trebuie + să-Clause

Trebuie Să

Level 2

In Romanian, 'must' is expressed by the invariable verb trebuie followed by the particle să and a conjugated verb.

How It Works

The construction trebuie să is the standard way to express necessity or obligation. It is a classic example of the 'Balkan' influence on Romanian, where an infinitive is replaced by a subjunctive clause.

1. The Impersonal Nature:
In the present tense, trebuie is impersonal. This means you do not conjugate it for 'I', 'you', or 'we'.

  • Eu trebuie să plec (I must leave)
  • Noi trebuie să plecăm (We must leave)

Notice how trebuie stays the same, but plec changes to plecăm.

2. Tense Variations:

  • Present: Trebuie să... (Must/Have to)
  • Past (Completed): A trebuit să... (Had to)
  • Past (Background necessity or expectation): Trebuia să... (Should have / Was supposed to)
  • Future: Va trebui să... (Will have to)

3. Softening the Tone:
If you want to give advice ('should') rather than a command ('must'), use the conditional form: Ar trebui să...

Needing an object: Romanian also uses îmi trebuie with a noun: Îmi trebuie o cafea (I need a coffee). Am nevoie de o cafea is another option. Bare Trebuie o cafea can mean that a coffee is needed in the situation.

Examples (5)

  1. Trebuie să plecăm acum.

    We must leave now.

    Word by Word: It-must that we-leave now.

    A standard expression of immediate necessity using the first-person plural subjunctive.

  2. Trebuie să mănânci mai mult.

    You must eat more.

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

    Here, 'trebuie' remains impersonal while 'mănânci' is conjugated for 'you'.

  3. Ar trebui să-i spui adevărul.

    You should tell him the truth.

    Word by Word: It would-must that-to-him you-tell truth-the.

    Using 'ar trebui' (conditional) softens the obligation into a suggestion or advice.

  4. A trebuit să stau la coadă.

    I had to wait in line.

    Word by Word: It has musted that I-stay at line.

    A trebuit expresses past necessity. The context gives the circumstances and outcome; do not use the tense alone as a guarantee that every required action occurred.

  5. Trebuie făcut ceva.

    Something must be done.

    Word by Word: Must done something.

    When followed directly by a past participle, it expresses a passive necessity.

Common Mistakes

  • Conjugating 'trebuie' to match the subject.

    Noi trebuim să plecăm.
    Noi trebuie să plecăm.

    In standard Romanian, 'trebuie' is impersonal when expressing 'must'. Do not use 'trebuiesc' or 'trebuim' for this purpose.

How It Connects

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

trebuie + să-ClauseLevel 2Trebuie Să

Learn This First

To use 'trebuie să' correctly, you must first understand how to form the subjunctive mood using the particle 'să' and how it functions when following a main verb.

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Words in This Pattern

trebuisă