The grammatical structure determines the spelling. Ia is usually the verb a lua (to take). In i-a, a hyphen joins the short pronoun i to the auxiliary a in the compound past. Compare Ia cartea! (Take the book!) with I-a trimis cartea. (He or she sent him or her the book.)
How do you choose between ia and i-a?
Write one-word ia for the verb a lua (to take), and write i-a for the dative pronoun i plus the compound-past auxiliary a.
- Look for the verb a lua. Its present-tense third-person singular form is ia: Maria ia autobuzul la ora opt. (Maria takes the bus at eight.) Its affirmative command to one person is also ia: Ia autobuzul acum! (Take the bus now!)
- Look for a compound-past verb phrase with a past participle, such as spus (said), dat (given), trimis (sent), or luat (taken). The pronoun i can be translated as to, for, or from him or her, depending on the verb. Join it to auxiliary a as i-a: I-a spus adevărul. (He or she told him or her the truth.) Compare I-a luat cartea. (He or she took the book from him or her.)
- Check the meaning and the words around the form. One-word ia can serve as the sentence's verb or as a command. Hyphenated i-a belongs to a larger verb phrase and is normally followed by a past participle, sometimes after an adverb: I-a mai trimis un mesaj. (He or she sent him or her another message.)
Ia also appears as a one-word interjection in expressions such as Ia uite ce interesant! (Look how interesting that is!). This use is neither the verb a lua nor the pronoun-plus-auxiliary sequence i-a.
The ia/i-a contrast concerns spelling and grammatical structure, not pronunciation. If the phrase contains a different tense, a negative command, or several clitics, use the construction-specific rule. The related compound past lesson and hyphen lesson cover those larger systems.
What are the common traps?
- Do not write ia spus in a compound-past sentence. In I-a spus adevărul., i is the short pronoun and a is the auxiliary, so the hyphen is required.
- Do not write i-a for a command to take something: Ia geanta! (Take the bag!) is one word because it is the imperative of a lua.
- Do not insert a space in i-a. The current spelling joins the two unstressed elements with a hyphen, as in I-a dat cartea.
- Choose the spelling from meaning and grammar, not pronunciation alone. Identify whether ia is the verb a lua or i-a is part of a compound-past verb phrase.
Which sentence uses one-word ia as an affirmative command to one person?
- Ia umbrela!
- I-a cumpărat umbrela.
- I-a spus să vină.
- I-a trimis un mesaj.
Ia umbrela! is the affirmative command form of a lua for one person, so it is written as one word. The other sentences contain i-a, a pronoun plus the auxiliary in a compound-past verb phrase.
Complete the sentence with the current standard spelling: Ana ___ autobuzul în fiecare dimineață.
- i-a
- ia
- i a
- iă
The sentence describes what Ana takes regularly, so it uses the present form of a lua: Ana ia autobuzul. There is no dative pronoun and auxiliary here.
Which sentence says that someone told him or her the truth?
- Ia spus adevărul.
- I a spus adevărul.
- I-a spus adevărul.
- Ia adevărul spus.
In I-a spus adevărul., i means to him or her, a is the compound-past auxiliary, and spus is the past participle. A hyphen joins the pronoun and auxiliary.
Choose the current standard spelling for “Take the book!”
- I-a cartea!
- I a cartea!
- Ia-cartea!
- Ia cartea!
The command uses the affirmative imperative of a lua, so the form is one word: Ia cartea! The hyphenated spelling belongs to the pronoun-plus-auxiliary sequence, not to this command.
Why does I-a trimis un mesaj. contain a hyphen?
- Because ia is a compound noun.
- Because i is a short dative pronoun joined to auxiliary a.
- Because every form of a lua takes a hyphen before a noun.
- Because the sentence is an imperative.
The sentence uses the compound past: i is the short dative pronoun meaning to him or her, a is the auxiliary, and trimis is the participle. The hyphen joins the first two elements.