Learn Romanian

Learn Romanian online — a complete guide for real beginners

Romanian is often described as the most surprising Romance language: it sounds familiar if you know French, Spanish or Italian, yet it has its own rhythm, sounds and logic. The good news is that Romanian is highly phonetic, consistent, and very learnable for beginners.

On Loecsen, Romanian is taught with a clear principle: audio first, real phrases, and progressive repetition. You train your ear, build speaking reflexes, and understand the language through usage — not abstract theory.

Where is Romanian spoken, and why learn it?

Romanian (română) is the official language of Romania and the Republic of Moldova, and it is spoken by more than 25 million people worldwide. It is used daily in administration, education, work, media and family life.

The Romanian writing system: familiar alphabet, special sounds

Romanian uses the Latin alphabet, with a small number of specific letters that represent distinct sounds. Spelling is generally stable: once you learn the sound of a letter, you can usually read words correctly.

At beginner level, the main things to master are:

• central vowels (ă, â, î),
• clear consonants (ș, ț),
• and natural stress (usually predictable).

Romanian letters you must learn with audio

Romanian uses a small set of additional letters that change pronunciation and meaning. Each one is a full letter and should be learned directly with sound.

• Ă ă — central short vowel
• Â â — central closed vowel
• Î î — same sound as â, different spelling position
• Ș ș — “sh” sound
• Ț ț — “ts” sound

Romanian uses the Latin script, but it adds a few distinct phonemes (sound units) that you must hear and reproduce early. These sounds are mainly carried by diacritics and one key consonant pair.

The 5 essential “extra” sounds to master first

• Ă /ă/ — a short central vowel (different from a).
  Think “neutral, centered vowel”: very common in everyday words.
• Â /ɨ/ and Î /ɨ/ — the same vowel sound, spelled differently.
  It’s a “tight” central vowel, not “i” and not “u”.
• Ș /ʃ/ — “sh” (as in English “shop”).
  This is a full letter: ș ≠ s.
• Ț /ts/ — “ts” (like the end of “cats” in English).
  ț ≠ t and must stay crisp.

One more practical note beginners need

Romanian spelling is consistent, but â and î represent the same sound. The difference is mainly where the letter appears in a word (spelling convention), not pronunciation. So in practice: learn the sound once, then learn the spelling habit over time.

Alphabet with audio: how Loecsen builds sound reflexes

On Loecsen, each Romanian letter is connected to:

• its exact sound,
• a real word,
• and a useful sentence.

You do not memorize the alphabet in isolation. You connect writing, sound and meaning from the very beginning.

Pronunciation essentials for beginners

You do not need a perfect accent to be understood. But three things matter early on:

• ă / â / î must be clearly distinguished,
• ș / ț must be pronounced cleanly,
• words should be spoken smoothly and evenly, without exaggeration.

Romanian grammar — understood through use, not rules

Romanian grammar may look complex on paper, but in real life it is highly repetitive and predictable. On Loecsen, grammar is never introduced as abstract theory. You understand it through real phrases, repeated in meaningful situations.

Instead of memorizing rules, you gradually build grammatical reflexes. You hear the same structures again and again, until they become natural.

1. Personal pronouns appear naturally in context

From the very beginning, you encounter the most common Romanian pronouns in real sentences:

• eu — I
• tu — you (singular)
• el / ea — he / she
• noi — we
• voi — you (plural)
• ei / ele — they

Examples heard repeatedly on Loecsen:

• Eu lucrez aici (I work here)
• Tu locuiești aici? (Do you live here?)
• El este la muncă (He is at work)
• Noi suntem în vacanță (We are on holiday)

You do not need to analyze the verb endings. Your brain naturally connects eu with lucrez, noi with suntem, simply through repetition.

2. Singular and plural are learned through contrast

Romanian singular and plural forms become clear because Loecsen constantly contrasts them in real usage:

• Sunt în vacanță (I am on holiday)
• Noi suntem în vacanță (We are on holiday)
• Lucrez aici (I work here)
• Lucrăm aici (We work here)

Without naming the grammatical rule, you hear that:

• the verb changes,
• the meaning changes,
• the structure remains familiar.

This creates a strong intuitive understanding of number.

3. Asking questions: simple words, stable patterns

Romanian questions rely on a small set of very frequent words. You learn them directly in complete sentences:

• Cine? — who
• Unde? — where
• Când? — when
• Cum? — how
• Cât? — how much / how many

Examples you repeatedly hear:

• Unde este toaleta?
• Cât costă, vă rog?
• Când pleci?
• Cum te cheamă?

You quickly notice that Romanian often keeps the same word order as statements. The question word alone signals that it is a question.

4. Gender appears through real-life variation

Romanian marks gender in many everyday expressions, especially with adjectives and past forms. Loecsen introduces this naturally through paired sentences:

• Sunt fericit (spoken by a man)
• Sunt fericită (spoken by a woman)
• Am înțeles (male speaker)
• Am înțeles / Am înțeles-o (context-dependent)

You do not need to learn a “gender rule”. You simply associate forms with speakers and situations.

5. Verb patterns become familiar through repetition

Romanian verbs follow patterns that become obvious when you hear them often. Loecsen reuses the same verbs across many themes:

• a fi — to be: sunt, este, suntem
• a avea — to have: am, ai, are
• a merge — to go
• a vrea — to want

Examples heard again and again:

• Este departe?
• Am nevoie de ajutor
• Vreau să mă odihnesc
• Merg la hotel

Because the same verbs reappear in new contexts, your brain learns their behavior automatically.

Key takeaway for beginners

A simple and effective learning routine with Loecsen

Romanian works best with short, regular sessions and repeated exposure.

• Practice a little every day (5–10 minutes).
• Listen to the same phrases several times.
• Repeat out loud to train rhythm and clarity.
• Notice recurring word endings without naming them.
• Reuse familiar sentences with small changes.
• Use Listen mode on low-energy days.
• Trust spaced repetition (SRS) to reactivate memory.

Staying motivated while learning Romanian

With Romanian, progress is often internal before it becomes visible. First you recognize sounds, then structures, then meaning flows faster.

• Trust repetition, even when progress feels slow.
• Accept partial understanding as normal.
• Return to familiar phrases to regain confidence.
• On tired days, listening alone still helps.

How the Loecsen “First Contact” course supports beginners

Loecsen provides a structured path to learn Romanian through real usage. Grammar is absorbed naturally through audio, examples and repetition.

With regular practice, learners reach a functional CEFR A1 level: enough to understand, react, and communicate in everyday situations.

Why Loecsen works especially well for Romanian

Romanian is a language of stable sounds and recurring patterns. Loecsen takes advantage of this by:

• reusing the same sentence structures across themes,
• anchoring everything in audio,
• using spaced repetition to make forms automatic.

FAQ — Romanian for beginners — the most common questions before you start