să + Present Subjunctive

The Să Construction

Level 2

The să construction (subjunctive) is Romanian's way of saying 'to [verb]'. It is used after verbs of wanting, needing, and possibility.

How It Works

The să construction is the most common subordinate structure in Romanian. It commonly expresses desired, necessary, or intended actions, and also occurs with habits or evaluations; it does not always imply that an action is unrealized.

1. Formation:
It consists of the particle să followed by the subjunctive verb form. For most regular verbs, the 1st and 2nd person forms (eu, tu, noi, voi) are identical to the Present Indicative.

2. The 3rd Person Vowel Flip:
The 3rd person (el/ea/ei/ele) is unique because the singular and plural forms are always identical in the subjunctive. They undergo a vowel shift compared to the indicative:

  • If the 3rd person indicative ends in -ă, the subjunctive ends in -e (e.g., el cântă → să cânte; el lucrează → să lucreze).
  • If the 3rd person indicative ends in -e, the subjunctive ends in -ă (e.g., el merge → să meargă; el citește → să citească).

3. Major Irregular Verbs:
Some essential verbs have unique 3rd person subjunctive forms that you must memorize:

  • a fi (to be): să fie (1st person: să fiu)
  • a avea (to have): să aibă
  • a vrea (to want): să vrea

4. Word Order and Clitics:
One of the most important rules is that negation (nu) and unstressed pronouns (clitics) must be placed between the particle să and the verb.

5. Usage Note:
The subjunctive has replaced the infinitive after most verbs of desire or necessity. However, the infinitive occurs after prepositions, as in fără a pleca or înainte de a pleca. Alternatives with să also exist: fără să plec and înainte să plec.

Examples (6)

  1. Vreau să merg acasă.

    I want to go home.

    Word by Word: I-want that I-go home.

    Here, 'să merg' acts as the complement to 'vreau'. The verb 'merg' is in the 1st person singular.

  2. Trebuie să mănânci ceva.

    You must eat something.

    Word by Word: It-must that you-eat something.

    Here trebuie is followed by să plus the second-person subjunctive. Other obligation constructions also exist, such as trebuie făcut ceva.

  3. Ea vrea ca el să învețe.

    She wants him to study.

    Word by Word: She wants that he that-he-studies.

    Notice the 3rd person change: 'învață' (he studies) becomes 'să învețe' in the subjunctive.

  4. Să nu pleci încă!

    Don't leave yet!

    Word by Word: That not you-leave yet!

    The negation 'nu' is placed between 'să' and the verb 'pleci'.

  5. Vreau să-l văd.

    I want to see him.

    Word by Word: I-want that-him I-see.

    The pronoun 'îl' (him) contracts with 'să' to become 'să-l'.

  6. E important să aibă timp.

    It is important that they have time.

    Word by Word: It-is important that they-have time.

    The irregular verb 'a avea' becomes 'să aibă' in the 3rd person.

Common Mistakes

  • Placing the negation 'nu' before the particle 'să'.

    Nu să pleci.
    Să nu pleci.

    In Romanian, the negation 'nu' must always come after 'să' and before the verb.

  • Forgetting the vowel shift in the 3rd person.

    Vreau ca el să mănâncă.
    Vreau ca el să mănânce.

    For -a verbs like 'a mânca', the 3rd person ending changes from -ă to -e in the subjunctive.

How It Connects

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

să + Present SubjunctiveLevel 2The Să Construction

Learn This First

To learn the 'să' construction, you must first be comfortable with regular present tense verb conjugations, as the subjunctive forms are largely derived from them, with specific changes occurring primarily in the third person.

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să