to have; to possess
basic possession or ownership
Am o mașină mică.
I have a small car.
Ai timp acum?
Do you have time now?
Ei au doi copii.
They have two children.
#1 · Verb · VERB
In Romanian, avea means “to have; to possess”. It’s the #1 most frequently used Romanian word. Below you’ll find how to use it, its forms, real example sentences, and common word pairings.
Core Romanian verb meaning “to have,” but also used very often in compound tenses, future-like forms, and expressions of obligation.
neutralbasic possession or ownership
I have a small car.
Do you have time now?
They have two children.
states, sensations, needs, age, conditions
I’m hungry.
He/She has a headache.
I am 30 years old.
in impersonal or fixed expressions, often with 'a avea de' or in standard phrase 'am de...'
I have work to do today.
We have something important to discuss.
Ranked by how often each form shows up in spoken Romanian. The top 4 forms cover about 81% of everyday use — learn these first.
| Tense | eu | tu | el/ea | noi | voi | ei/ele |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | am | ai | are | avem | aveți | au |
| Imperfect | aveam | aveai | avea | aveam | aveați | aveau |
| Perfect compus | am avut | ai avut | a avut | am avut | ați avut | au avut |
| Future | o să am | o să ai | o să aibă | o să avem | o să aveți | o să aibă |
| Conditional | aș avea | ai avea | ar avea | am avea | ați avea | ar avea |
| Subjunctive | să am | să ai | să aibă | să avem | să aveți | să aibă |
Am o casă lângă parc.
I have a house near the park.
am - simple possession
Ce ai de făcut azi?
What do you have to do today?
ai - obligation / task
Ei au plecat deja.
They have already left.
au - auxiliary in a compound tense
Common phrases built around avea — worth learning as whole units.
lit. “to have need of”
lit. “to have care of”
lit. “to have trust in”
lit. “to have of thought to”