Learn Romanian: Acel hol este foarte curat. - That hallway is very clean.

In Romanian, demonstrative words meaning 'that' change depending on whether they sit before the noun or stand alone. Acel is used directly before a masculine or neuter noun, like acel hol. If you were pointing and just saying 'that one', you would use the standalone pronoun acela.

Does using acel mean that hol is a masculine noun?

Hol is actually a neuter noun. In Romanian, neuter nouns act like masculine nouns in the singular and like feminine nouns in the plural. Since we are talking about exactly one hallway, we treat it as masculine and use acel.

If I want to say a kitchen is very clean, do I still use curat?

No, because adjectives change to match the gender of the noun they describe. The word for kitchen is bucătărie, which is feminine. To describe it, you must use the feminine form curată. Since hol is acting masculine here, we use the masculine form curat.

Does foarte change if the noun is plural or feminine?

No. Unlike adjectives, foarte is an adverb used to describe how clean the hallway is. Adverbs in Romanian never change their form, so it remains exactly the same regardless of the noun's gender or number.