Breakdown of E greu să urci pe jos până la etajul al unsprezecelea în zgârie-norul nostru.
fi
to be (sunt, ești, este, suntem, sunteți, sunt)
în
in
la
at / to
să
to (subjunctive marker)
greu
heavy / difficult
nostru
our [noastră, noștri, noastre]
etajul
the floor (storey)
pe jos
on foot
până
until
urca
to go up, to climb; to get on
al unsprezecelea
the eleventh
zgârie-norul
the skyscraper
Questions & Answers about E greu să urci pe jos până la etajul al unsprezecelea în zgârie-norul nostru.
How is the word for "eleventh" (al unsprezecelea) formed in this sentence?
To form ordinal numbers from 11 upwards for masculine and neuter nouns, you use the particle al + the cardinal number (unsprezece) + the ending lea. This gives us al unsprezecelea.
Why do we use al and lea instead of a and a for the ordinal number?
The ordinal number must match the gender of the noun it modifies. The word for floor, etaj, is a neuter noun. In the singular, neuter nouns take masculine modifiers, which is why we use the masculine/neuter pattern al ... lea. If the noun were feminine, it would be a unsprezecea.
How does the word for skyscraper (zgârie-norul) work?
It is a compound noun made from the verb a zgâria (to scratch or scrape) and the noun nor (cloud). Just like in English, it literally translates as "cloud-scraper". Notice that to say "the" skyscraper, the definite article -ul attaches to the very end of the compound word, making it zgârie-norul.
Why does the sentence use să urci (that you climb) instead of the infinitive a urca (to climb)?
After impersonal expressions like e greu (it is hard), Romanian strongly prefers using the subjunctive mood with să rather than the infinitive. Even though it is a general statement about climbing, Romanian phrases it as "it is hard that you climb", using the "you" form să urci.
Learn E greu să urci pe jos până la etajul al unsprezecelea în zgârie-norul nostru and more in Romanian
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free