pui
/puj/
In Romanian, chicken is translated as pui. Wiktionary also lists găină.
Meaning: bird (noun)
Ways to say it
| Romanian | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| pui | /puj/ | |
| găină | /ɡəˈinə/ | feminine |
The term pui is used to refer to a chick or a young chicken, and it is also the standard word used when referring to chicken as meat in a culinary context. While it describes the animal or the food, the word găină is used specifically when referring to the adult female bird, the hen.
Which one should you use?
pui refers to a chick, a young chicken or the meat itself. In contrast, găină specifically denotes a hen.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word pui is the same in both its singular and plural forms. For the feminine term găină, the plural form is găini.
How do you pronounce it?
/puj/
Did you know?
- Romanian uses the word pui as an affectionate term of endearment for children or loved ones, similar to 'sweetie' or 'baby'.
- The Romanian word for chicken meat, pui, is also the word used to describe a baby or a cub in many contexts, such as a 'puppy' or a 'kitten'.
- The word pui shares a common ancestor with the Spanish word 'pollo' and the Italian 'pollo', all descending from the Latin 'pullus'.
Examples in context
- Are gust de pui.It tastes like chicken.This sentence shows how to use pui to describe the taste of meat.Tatoeba #5352171 by rramonanana, translation #2171159 by Hybrid
- Puiul a fost minunat.The chicken was wonderful.This sentence uses pui to describe a meal.Tatoeba #7581586 by CataG, translation #4629000 by Hybrid
- Puiul piuie "piu, piu".The chicken clucks 'cluck cluck'.This sentence uses pui to describe the sounds a chick makes.Tatoeba #8180951 by CataG, translation #7137591 by jimkillock
- V-aş recomanda să încercaţi puiul afumat, este delicios!I would recommend you try the smoked chicken, it's delicious!
- Azi la prânz am mâncat un puișor la grătar, absolut divin!Today for lunch, I had a grilled chicken, absolutely divine!
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Gabriel and Maria are at a farm looking at animals.
- GabrielUite, Maria, ce pui drăguț!Look, Maria, what a cute chicken!
- MariaEste foarte mic și galben.It is very small and yellow.
- GabrielCrezi că puiul este flămând?Do you think the chicken is hungry?
- MariaDa, hai să-i dăm niște boabe.Yes, let's give it some seeds.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “chicken” translations and entries pui, găină, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries găină, pui, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
