# Feminine or masculine



## mike2008

Bună!
Please can someone tell me if these sentence are correct and if not what's wrong with them.

1. Pisică meu este bolnav - A man saying "my cat is sick"
2. Pisică mea este bolnavă - A woman saying "my cat is sick"

3. El este bolnav - "He is sick"
4. Ea este bolnavă - "She is sick"

5. Ei este bolnav - A group of men "They are sick"
6. Ele este bolnavă - A group of women "They are sick"

Mulţumesc.


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## cosmin

mike2008 said:


> Bună!
> Please can someone tell me if these sentence are correct and if not what's wrong with them.
> 
> 1. Pisică meu este bolnav*ă* - Pisic*a* mea este bolnavă (articulate with the definite article 'a') A man saying "my cat is sick"
> 2. Pisică mea este bolnavă - A woman saying "my cat is sick"
> 
> 3. El este bolnav - "He is sick"
> 4. Ea este bolnavă - "She is sick"
> 
> 5. Ei este bolnav*i* -> Ei sunt bolnavi;  A group of men "They are sick"
> 6. Ele este bolnavă -> Ele sunt bolnave;  A group of women "They are sick"
> 
> Mulţumesc.



In Romanian 'pisica' -- "cat" it is a feminine noun. 
Regarding 'to be' in Romanian, check out the below link: I cannot put links here  yet.
www
romaniandolls.com/books/007manual/Manual03/GRAMATICA/fi.h


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## OldAvatar

cosmin said:


> In Romanian 'pisica' -- "cat" it is a feminine noun.



You are right, but if the cat would be a male cat, then _pisic _or _motan _(masculine noun)wouldn't be a mistake.


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## mike2008

Thank you both cosmin and OldAvatar for you replies. But I'm still very confused about sentences 1,2,5 and 6. I will try to make some guesses to why these sentence are written the way they are and maybe someone can please point me in the right direction. I should also mention that I don't understand the phase "articulate with the definite article 'a'", my vocabulary is poor.
1. Pisic*a* mea este bolnavă - A man saying "my cat is sick"
a. "Pisica" because a man is talking about the cat?
b. "mea" because "pisica" is a feminine noun, does this when mean the cat must be female?
c. "este" I think I understand why.
d. "bolnavă" because "Pisic*a*" is a feminine noun?

Mulţumesc.


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## jazyk

It doesn't matter who says that their cat is sick. Cat is always going to be feminine if you use the word pisică, since it ends in ă, it is feminine (there are exceptions that refer to people, like tată - father -, but don't worry about them now). And it doesn't matter if your cat is male or female, the general word is pisică, feminine because it ends in ă.

Este is singular (is). Sunt is plural (are).


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## OldAvatar

mike2008 said:


> 1. Pisic*a* mea este bolnavă - A man saying "my cat is sick"
> a. "Pisica" because a man is talking about the cat?
> b. "mea" because "pisica" is a feminine noun, does this when mean the cat must be female?
> c. "este" I think I understand why.
> d. "bolnavă" because "Pisic*a*" is a feminine noun?
> 
> Mulţumesc.



_Pisică _is feminine. Also, you should accord the descriptive word (bolnavă with pisică, in this case) In order to better understand how it works, put it this way: *The cat of mine is sick*.
The cat = Pisic*a*
of mine = mea
is sick = este bolnavă.

@jazyk: actually, it does matter if the cat is male or female. Naming a male cat _pisică _would be wrong. The male cat is _pisic_ or _pisoi_.


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## cosmin

OldAvatar said:


> _Pisică _is feminine.
> 
> @jazyk: actually, it does matter if the cat is male or female. Naming a male cat _pisică _would be wrong. The male cat is _pisic_ or _pisoi_.


Yeah, you're half right... but don't forget that generally speaking we don't care if it is a male-cat or female-cat, the word is 'pisică'. The same goes with the dog -- 'câinele' it doesn't make any difference if it is a she-dog (căţea) or a he-dog (dulău) the general term when you're referring to a dog is 'câinele'.

Regards


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## mike2008

Thank you everyone, maybe I'm starting to understand. So I'll try again.
1.Pisică mea este bolnavă - my cat is sick.
a. "Pisică" a female cat or just a cat in general.
b. "mea" of mine.
c. "este bolnavă" is sick, only female.

So if I wanted to say "my male cat is sick" [to identify it from another cat] it would be.
"Pisic mea este bolnav"?
Mulţumesc.


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## jazyk

No, pisicul meu este bolnav because everything has to agree (in this case pisic is a masculine word).


