Breakdown of Aruncați zarul înainte să alegeți direcția.
să
to (subjunctive marker)
înainte
before
arunca
to throw
alege
to choose
Questions & Answers about Aruncați zarul înainte să alegeți direcția.
Why do we use înainte să here instead of înainte de?
We use înainte să because it introduces an action with a verb. It means 'before doing something' and triggers the subjunctive mood. If we were putting 'before' in front of a noun instead of a verb, like 'before the game', we would use înainte de (înainte de joc).
I know înainte să requires the subjunctive mood. Why does alegeți just look like the normal present tense?
In Romanian, the subjunctive mood for the voi (you plural/formal) form is exactly the same as the regular present tense. The word să in front of it is your main clue that this is the subjunctive mood!
Does a arunca always mean 'to roll' when talking about games?
A arunca literally means 'to throw'. While English specifically uses 'to roll' for dice, Romanian just uses 'to throw': a arunca zarul (to throw the die). You might also hear the phrase a da cu zarul.