Breakdown of Copilul doarme cu o jucărie a lui.
o
a / an (f)
copilul
the child
cu
with
dormi
to sleep
lui
his, its
al
the possessive article (m.sg; a, ai, ale)
jucăria
the toy
Questions & Answers about Copilul doarme cu o jucărie a lui.
Why do we need the word a before lui?
Because o jucărie is indefinite (it uses o, meaning "a"). When you want to say "a toy of his", Romanian requires a linking article to connect the indefinite noun to the possessive word. Here, a is that link. If it were definite like "the toy" (jucăria), you could just say jucăria lui.
Why is the linking article a instead of al, ai, or ale?
Why is it lui for "his"? Doesn't Romanian have words like său or sa?
Yes, you could also say o jucărie a sa (a toy of his own). Lui is the fixed pronoun for "his" and never changes its form. Possessive adjectives like său or sa must change to match the object. Both are correct, but lui is often easier for beginners since it doesn't change!
I see doarme means "sleeps", but what is the base form of the verb?
The dictionary form is a dormi (to sleep). Notice how the o in dormi changes to an oa sound when we say "he/she sleeps" (el/ea doarme). This vowel shift is very common in Romanian.
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