La semafor așteptăm puțin, chiar dacă strada este goală.

In Romanian, la often means at, to, or by, depending on context.
So la semafor literally means at the traffic light.

A few examples:

• la școală = at school
• la magazin = at the shop
• la semafor = at the traffic light

Here it refers to the place or situation where you stop and wait.

Romanian semafor is the normal word for traffic light. It does not literally mean light the way English does. It is just the standard noun used for road signals.

So:

• semafor = traffic light
• lumină = light, but not the usual word for a traffic signal

Așteptăm means we wait.

It comes from the verb a aștepta = to wait.

This is the 1st person plural present tense form:

• eu aștept = I wait
• tu aștepți = you wait
• el/ea așteaptă = he/she waits
• noi așteptăm = we wait
• voi așteptați = you all wait
• ei/ele așteaptă = they wait

In this sentence, așteptăm can mean literal we wait, but Romanian also often uses we in a general sense, like English we wait at the light meaning that’s what people do.

Not necessarily in a very specific sense. Romanian, like English, can use we to describe a general rule or shared behavior.

So La semafor așteptăm puțin can mean:

• We wait a little at the traffic light
• or more generally, At the traffic light, we’re supposed to wait a little

It sounds natural when talking about normal behavior in traffic or in public life.

Puțin means a little or a bit.

In this sentence, it modifies așteptăm:

• așteptăm puțin = we wait a little / we wait a bit

It often refers to a short amount of time.

Compare:

• Mai așteaptă puțin. = Wait a little longer.
• Vreau puțină apă. = I want a little water.

Notice that puțin can be an adverb (a little) or an adjective/pronoun depending on the sentence.

Chiar dacă means even if or even though, depending on context.

In your sentence:

• chiar dacă strada este goală = even if the street is empty

Using just dacă would normally mean simply if:

• dacă strada este goală = if the street is empty

So chiar adds emphasis. It gives the idea:

• even in that case
• despite that

That is why chiar dacă is the better match for even if / even though.

Because strada means the street, while stradă means street.

Romanian usually puts the definite article at the end of the noun:

• stradă = a street / street
• strada = the street

This is very common in Romanian:

• băiat = boy
• băiatul = the boy
• casă = house
• casa = the house

So strada este goală literally means the street is empty.

Because goală must agree with strada, and strada is feminine singular.

The adjective gol = empty changes form to match the noun:

• gol = masculine singular
• goală = feminine singular
• goi = masculine plural
• goale = feminine/neuter plural

So:

• drumul este gol = the road is empty
• strada este goală = the street is empty

This kind of adjective agreement is an important feature of Romanian.

Both are correct.

• este = full form of is
• e = shorter, very common spoken form

So these are both natural:

• strada este goală
• strada e goală

Este can sound a bit more careful, neutral, or formal in writing, while e is extremely common in everyday speech.

Yes, Romanian word order is fairly flexible, although some versions sound more natural than others.

The original sentence:

• La semafor așteptăm puțin, chiar dacă strada este goală.

Possible variations:

• Așteptăm puțin la semafor, chiar dacă strada este goală.
• Chiar dacă strada este goală, la semafor așteptăm puțin.

The original version puts La semafor first, which helps set the scene right away: At the traffic light...

So the word order is natural and emphasizes the situation.

Yes. Gol / goală literally means empty, and it is perfectly natural for places, roads, rooms, streets, and containers.

Examples:

• camera este goală = the room is empty
• drumul e gol = the road is empty
• strada este goală = the street is empty

In this sentence, it means there are no cars or people on the street, or at least that it seems clear.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

La semafor așteptăm puțin, chiar dacă strada este goală.
lah seh-mah-FOR uhsh-tep-TUHM poo-TSIN, kyar DUH-kuh STRAH-dah ES-teh GOA-luh

A few useful pronunciation notes:

• ă is a short central vowel, somewhat like the a in about
• ț is ts, like in cats
• ș is sh
• chiar sounds roughly like kyar
• goa- in goală is pronounced clearly, with both vowels heard

It can be understood mainly as a general rule or habit.

The present tense in Romanian often works like the English present simple:

• something habitual
• something generally true
• something people normally do

So this sentence most naturally suggests:

• At the traffic light, we wait a little, even if the street is empty meaning that is the proper or usual behavior

It could also describe what is happening now in the right context, but the general-rule reading is the most likely.