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Essential Romanian phrases
for travellers (printable)
how to say hello in romanian
Bună ziua — BOO-nuh ZEE-wah — is how you say hello in Romanian. It works at any hour, anywhere the language is spoken, with anyone. Pair it with Mulțumesc (mool-tsoo-MESK) for thank you and you already have the two words you will use most.
Below are 36 phrases worth knowing before you land, grouped by the situation you will need them in. Every one has a plain-English respelling — stressed syllable in capitals — because IPA is no use to anyone standing at a pharmacy counter. Romania and Moldova — around 24 million speakers, and the only Romance language in the region, surrounded on all sides by Slavic and Hungarian. Also searched as Romania, Moldova, Moldovan.
take it with you
The whole card, on one page
All 36 phrases on a single sheet — print it, fold it into a passport, or keep it on your phone. Free, no signup, no watermark.
The essentials
The six words that carry most of a trip.
| English | Romanian |
|---|---|
| Hello | Bună ziuaBOO-nuh ZEE-wahFormal, literally "good day". Bună alone is informal. |
| Goodbye | La revederelah reh-veh-DEH-reh |
| Please | Vă rogvuh rohg |
| Thank you | Mulțumescmool-tsoo-MESKMersi is also widely used and perfectly normal. |
| Yes / No | Da / Nudah / noo |
| Excuse me / Sorry | Scuzați-măskoo-ZATS-muh |
Getting by
What to say when the conversation outruns you.
| English | Romanian |
|---|---|
| Do you speak English? | Vorbiți engleză?vor-BEETS en-GLEH-zuh |
| I don't understand | Nu înțelegnoo un-tseh-LEG |
| Could you repeat that? | Puteți repeta?poo-TETS reh-peh-TAH |
| Please speak slowly | Vorbiți rar, vă rogvor-BEETS rahr vuh rohg |
| My name is… | Mă numesc…muh noo-MESK |
| Nice to meet you | Îmi pare bineuhm PAH-reh BEE-neh |
Getting around
Streets, stations and the one question everyone needs.
| English | Romanian |
|---|---|
| Where is…? | Unde este…?OON-deh YES-teh |
| How do I get to…? | Cum ajung la…?koom ah-ZHOONG lah |
| Where is the toilet? | Unde este toaleta?OON-deh YES-teh twah-LEH-tah |
| Left / Right | Stânga / DreaptaSTUN-gah / DRYAP-tah |
| Straight ahead | Drept înaintedrept uh-nah-EEN-teh |
| Is it far? | Este departe?YES-teh deh-PAR-teh |
Food and drink
Ordering, allergies, and asking for the bill.
| English | Romanian |
|---|---|
| A table for two, please | O masă pentru doi, vă rogoh MAH-suh PEN-troo doy |
| The menu, please | Meniul, vă rogmeh-NEE-ool vuh rohg |
| I would like… | Aș dori…ahsh doh-REE |
| Water, please | Apă, vă rogAH-puh vuh rohg |
| I am allergic to… | Sunt alergic la…soont ah-LEHR-jeek lahA woman says alergică (ah-LEHR-jee-kuh). |
| The bill, please | Nota, vă rogNOH-tah vuh rohg |
Shopping and money
Prices, cards, and politely not buying anything.
| English | Romanian |
|---|---|
| How much is it? | Cât costă?kuht KOS-tuh |
| That's too expensive | Este prea scumpYES-teh pryah skoomp |
| Do you take cards? | Acceptați card?ahk-chep-TATS kard |
| I am just looking | Doar mă uitdwahr muh oo-EET |
| Do you have…? | Aveți…?ah-VETS |
| A receipt, please | Bon, vă rogbohn vuh rohg |
Emergencies
Worth reading once before you need them.
| English | Romanian |
|---|---|
| Help! | Ajutor!ah-zhoo-TOR |
| Call the police | Chemați polițiakeh-MATS poh-LEE-tsee-ahEmergency number is 112. |
| Call an ambulance | Chemați ambulanțakeh-MATS ahm-boo-LAHN-tsah |
| I need a doctor | Am nevoie de un doctorahm neh-VOY-eh deh oon DOK-tor |
| I am lost | M-am rătăcitmahm ruh-tuh-CHEET |
| Where is the hospital? | Unde este spitalul?OON-deh YES-teh spee-TAH-lool |
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Four things that fix
most of the accent
It is a Romance language, and it shows
Noapte bună, apă, mulțumesc for merci. If you have any Italian, Spanish or French, roughly half the vocabulary will be guessable on sight, which is not true of anywhere else nearby.
ț is "ts" and ș is "sh"
Mulțumesc is "mool-tsoo-MESK" and București is "boo-koo-RESHT". The comma-like mark under the letter is doing real work; ignore it and the word will not be understood.
ă, â and î
ă is the "uh" in sofa. â and î are the same sound as each other, tighter and further back in the mouth, with no English equivalent — aim for a strangled "ih" and you will be close.
The word for "the" is a suffix
Meniu is a menu, meniul is the menu. Same trick as Norwegian, unrelated languages arriving at the same idea.
Spotted a mistake in the Romanian? Tell us and we will fix it.
You will not remember
all 36
Nobody does. OmniTalk speaks Romanian for you in real time — point the camera at a menu, or put the phone between you and let it translate both sides of the conversation as you talk. It works offline once you download the language, so it keeps going when your roaming does not.