Hello and goodbye
Romanian greetings change with the time of day and with how well you know someone. With strangers, shop staff and older people, use the polite forms; with friends and people your age, the informal ones.
bună ziua
good day, hello (polite)
bună dimineața
good morning
bună seara
good evening
bună
hi (informal)
salut
hi, bye (informal)
la revedere
goodbye (polite)
pa
bye (informal)
noapte bună
good night
Bună ziua works from late morning until evening, and you can use it all day if you are unsure. Salut is both hello and goodbye between friends.
Please, thank you, sorry
mulțumesc
thank you
mersi
thanks (informal)
cu plăcere
you're welcome
te rog
please (informal)
scuze
sorry (informal)
Scuzați-mă.
Excuse me. (polite)
da
yes
nu
no
Te rog or vă rog? Both mean please. Te rog is for one person you are on first-name terms with; vă rog is the polite form, for strangers and for more than one person. The same split runs through the whole language: tu (you, informal) and dumneavoastră (you, polite).
Meeting someone
Ce faci?
How are you? (informal)
Bine, mulțumesc.
Fine, thank you.
Mă numesc Ana.
My name is Ana.
Îmi pare bine.
Nice to meet you.
Put your own name after Mă numesc. Îmi pare bine literally means "it seems good to me", and it is what everyone says on being introduced.
Getting by
The phrases you will be glad to know when your Romanian runs out. They use the polite form, which is right with anyone you do not know.
Nu înțeleg.
I don't understand.
Puteți repeta, vă rog?
Could you repeat that, please?
Vorbiți engleză?
Do you speak English?
Cât costă?
How much is it?
Unde este toaleta?
Where is the toilet?
Celebrations
la mulți ani
happy birthday, happy new year
noroc
cheers
La mulți ani (literally "to many years") is the all-purpose wish: birthdays, name days and the New Year. Noroc means luck, and it is what Romanians say when they raise a glass.