Dates and First

Level 2

In Romanian, the 1st of the month is always întâi. From the 2nd to the 31st, you switch to regular cardinal numbers (doi, trei, etc.).

How It Works

Use întâi for the first day of a month: întâi ianuarie. For days 2–31, use cardinal numbers: doi martie, zece aprilie, douăzeci și trei august.

Date variants: For dates containing 2, 12 or 22, current standard usage accepts masculine or feminine forms: doi/două mai, doisprezece/douăsprezece mai, douăzeci și doi/douăzeci și două mai. Clock time has different rules: ora două.

Useful frames: Astăzi este întâi iunie. (Today is June 1st.) Ne vedem pe întâi iulie. (We will meet on July 1st.) You can also hear Suntem în... when stating today's date.

Writing: Month names normally start with a lowercase letter. Întâi stays unchanged in a date. Primul is used in other ordinal constructions, such as prima zi a lunii (the first day of the month).

Examples (5)

  1. Astăzi este întâi decembrie.

    Today is December 1st.

    Word by Word: Today is first December.

    Notice the use of 'întâi' for the first day of the month.

  2. Ne vedem pe două ianuarie.

    We are meeting on January 2nd.

    Word by Word: Us see on two January.

    For the 2nd, 12th, and 22nd, both feminine (două) and masculine (doi) forms are accepted.

  3. Examenul este pe douăzeci și unu august.

    The exam is on August 21st.

    Word by Word: The exam is on twenty and one August.

    For dates ending in 1 (except the 1st), only the masculine 'unu' is used.

  4. Suntem în doisprezece martie.

    It is March 12th.

    Word by Word: Are in twelve March.

    This shows the masculine variant for the 12th, which is equally correct as 'douăsprezece'.

  5. Mâine este treizeci și unu octombrie.

    Tomorrow is October 31st.

    Word by Word: Tomorrow is thirty and one October.

    Even though 'zi' (day) is feminine, we use 'unu' for the 31st.

Common Mistakes

  • Using 'unu' instead of 'întâi' for the first of the month.

    Este unu ianuarie.
    Este întâi ianuarie.

    While 'unu' is common in very casual speech, 'întâi' is the grammatically correct standard for dates.

  • Using 'primul' for dates.

    Este primul martie.
    Este întâi martie.

    Although 'primul' means 'first', it is used for order (the first book, the first runner) but never for calendar dates.

  • Capitalizing the month name.

    pe întâi Iunie
    pe întâi iunie

    In Romanian, months are not capitalized unless they are at the beginning of a sentence.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Dates and FirstLevel 2

Learn This First

To understand how dates are formed in Romanian, you first need to know the basic cardinal numbers, as they are used for almost every day of the month. Additionally, since the first day of the month uses the special ordinal 'întâi', familiarity with the Romanian sound 'î' is required for proper pronunciation.

Words in This Pattern

întâi