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### What should I do? Ce să fac?

English needs *should* to ask what to do. Romanian puts the question word straight in front of **să** + subjunctive: **Ce să fac?** (What should I do?). You ask it to get advice, or to yourself when you are stuck. Every question word works the same way: **unde să** (where), **cui să-i** (to whom), **pe cine să** (whom), **cu cine să** (with whom), **cum să** (how). After *cui*, the dative pronoun comes along: *cui să-i spun?*

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| question | what it asks |
|---|---|
| Ce faci? | what are you doing? (a fact) |
| Ce trebuie să faci? | what do you have to do? (a duty) |
| **Ce să faci?** | what should you do? (a choice) |

Said with a shrug, *ce să faci?* also means *what can you do?* And keep it apart from the indignant *Eu să depun documentul din nou?!* (Me, submit it again?!): that one is an outburst, not a real question.

### I don't know what to do: nu știu ce să fac

After *nu știu* or *spune-mi*, the same question word + **să** gives English *what to, where to, how to*. Compare *nu știu unde merge* (I don't know where he is going: a fact you are missing) with *nu știu unde să merg* (I don't know where to go: a decision you have not made yet).

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### Nowhere to sleep: n-am unde să dorm

Put **nu am** in front instead of asking, and you say there is nowhere, no one or nothing to …: *n-am unde să dorm* (I have nowhere to sleep), *n-are cu cine să vorbească* (he has no one to talk to).

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Two of these are fixed phrases you will hear every day:

- **n-am ce face**: there's nothing I can do (about it). Here the verb keeps its dictionary form, with no *să*.
- **n-am de ales**: I have no choice.

Both change with the person: *n-avem ce face*, *n-ai de ales*.

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What should I do? I have no choice (ce să fac, n-am de ales)

adjective

adverb

adverbial phrase

auxiliary

auxiliary verb

conjunction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

The verb to be and definite articles (a fi, -ul, -le)

Feminine definite articles (-a, -ua)

Indefinite articles (un, o)

Negative sentences (nu)

Question words (ce, unde, cine)

The verb to have (a avea)

Masculine plural nouns (-i, -ii)

Feminine plural nouns (-e, -i, -le)

Neuter plural nouns (-uri, -e, -le)

Adjectives and agreement

Present tense of regular -a verbs

Present tense of -a verbs with suffix (-ez)

Present tense of regular -i and -î verbs

Present tense of -i and -î verbs with suffix (-esc / -ăsc)

Present tense of -ea and -e verbs

Reflexive pronouns (mă, te, se, ne, vă)

Accusative prepositions (în, la, pe, din, cu)

Likes and dislikes (îmi place)

Possessive adjectives (meu, tău, său)

Third-person possessives (lui, ei, lor)

Possessive articles (al, a, ai, ale)

Formal politeness (dumneavoastră)

Demonstrative adjectives (acest, acel)

Numbers 1 to 10

The number two (doi, două)

Numbers 11 to 20

Counting by tens to 100

Quantifying large numbers (de)

The subjunctive (să)

Third-person subjunctive (să)

Direct object pronouns (îl, o, îi, le)

Personal direct objects (pe)

Days of the week

Telling time (e ora...)

Months of the Year (January to June)

Months of the Year (July to December)

The Four Seasons

Weather Conditions

Rooms in a House

Basic Body Parts: Upper Body

Basic Body Parts: Limbs

Everyday Clothing

Basic Foods: Groceries

Fruits and Vegetables

Around Town

Getting Around

Setting the Table

A Colorful World

Common Animals

In the Wild

Jobs and Careers

Everyday Tech

Describing people (tânăr, bătrân, înalt)

Asking when and why (când, de ce, care)

Hello and goodbye (bună ziua, la revedere)

Coming and going (intra, sta, trece)

Where is it? (sub, lângă, între)

Knowing and thinking (știu că, cred că)

Sorry, welcome, congratulations (îmi pare rău, la mulți ani)

Introducing yourself (mă numesc, sunt din România)

How much and how many (puțin, prea, doar)

Can and may (pot merge, pot să merg)

If and whether (dacă)

At school and university

Irregular verbs in the present (vrea, lua, da, bea, sta)

Free time and sport

How much is it? (cât costă, câți, câte)

Before and after (înainte, după, până)

At the doctor (mă doare)

Meals of the day (micul dejun, prânzul, cina)

At the restaurant

Ability and permission (a putea să)

Obligation and necessity (trebuie să)

Desires and intentions (a vrea să)

Impersonal statements (se)

Adverbs of frequency (adesea, uneori)

Conjunctions for reasons and links (pentru că, deci)

Stressed accusative pronouns (pe mine, pe tine)

Indefinite pronouns (cineva, ceva)

Negative pronouns and double negation (nimeni, nimic)

The past tense auxiliary (am, ai, a)

The past tense (am, ai, a)

Regular past participles (-at, -it)

Regular past participles (-ut, -s, -t)

Negative past tense (nu am)

Question	Answer
there's nothing I can do (about it)	n-am ce face
What should I do now?	Ce să fac acum?
Who should I tell the truth to?	Cui să-i spun adevărul?
Who should I ask?	Pe cine să întreb?
What gift should I buy Mom?	Ce cadou să-i cumpăr mamei?
Where should I submit the file?	Unde să depun dosarul?
What time should I come tomorrow?	La ce oră să vin mâine?
I don't know what to do.	Nu știu ce să fac.
Tell me where to put the box.	Spune-mi unde să pun cutia.
I don't know how to explain it to you.	Nu știu cum să-ți explic.
I have nowhere to sleep tonight.	N-am unde să dorm diseară.
Grandpa has no one to talk to.	Bunicul n-are cu cine să vorbească.
There's nothing I can do; the train has left.	N-am ce face, trenul a plecat.
I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do.	Îmi pare rău, dar n-am ce face.
There's nothing we can do; we have to wait.	N-avem ce face, trebuie să așteptăm.
I have no choice	n-am de ales
I have no choice; I have to sign.	N-am de ales, trebuie să semnez.
I'm working on Saturday because I have no choice.	Lucrez sâmbătă, pentru că n-am de ales.
You have no choice: you sign or you leave.	N-ai de ales: semnezi sau pleci.

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