Avem patru documente.

We have four documents.

Breakdown of Avem patru documente.

• a avea: to have
• documentul: the document
• patru: 4

Questions & Answers about Avem patru documente.

What does avem mean, and what verb does it come from?

Avem means we have. It comes from the verb a avea = to have.

This is the 1st person plural form:

• eu am = I have
• tu ai = you have
• el/ea are = he/she has
• noi avem = we have
• voi aveți = you all have
• ei/ele au = they have

So Avem patru documente literally means We have four documents.

Why isn’t there a word for we in the sentence?

In Romanian, the verb ending often already shows who the subject is, so the subject pronoun is frequently left out.

• Avem already means we have
• Noi avem also means we have, but noi is usually added only for emphasis or contrast

For example:

• Avem patru documente. = We have four documents.
• Noi avem patru documente, ei au doar două. = We have four documents, they only have two.

So omitting noi is completely normal.

Why is it patru and not some other form?