Breakdown of Acest contact al meu lucrează aici.
aici
here
lucra
to work
meu
my [mea, mei, mele]
al
the possessive article (m.sg; a, ai, ale)
acest
this
contactul
the contact
Questions & Answers about Acest contact al meu lucrează aici.
Why do we need the word "al" here? Can't I just say "acest contact meu"?
You need al because of the word order. Usually, a possessive attaches to a noun that has a definite article (like contactul meu). But because acest makes the noun bare (contact), the possessive meu needs a bridge to connect to it. The linking article al acts as that bridge.
Why doesn't the noun have a definite article here (like "acest contactul")?
In Romanian, when a demonstrative adjective like acest (this) or acel (that) comes right before a noun, the noun must be unarticulated (bare). So it is always acest contact, never acest contactul.
Why use the linking article "al" specifically, rather than "a", "ai", or "ale"?
If I wanted to put the word for "this" after the noun, how would the Romanian phrase change?
If the demonstrative goes after the noun, it changes to acesta, and the noun must now take the definite article. The phrase becomes contactul acesta al meu (literally: the contact this of mine). Both structures mean the same thing, but acest contact al meu is a bit more formal.
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