale used for weighing produce.

Because pe cântar is a very natural Romanian expression in this context.

Romanian sometimes uses a bare noun where English would prefer the. In a shop, the scale is already obvious from the situation, so pe cântar sounds normal.

You may also see definite forms in other contexts, but here pe cântar is the idiomatic choice.

It means and says that.

Breakdown:

• și = and
• spune = says
• că = that

So:

• și spune că nu avem încă un kilogram
  = and says that we don’t have a kilogram yet

Usually yes, or at least it is much more natural to include it.

Romanian commonly uses că to introduce a full clause after verbs like:

• a spune = to say
• a crede = to believe
• a ști = to know

English often drops that, but Romanian normally keeps că.

So spune că... is the expected structure.

This is a very natural shop-style Romanian sentence.

Literally, nu avem încă un kilogram means we do not have a kilogram yet. The we is often inclusive: the seller and the customer are treated as being in the same situation, as if the seller were saying we’re not at one kilo yet.

English might phrase this differently, for example:

• It’s not a kilogram yet
• You don’t have a kilogram yet
• We haven’t got a kilogram yet

But Romanian avem sounds perfectly normal here.

Here încă means yet.

In Romanian, încă can mean:

• still
• yet

The exact meaning depends on context.

In a negative sentence like:

• nu avem încă un kilogram

it is best understood as:

• we don’t have a kilogram yet

Yes. Both are possible:

• nu avem încă un kilogram
• încă nu avem un kilogram

Both mean basically the same thing.

The difference is mostly one of emphasis and rhythm:

• încă nu avem... can feel a little more like we still don’t have...
• nu avem încă... often sounds like we don’t have ... yet

In everyday speech, both are normal.

Because un is the form used before a noun.

• un kilogram = a kilogram / one kilogram

Unul is a pronoun, meaning one one / the one, and it is not used directly before a noun in this pattern.

So:

• correct: un kilogram
• not correct here: unul kilogram

Just like pune, spune is 3rd person singular present.

• a spune = to say
• spune = he/she says

Since the subject is still vânzătoarea, it means she says.

A few useful ones here are:

• ș in roșiile = English sh
• ă in vânzătoarea, încă = a short, unstressed uh-like sound
• â / î in vânzătoarea, încă = a Romanian central vowel that English does not really have

A rough learner-friendly approximation:

• roșiile ≈ RO-shee-le
• încă ≈ in-kuh, but with a Romanian î
• vânzătoarea is harder, but the -toa- part sounds roughly like twa

The exact pronunciation of â / î takes practice, but recognizing it as a separate Romanian vowel is a good start.