Breakdown of Ajung înainte de ora cinci.
cinci
five
de
of / to, near (after se apropia)
ora
the hour
ajunge
to arrive
Questions & Answers about Ajung înainte de ora cinci.
Where is the word for 'I' in this sentence?
In Romanian, you can often drop the subject pronoun (like eu for 'I') because the verb itself tells you who is doing the action. The form ajung specifically means 'I arrive', so the extra word is not needed.
Could ajung also mean 'I am arriving' or 'I will arrive'?
Yes! Romanian only has one present tense. Ajung can mean 'I arrive' or 'I am arriving'. It is also very common to use the present tense for near-future plans, just like saying 'I arrive at five' in English to mean you will be there soon.
Why do we need the word de after înainte?
When you use înainte to mean 'before' a specific time or event, you must pair it with de. By itself, înainte usually means 'forward' or 'beforehand', but înainte de links it directly to the time that follows.
Why does it say ora cinci instead of just cinci?
When talking about time on the clock in Romanian, you usually place ora (which means 'the hour') right before the number. So 'five o'clock' translates literally to 'the hour five'.