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## mike2008

Thank for your help, I don't understand why "pisicul". I thought pisic was a masculine word, so surly if every thing has to agree this should fit too?
pisic - masculine ?
meu - masculine 
este bolnav - masculine 
I seem not to be understanding something, but what?
Thank you.


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## jazyk

Ul is the suffix you add to masculine and neuter words to get a _the_, as I explained in another thread:

apartament (neuter) - apartment, apartamentul - the apartment
tren (neuter) - train, trenul - the train
lup (masculine) - wolf, lupul - the wolf

When you use possessive adjectives you have to use the article. Why? Just because.


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## mike2008

Thank you I think I understand.
"Pisicul meu este bolnav" - the male cat of mine is sick.

But what about feminine words, is there a suffix added to get "the" for those?


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## SerinusCanaria3075

Usually feminine nouns in the singular end in *-a *(to show it's definite), rather than *-ă *(which is indefinite), the difference of course is that one sounds longer than the other.

_O pisic*ă*_ = A cat.
_Pisic*a* mea_ = My cat.

(Compare to Sardinian: _*Sa* gata mea_ )

_O cas*ă*_= A house.
_Cas*a* mea_ = My house.

When you use the possessives the definite article must be used (-*a*), as you already know. Some feminine nouns simply add the *-a* rather than having vowel alternation:

_O noapte_ = A night 
-> _Noapte*a*_ = The night.
_Noapte*a* noastră_ = Our night.

(Compare to Sardinian: _*Sa* note nostra_)


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## mike2008

Thank you SerinusCanaria3075, that's very helpful. I still want to know how to make "the cat". 
Thank you.


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## OldAvatar

Mike, in Romanian, definite articles are at the end of a word and not in front of it.
so,
the cat = pisic*a*
a cat = o pisică

*a* and *ă* are different letters...


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## SerinusCanaria3075

Mike...
Try to find the *root/stem* (whatever you call it) of a particular noun. For example, cat:

_*Pisic*_ / -*ă */ -*i*.

Thus you can add the *definite* article (don't worry about the indefinite article since it always precedes the noun): 
_*Pisi*c*ul, Pisi*c*a, Pisi*c*ii.*_

(Similar to Italian: _*il *gatto/*la* gatta/ *i* gatti_)

Look at the following thread that lists some common suffixes for animals:
Dog and Cat.


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## mike2008

Thank you OldAvatar, I understand now. "_Pisic*a* mea_ " - "the cat of mine". I had forgot phrases don't always translate word for word.
Mulţumesc.


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## Zamolxis

Couple of guidelines which might be of help in the future:


*I.* In Romanian, if the noun is the subject of the sentence, you'll never have it in its basic form (like in English), but only in one of these 3 forms:
- with definite article: _Pisic*a* me*a* este bolnavă = My cat of mine _(corresponding to the English "my cat") _is sick_
- with indefinite article: _*O* pisică (de-*a* me*a*) este bolnavă = A cat is sick (One of my cats is sick)_
_- _in accountable form: _*Trei *pisic*i* (de-*ale *me*le*)* sunt* bolnave = Three (of my) cats are sick_

Actually even when it's not the subject, the noun is used either with a preposition, or in one of the 3 forms above.

 So remember: if you don't have an article, a number, or a preposition next to your noun, you might be making a mistake!

 Also using two of them next to a noun can be dangerous in Romanian - a mistake many foreigners do: _On the cat = Pe pisic_*ă*, and not _Pe pisic*a*_


*II. *When building the sentence in Romanian, first select the gender of your now (_pisic/pisică)_, and then take care all other sentence parts agree. Not taking things in the right order seems to be the cause of the confusions above.

Pay also attention to "one" and "two", which in Romanian also have to agree with the gender.

See below the examples:

_Fem:_
Pisic*a* (me*a)* este bolnav*ă* = The (/My) cat is sick
*O* pisică este bolnav*ă* = A/One cat is sick ("one" and indefinite article have the same form in Romanian)
*Două* pisic*i* *sunt* bolnav*e = *Two cats are sick

_Masc:_
Pisic*ul* (me*u*) este bolnav = The (/My) tomcat is sick
*Un* pisic (de-*al* me*u*) este bolnav = One (of my) tomcats is sick
*Doi* pisic*i* (de-*ai* me*i*) *sunt* bolnav*i = *Two (of my) tomcats are sick


Two more remarks:

1. The identical plural form "pisici" is an exception. As you probably already know, most nouns in Romanian which have both masculine and feminine form at singular, have different forms also at plural.

2. The masculine "pisic" is used only regionally in Romania. Others prefer to use "motan", which is also the official word for a male cat in the language.


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## mike2008

Thank you very much Zamolxis. I shall study this at the weekend because I'm ill at the moment.
Bye.


