The Mine and the Miner
Let's head beneath the surface to explore the terminology of mining. We start with the setting, mina (the mine), and the person who works there, minerul (the miner).
| The miner goes down into the mine every morning. | Minerul coboară în mină în fiecare dimineață. |
| It is dangerous to work in this mine. | Este periculos să lucrezi în această mină. |
Resources and Veins
The primary goal of digging is extracting valuable resources like cărbunele (the coal) and minereul (the ore). These materials are often found compressed into a strat (layer).
| The coal is a valuable resource. | Cărbunele este o resursă valoroasă. |
| This layer of coal is very thick. | Acest strat de cărbune este foarte gros. |
Once the material is broken loose, it must be transported to the surface. This is typically done using vagonetul (the minecart).
| The ore is transported with the minecart. | Minereul se transportă cu vagonetul. |
The Underground Environment
Miners spend their shifts subteran (underground). Notice how subteran functions as an adjective that changes form to agree with the noun it describes (e.g., tunel subteran, munca subterană). Access to these dark tunnels is typically down puțul (the shaft).
| This underground tunnel is very long. | Acest tunel subteran este foarte lung. |
| The shaft of the mine is deep. | Puțul minei este adânc. |
Rock and Depth
As you descend, the environment gets tougher. Workers must break through solid roca (the rock) and deal with the extreme conditions brought on by adâncimea (the depth).
| The rock is very hard. | Roca este foarte tare. |
| The depth of the shaft is impressive. | Adâncimea puțului este impresionantă. |