who?
Used in direct questions about identity or personhood.
Cine vine cu mine?
Who is coming with me?
Cine a sunat?
Who called?
#63 · Pronoun · PRON
In Romanian, cine means “who?”. It’s the #63 most frequently used Romanian word. Below you’ll find how to use it, its forms, real example sentences, and common word pairings.
Interrogative and relative pronoun meaning 'who' / 'whom' in Romanian. It asks about a person or introduces a clause referring to a person.
neutralUsed in direct questions about identity or personhood.
Who is coming with me?
Who called?
Used in relative or indefinite-like structures, especially with clauses.
Whoever works gets results.
I don't know who wrote the message.
Ranked by how often each form shows up in spoken Romanian. The top form cover about 97% of everyday use — learn these first.
| basic form | cine | Invariant pronoun. |
|---|---|---|
| case/usage | cui | Dative form in questions and relatives: 'to whom / whose' depending on context. |
| genitive relation | al cui / a cui / ai cui / ale cui | Used for 'whose' with agreement. |
vs. ce
cine refers to people; ce refers to things, ideas, or actions.
Cine a venit?
Who came?
vs. care
cine asks/relates to a person in general; care selects from a known set ('which/which one').
Cine dintre voi a vorbit?
Who among you spoke?
vs. cui
cui is the dative form, often meaning 'to whom' or used in 'whose' structures.
Cui i-ai dat cartea?
To whom did you give the book?
Cine e la ușă?
Who is at the door?
Cine - Direct question about a person.
Nu știu cine a făcut asta.
I don't know who did this.
cine - Indirect question after a verb of knowing.
Cine ajunge primul primește premiul.
Whoever arrives first gets the prize.
Cine - General/relative use referring to any person.
Common phrases built around cine — worth learning as whole units.
lit. “who is”
lit. “who you-are”