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## OldAvatar

Însănătoşire grabnică!


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc foarte mult, I only have a cold, but studying Romanian takes all my consentration."Însănătoşire grabnică!" I think this meant speedy recovery, if so shouldn't "grabnică" be"grabnicul" because I'm male. I know I'm problely wrong but I'm still curious to why.
Bye.


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## OldAvatar

No. You accord _grabnică _with _însănătoşire _(recuperation, recovery), which is feminine.
You see, Romanian is like a poem, you have to get the rhyme.


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc OldAvatar, I see now. I will have to study this thread very carefully and soon as possible, so I don't ask any question that have already been explained to me.
La revedere.


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## Topa2007

1. Pisică meu este bolnav - A man saying "my cat is sick" (should be: Pisica mea este bolnavă if you are referring to a female cat and Pisicul meu este bolnav if you are referring to a male cat)
2. Pisică mea este bolnavă - A woman saying "my cat is sick" (should be: Pisica mea este bolnavă if the cat is a female cat and Pisicul meu este bolnav if it’s a male cat)
*As you can easily notice, there’s absolutely no difference between the 1st and the 2nd example…*
3. El este bolnav - "He is sick"
4. Ea este bolnavă - "She is sick" *(#3 and #4 are perfectly correct the way you translated them! **J Congratulations!)
*
5. Ei este bolnav - A group of men "They are sick" (should be: Ei sunt bolnavi)
6. Ele este bolnavă - A group of women "They are sick" (should be: Ele sunt bolnave)


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc foarte mult everyone who reply to this thread. I've studied most of this thread and I think I finally understand. Please can somebody tell me if this is correct.
0. O pisică este fericită - a cat is happy
1. Pisica mea este fericită- my cat is happy
2. El este fericit - he is happy
3. Ea este fericită - she is happy
4. Ei sunt fericiti - they are happy [group of men]
5. Ele sunt fericite - they are happy [group of women]

Masculine
6. Pisicul - the cat - definite article
7. Un pisic - a cat - indefinite article
Feminine
8. Pisica - the cat
9. O pisică - a cat

I still have a few more questions, but first I'd like to see how I did with these.
Bye.


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## robbie_SWE

mike2008 said:


> Mulţumesc foarte mult everyone who reply to this thread. I've studied most of this thread and I think I finally understand. Please can somebody tell me if this is correct.
> 0. O pisică este fericită - a cat is happy
> 1. Pisica mea este fericită- my cat is happy
> 2. El este fericit - he is happy
> 3. Ea este fericită - she is happy
> 4. Ei sunt ferici*ţ*i - they are happy [group of men]
> 5. Ele sunt fericite - they are happy [group of women]
> 
> Masculine
> 6. Pisicul - the cat - definite article
> 7. Un pisic - a cat - indefinite article
> Feminine
> 8. Pisica - the cat
> 9. O pisică - a cat
> 
> I still have a few more questions, but first I'd like to see how I did with these.
> Bye.


 
Perfect, just one minor correction! Keep up the good work! 

 robbie


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc robbie_SWE. Would I only change the "t" to "ţ" in the word "fericit" or would I do the same to other words ending with "t" when I add an "i"?
Ei sunt trisţi - they are sad [group of men]?


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## cosmin

mike2008 said:


> Mulţumesc foarte mult everyone who reply to this thread. I've studied most of this thread and I think I finally understand. Please can somebody tell me if this is correct.
> 0. O pisică este fericită - a cat is happy
> 1. Pisica mea este fericită- my cat is happy
> 2. El este fericit - he is happy
> 3. Ea este fericită - she is happy
> 4. Ei sunt fericiti - they are happy [group of men]
> 5. Ele sunt fericite - they are happy [group of women]
> 
> Masculine
> 6. Pisicul - the cat - definite article
> 7. Un pisic - a cat - indefinite article
> Feminine
> 8. Pisica - the cat
> 9. O pisică - a cat
> 
> I still have a few more questions, but first I'd like to see how I did with these.
> Bye.


 
Well done Mike. 
I personally don't use the word 'pisic' for tomcat, but only *'motan'*.

 Singular      |  Plural
trist                |  tri*ş*ti
fericit            |  ferici*ţ*i


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc cosmin. How can I tell when I will need to change "s" to "ş " and "t" to "ţ"? Is there some kind of rule I can follow or do I have to know the correct spellings for each individual word?
Bye.


