cine
/ˈt͡ʃi.ne/
The English phrase "who" is translated into Romanian as cine.
cine is an interrogative pronoun.
Meaning: who? (interrogative pronoun) (pron)
How does it change in a sentence?
When using cine as a direct object of a verb, it is often preceded by the preposition pe (forming pe cine) to indicate the accusative case. If you need to express "to whom" for a verb requiring an indirect object, you must use the dative form cui instead of cine. Additionally, you can combine cine with the suffix -va to form the indefinite pronoun cineva, which means "someone" or "somebody".
How do you pronounce it?
cine is pronounced /ˈtʃi.ne/. The stress is on the first of the two syllables.
Did you know?
- The Romanian word cine shares a common ancestor with the English word 'who' through the Proto-Indo-European root *kʷís. Both languages evolved from the same ancient prehistoric source for asking about a person.
- In Romanian folklore and traditional songs, the word cine often opens a riddle or a poetic inquiry, acting as a stylistic hook to engage the listener's curiosity.
- In colloquial Romanian, cine can be used in a rhetorical sense to express disbelief or indignation, similar to how an English speaker might say 'Who do you think you are?'
Examples in context
- Pe cine să cred?Who should I believe?This sentence is useful for asking whom one should believe using cine.Tatoeba #8219586 by CataG, translation #3826252 by CK
- Cine mă va ajuta?Who will help me?This sentence is useful for asking who will help using cine.Tatoeba #5121419 by fathe, translation #276335 by CK
- Și tu cine ai fi?And who would you be?This sentence is useful for asking who someone would be using cine.Tatoeba #5200533 by fathe, translation #890329 by Scott
- Cine este la telefon?Who is on the phone?
- Cine a rezervat această sală?Who booked this hall?
- Care dintre voi a venit primul?Which one of you came first?
- 282 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Gabriel and Andreea are at a party and see someone they don't recognize.
- GabrielAndreea, cine este băiatul acela?Andreea, who is that boy?
- AndreeaNu știu cine este.I don't know who he is.
- GabrielCine îl a invitat aici?Who invited him here?
- AndreeaCred că e un prieten al lui Gabriel.I think he is a friend of Gabriel's.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “who” translations and entries cine, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries cine, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
