50 Common Romanian Phrases for Travelers

English will get you through the big cities, but a few words of Romanian will get you smiles, better service and the occasional free țuică. Romanians are warm and genuinely delighted when visitors make the effort — and because Romanian is spelled the way it’s spoken, the phrases are easier to say than they look. Here are the essentials grouped by situation, each with a rough pronunciation (capitals mark the stressed syllable).

Greetings & courtesy

• Bună! — Hi! (BOO-nuh)
• Bună ziua — Hello / Good day (BOO-nuh ZEE-wah)
• La revedere — Goodbye (lah reh-veh-DEH-reh)
• Mulțumesc — Thank you (mool-tsoo-MESK)
• Te rog / Vă rog — Please (informal / formal) (teh ROG / vuh ROG)
• Da / Nu — Yes / No (dah / noo)
• Scuze — Sorry / Excuse me (SKOO-zeh)
• Cu plăcere — You’re welcome (koo pluh-CHEH-reh)

Introducing yourself

• Mă numesc… — My name is… (muh noo-MESK)
• Încântat / Încântată — Pleased to meet you (man / woman) (un-kun-TAT)
• De unde ești? — Where are you from? (deh OON-deh yesht)
• Sunt din… — I’m from… (soont din)

When you don’t understand

• Nu înțeleg — I don’t understand (noo un-tseh-LEG)
• Mai rar, vă rog — Slower, please (my RAR, vuh ROG)
• Puteți repeta? — Can you repeat? (poo-TETS reh-peh-TA)
• Vorbiți engleză? — Do you speak English? (vor-BEETS en-GLEH-zuh)

At a restaurant or shop

• Aș dori… — I would like… (ash do-REE)
• Cât costă? — How much is it? (kut KOS-tuh)
• Nota, vă rog — The bill, please (NO-tah, vuh ROG)
• E delicios — It’s delicious (yeh deh-lee-CHOS)
• Poftă bună! — Enjoy your meal! (POF-tuh BOO-nuh)
• Noroc! — Cheers! (no-ROK)

Getting around

• Unde este…? — Where is…? (OON-deh YES-teh)
• Unde este toaleta? — Where is the toilet? (twa-LEH-tah)
• Gara — Train station (GAH-rah)
• La dreapta / La stânga — Right / Left (lah DRYAP-tah / lah STUN-gah)
• Drept înainte — Straight ahead (drept un-ah-EEN-teh)

Emergencies

• Ajutor! — Help! (ah-zhoo-TOR)
• Am nevoie de un doctor — I need a doctor (am neh-VO-yeh deh oon DOK-tor)

A quick pronunciation tip

Five letters carry most of what’s new: ă is a soft “uh” (as in “sofa”), â/î is a tenser “uh” made further back, ș is “sh”, and ț is “ts”. Everything else is read just as it’s written — Romanian doesn’t hide sounds the way English and French do. Stress usually falls where the capitals are above; copy it from native audio and you’ll be understood easily.

Take the phrases further with audio

Rough pronunciation gets you started, but to sound natural you need to hear each phrase from a native speaker and repeat it. Learn Romanian For Beginners teaches everyday words and phrases with native-speaker audio, starting from the alphabet, so you go from reading to speaking with confidence. Build your base with 100 most common Romanian words, and for the big picture see is Romanian hard to learn?

Download Learn Romanian For Beginners free on Google Play and arrive in Romania with your first phrases ready.