How to Say "Duck" in Romanian

rață

/ˈra.t͡sə/feminine

The English phrase 'duck' is translated into Romanian as rață. Wiktionary also lists rățoi.

Meaning: aquatic bird of the family Anatidae (noun)

Ways to say it

“duck” in Romanian
Romanian	IPA	Note
rață	/ˈra.t͡sə/	feminine
rățoi	/rəˈt͡soj/	masculine

The word refers to an aquatic bird of the family Anatidae.

While rață is the general term for a duck, the masculine form rățoi is used specifically to refer to a male duck.

The word rață is a feminine noun. Its plural form is rațe, but in the genitive or dative cases, it becomes rațelor.

/ˈra.tsə/. The stress is on the first syllable.

The Romanian word rață shares a common ancestor with the Hungarian word réce and the Romani word ratsoy.
Romanian speakers use the term rață in various folk idioms to describe someone who is clumsy or walks with a waddle.
The word rață is a potential substrate word, meaning it might have been part of the language spoken in the region long before the Romance-based Romanian was even formed.

Eu sunt o rață. Vorbesc engleza.
I am a duck. I speak English.
This sentence is useful for practicing the word rață.
Tatoeba #11509588 by megamanenm, translation #10202398 by espamatics
Am văzut o rată în parc astăzi.
I saw a duck in the park today.
O rață înoată în lac.
A duck is swimming in the lake.
Am văzut o rață albă în grădină.
I saw a white duck in the garden.

Ioana and Andrei are walking in a park.

Ioana

Uite, Andrei, o rață frumoasă!
Look, Andrei, a beautiful duck!
Andrei

Unde? Nu o văd.
Where? I don't see it.
Ioana

E chiar acolo, lângă apa lacului.
It's right there, next to the lake water.
Andrei

Da, acea rață este amuzantă.
Yes, that duck is funny.

Sources

Wiktionary, “duck” translations and entries rață, rățoi, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
Word origins: Wiktionary entries rață, rățoi, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.

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