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## cosmin

These two (fericit & trist) are adjectives. And the rule is that when an adjective is ending in s or t, at *masculine* gender, it changes *t* in *ţ* and *s* in *ş*, adding at the end *-i*. But I think that, there are a few exceptions though. Better check on the language reference dictionary.
*dexonline.ro*

Ex: All are adj. (masculine)
frumo*s* (handsome) -> frumo*şi*
gra*s* (fat) -> gra*şi*
tăcu*t* (silent / taciturn) -> tăcu*ţ**i*
înal*t* (tall) -> înal*ţi*


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc cosmin. I looked at *dexonline.ro, it seems very good [Oh no I've gone blue] but it's all in Romanian. So I looked in my own dictionary and found a few words ending in "st". I think when a word ends in "st" and you add an "i" the "st" becomes "şt". Can anyone tell me if this is correct please.*
*[Sorry about the blue text, I don't know how to change it back]*


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## robbie_SWE

Well Mike2008, don't want to sound like a broken record but can you please give us some context and examples?! Give us a word and your wish is our command! 

PS: you might want to open a new thread about that. 

 robbie


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## simona02

The difference between "pisic" and "motan" is mostly about the age. 
pisic-pisicul (sg) / pisici-pisicii (pl)  - male, a few days/weeks old
motan-motanul (sg) / motani-motanii (pl) - adult male.

There is also "pisoi", having the same meaning of "pisic". 
Nominative forms: *pisoi*-pisoiul (sg) / *pisoi*-pisoii (pl). 
So: used without an article or with indefinite article, it's the same form for sg and pl (un pisoi - doi pisoi).


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc foarte mult simona02, that's useful and interesting information.

Mulţumesc foarte mult robbie_SWE. Sorry I was been lazy before and that blue text was distracting me. Here are some examples.
When a masculine adjective ends in "s" and an "i" is added.
1. Ei sunt frumoşi - they are handsome
2. Ei sunt graşi - they are fat

When a masculine adjective ends in "t" and an "i" is added.
3. Ei sunt înalţi - they are tall
4. Ei sunt tăcuţi - they are silent

When a masculine adjective ends in "st" and an "i" is added.
5. Ei sunt trişt - they are sad
6. Ei sunt artişti - they are artists

Are these correct, my main concerns are with sentence 5 and 6. Are there any words that would use "sţi" instead of "şti"?


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## simona02

mike2008 said:


> When a masculine adjective ends in "s" and an "i" is added.
> 1. Ei sunt frumoşi - they are handsome ok
> 2. Ei sunt graşi - they are fat ok
> 
> When a masculine adjective ends in "t" and an "i" is added.
> 3. Ei sunt înalţi - they are tall ok
> 4. Ei sunt tăcuţi - they are silent ok
> 
> When a masculine adjective ends in "st" and an "i" is added.
> 5. Ei sunt trişt - they are sad --> Ei sunt trişt* i*
> 6. Ei sunt artişti - they are artists ok
> 
> Are these correct, my main concerns are with sentence 5 and 6. Are there any words that would use "sţi" instead of "şti"?


 
I'll try fo find some rules for you, but the problem with the Romanian language is that it's even more "irregular" than French.


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## mike2008

Mulţumesc foarte mult simona02, that's very kind of you. I shall also look too.
La revedere.


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## simona02

Mike, you have in the Romanian Resources a very good grammar: Dana COJOCARU, _Romanian Grammar,_ 2003. 

You have lots of explanations there, especially about the most complicated part of the Romanian language - the morphophonemic alternations (frum*o*s-frum*oa*să):

2.2. Common morphophonemic alternations
2.2.1. Vowel mutations
2.2.1.1. the _o/oa _mutation
2.2.1.2. the _e/ea _mutation
2.2.1.3. the _ă/e _mutation
2.2.1.4. the _a/e _mutation
2.2.1.5. the _a/ă _mutation
2.2.1.6. the _ea/e _mutation
2.2.1.7. the _oa/o _mutation
2.2.1.8. the _ie/ia _mutation
2.2.1.9. the _â/i _mutation
2.2.1.10. the _a/ă _mutation
2.2.1.11. the _u/o _mutation
2.2.2. Consonant mutations
2.2.2.1. the _c/ce or ci _mutation
2.2.2.2. the _g/ge or gi _mutation
2.2.2.3. the _s/ş + i _mutation
2.2.2.4. the _st/şt + i _mutation
2.2.2.5. the _str/ştr + i _mutation
2.2.2.6. the _sc/şt + i or e _mutation
2.2.2.7. the _şc/şt + e or i _mutation
2.2.2.8. the _t/ţ + i or e _mutation
2.2.2.9. the _d/z + i/â or ă _mutation
2.2.2.10. the _z/j + i _mutation
2.2.2.11. the _l/Ø + i _mutation​


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