Mixed Gender Nouns
When a single adjective describes multiple nouns of different genders, it must resolve which form to take.
The Masculine Default
If at least one noun is masculine, the adjective takes the masculine plural. In the example below, covorul (the rug) is neuter, but peretele (the wall) is masculine, so the adjective becomes albi (masculine plural).
| The rug and the wall are white, so the room seems more minimalist. | Covorul și peretele sunt albi, deci camera pare mai minimalistă. |
This also applies to mixed groups of people.
| The boy and the girl are both very careful with the minimalist design. | Băiatul și fata sunt amândoi foarte atenți la designul minimalist. |
Feminine and Neuter Mix
When modifying a mix of feminine and neuter nouns, the adjective takes the feminine plural ending (since neuter nouns behave like feminine nouns in the plural).
Here, designul is neuter and textura is feminine. The adjective takes the shared plural form, moderne.
| In my opinion, the design and the texture are too modern. | După părerea mea, designul și textura sunt prea moderne. |
| The bedside lamp and the painting are colorful. | Veioza și tabloul sunt colorate. |
This rule applies whether the adjective follows a verb or directly follows the nouns.
| We intend to rearrange the yellow rug and sofa. | Avem de gând să rearanjăm covorul și canapeaua galbene. |
| The symmetrical ornament and mirror look great together. | Ornamentul și oglinda simetrice arată grozav împreună. |
Proximity Agreement
When an adjective sits immediately after a list of nouns, Romanian often allows proximity agreement. Instead of a plural adjective covering all items, the adjective simply matches the gender and number of the noun closest to it.
Below, nouă (new) is in the feminine singular form to match veioză (bedside lamp).
| I bought a chair and a new bedside lamp. | Am cumpărat un scaun și o veioză nouă. |
