Pattern
Adjectives agree with the noun in gender and number: un băiat bun (a good boy), o fată bună (a good girl), doi băieți buni (two good boys), două fete bune (two good girls).
Explanation
Romanian adjectives have up to four forms — one for each gender/number combination. A typical adjective like bun (good) has: bun (masc. sg.), bună (fem. sg.), buni (masc. pl.), bune (fem. pl.). The ending follows the noun's form.
Most adjectives go AFTER the noun. Un copil frumos (a beautiful child). O zi minunată (a wonderful day). Some short adjectives can precede the noun for emphasis or in fixed phrases: un bun prieten (a good friend), o mare problemă (a big problem) — but the default is post-position.
When in plural, adjectives also shift vowels in the stem sometimes: bun → buni (clean), but negru (black) → negri/negre. Learn each adjective with its four forms when possible.
Examples
| Romanian | English |
|---|---|
| Un băiat bun și o fată bună. | A good boy and a good girl. |
| Doi prieteni buni și două prietene bune. | Two good (male) friends and two good (female) friends. |
| O carte interesantă. | An interesting book. |
| Cărți interesante și filme interesante. | Interesting books and interesting movies. |
| Un câine mare și două pisici mari. | A big dog and two big cats. |
Common mistakes
- Using masculine for a feminine noun: O fată bun is wrong — say o fată bună.
- Placing the adjective before the noun by default: That's English/French; Romanian usually goes noun + adjective.
- Forgetting plural agreement: Doi băieți bun is wrong; say doi băieți buni.
Heritage learner note
Heritage speakers usually handle gender agreement intuitively for common adjectives — fată bună, băiat bun feels obvious. The challenge is less-common adjectives where you may not have heard the feminine or plural form. For example, roșu (red) becomes roșie, roșii, roșii — heritage learners often default to roșu for everything. Also watch for adjectives ending in -tor (cititor → cititoare, cititori, cititoare): these change pattern slightly. When you encounter a new adjective, mentally generate all four forms.