Robinetul este închis.

Robinetul = robinet + -ul.

• robinet = tap / faucet
• -ul = the Romanian definite article meaning the

So robinetul literally means the tap / the faucet.

Unlike English, Romanian usually puts the at the end of the noun.

Romanian normally uses an enclitic definite article, which means the article is attached to the noun.

Examples:

• robinet = a tap / tap
• robinetul = the tap

This is very common in Romanian:

• băiat = boy
• băiatul = the boy
• carte = book
• cartea = the book

So robinetul is completely normal Romanian structure.

In this sentence, este means is.

• Robinetul este închis. = The tap is closed.

Romanian usually does need the verb a fi (to be) in this kind of sentence. You normally cannot just say Robinetul închis to mean The tap is closed.

However, in everyday speech, Romanian speakers sometimes drop este in certain contexts, especially in informal style, but for learners the full standard form is:

• Robinetul este închis.

Închis is the masculine singular form of closed.

It comes from the verb a închide = to close / to shut, but here it works like an adjective: closed.

Because robinetul is a masculine singular noun, the word describing it also appears in the masculine singular form:

• masculine singular: închis
• feminine singular: închisă
• masculine plural: închiși
• feminine plural: închise

So:

• Robinetul este închis. = The tap is closed.
• Ușa este închisă. = The door is closed.

You often learn a Romanian noun’s gender together with its article form.

Here:

• un robinet = a tap
• robinetul = the tap

The ending -ul is a strong clue that the noun is treated here as masculine singular.

Also, the adjective agrees with it:

• robinetul → masculine singular
• închis → masculine singular

So the agreement helps confirm the gender.

This is the most neutral, natural word order:

• Robinetul = the subject
• este = is
• închis = closed

Romanian word order is fairly flexible, but this version is the standard way to say it.

You could change word order for emphasis in some contexts, but a learner should use:

• Robinetul este închis.

Yes. Robinet can correspond to English tap or faucet, depending on the variety of English.

So:

• British English: The tap is closed.
• American English: The faucet is closed.

Romanian uses the same basic noun here: robinet.

Yes, in many situations that is a natural English translation.

For a tap, closed often means:

• no water is flowing
• the tap has been turned off

So depending on context, English might say:

• The tap is closed.
• The tap is off.
• The faucet is turned off.

The Romanian sentence itself is still:

• Robinetul este închis.

You add nu before the verb:

• Robinetul nu este închis. = The tap is not closed.

In everyday Romanian, you might also hear:

• Robinetul este deschis. = The tap is open.

So:

• închis = closed
• deschis = open

A simple approximation is:

• închis ≈ in-khees

A few notes:

• în contains a Romanian vowel that does not exist exactly in English. It is not the same as normal English i.
• ch before i is pronounced like k, not like English ch in chair.
• So închis sounds roughly like ɨn-KIS.

If you are a beginner, saying something close to in-kis will usually be understood, even if the vowel â/î takes practice.

Yes, in everyday speech:

• Robinetul e închis.

This means exactly the same thing as:

• Robinetul este închis.

Difference:

• este = more full, neutral, standard
• e = shorter, very common in speech

Both are correct. For learning and formal writing, este is a good default.

Romanian often keeps the same word order and relies on intonation:

• Robinetul este închis?

This means:

• Is the tap closed?

You can also use a more explicit question structure in some cases, but the simple intonation question is very common and natural.