Learn Romanian: Nu mi-a plăcut supa. - I didn't like the soup.

Nu mi-a plăcut supa.

I didn't like the soup.

Breakdown of Nu mi-a plăcut supa.

Questions & Answers about Nu mi-a plăcut supa.

Why is the auxiliary verb '-a' (third person) used instead of 'am' (first person) if the translation is 'I didn't like'?

In Romanian, the verb a plăcea (to like) works differently than in English. The literal structure is 'The soup was not pleasing to me.' Since supa (the soup) is the grammatical subject doing the action, the verb takes the third-person singular auxiliary -a (for it).

What exactly is mi- in this sentence?

mi- is the shortened form of îmi, which is an indirect object pronoun meaning 'to me'. When it comes right before the auxiliary verb a, it drops its outer letters and attaches with a hyphen to make pronunciation smoother, creating mi-a.

How do we know it means 'the soup' and not just 'soup'?

The basic dictionary word for soup is supă. To say 'the soup', Romanian attaches the definite article (the equivalent of 'the') directly to the end of the noun. For feminine words ending in a short -ă, that ending changes to a full -a, giving us supa.

How would I change this sentence to say 'He didn't like the soup'?

You only need to change the pronoun. Instead of mi- (to me), you use i- (to him or to her), which is the short form of îi. The sentence becomes Nu i-a plăcut supa. The verb part (-a plăcut) stays exactly the same because the soup is still the subject!