Subject, predicate, and object

A basic Romanian clause is organized around a predicate (predicat); depending on the verb, it may also have a subject (subiect) and a direct object (complement direct). In Mara deschide fereastra. (Mara opens the window.), Mara is the subject, deschide is the predicate, and fereastra is the direct object. This page uses object to mean direct object. Indirect and prepositional complements are outside its scope.

How do you identify the subject, predicate, and object?

Start with the finite verb — the verb form that carries tense, person, and number. Use meaning and agreement to identify its subject. If the verb can take a direct object, look for one.

1. Find the finite verb or verb group at the core of the predicate, such as citește (reads) or a pregătit (prepared). With a linking use of a fi, include the word that identifies or describes the subject: este obosită (is tired).
2. Find the subject by asking who or what is linked to the predicate. Then check person and number agreement: Fata citește. (The girl is reading.) but Fetele citesc. (The girls are reading.)
3. If the verb can take a direct object, ask whom or what the action affects. In Ce deschide Mara? (What does Mara open?), the answer fereastra (the window) identifies the direct object.

When can the subject be omitted or follow the verb?

Romanian often leaves a subject pronoun unexpressed because the verb ending identifies it. An expressed subject can also appear after the predicate. Both are neutral Standard Romanian patterns, not merely conversational shortcuts.

• Pregătim cina. (We are preparing dinner.) The ending -im identifies an unexpressed first-person plural subject, noi (we).
• Au sosit invitații. (The guests have arrived.) Here, invitații is the subject even though it follows the predicate au sosit. The plural auxiliary au agrees with it.
• Plouă. (It is raining.) is impersonal and has no grammatical subject. Romanian does not add a dummy word corresponding to English it.

Which verbs have a direct object?

A transitive verb can take a direct object, while an intransitive verb cannot. A complete Romanian sentence therefore does not need an object.

• Mara deschide fereastra. (Mara opens the window.) The transitive verb a deschide has the direct object fereastra.
• Trenul sosește. (The train is arriving.) The intransitive verb a sosi forms a complete clause without a direct object.
• When the direct object is a specific person, Romanian often uses pe and an object pronoun together: Radu o sună pe Ioana. (Radu calls Ioana.) The separate rule on the direct-object marker pe explains this pattern.

When is a word after the verb not an object?

A linking use of a fi (to be) can connect the subject to a word that identifies or describes it. That word belongs to a nominal predicate and is not a direct object. In Mihai este medic. (Mihai is a doctor.), este medic is the predicate, and medic identifies Mihai. In Mihai citește raportul. (Mihai reads the report.), raportul is the direct object of the transitive verb citește.

Mistakes to avoid

• Do not assume that the first noun is always the subject. In Au sosit invitații., the postverbal noun invitații is the subject.
• Do not search for an object in every sentence. Trenul sosește. and Plouă. are complete without one.
• Do not call a description after linking a fi an object. In Irina este obosită., obosită describes the subject as part of the nominal predicate.