to find (something looked for)
The core sense — the result of searching.
Am găsit cheile.
I found the keys.
Nu găsesc nimic.
I can't find anything.
#88 · Verb
găsi
In Romanian, găsi means “to find (something looked for)”. It’s the #88 most frequently used Romanian word. Below you’ll find how to use it, its forms, real example sentences, and common word pairings.
Meaning & Use
A găsi is "to find", rank 88, and another member of the -esc group: găsesc, găsești, găsește, but plain găsim and găsiți. The most frequent form in the corpus is the participle găsit, because finding is usually something already done — Am găsit! is the Romanian "Found it!". The reflexive a se găsi means "to be located".
neutralto find / to consider (an opinion)
Judging something to be a certain way, exactly like English "I find it interesting".
O găsesc interesantă.
I find her interesting.
to be located (a se găsi)
The reflexive, used of where a thing is — a slightly more formal a fi.
Se găsește în centru.
It's located in the centre.
to be available / to be in stock
Impersonal se găsește — whether a thing can be got at all.
Nu se mai găsește.
You can't get it any more.
Forms you’ll actually hear
Ranked by how often each form shows up in spoken Romanian. The top 4 forms cover about 81% of everyday use — learn these first.
găsit42%
găsi15%
găsesc13%
găsim12%
Show 11 more forms
găsești7%
găsească4%
găsește3%
găsiți2%
găsită<1%
găsite<1%
găsea<1%
găseam<1%
găseau<1%
găsise<1%
găsind<1%
Conjugation
- Infinitive
- a găsi
- Past Participle
- găsit
- Gerund
- găsind
- Imperative Singular
- găsește
- Imperative Plural
- găsiți
- Auxiliary
- a avea
- Reflexive
- No
- Transitivity
- transitive
| Tense | eu | tu | el/ea | noi | voi | ei/ele |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present | găsesc | găsești | găsește | găsim | găsiți | găsesc |
| Imperfect | găseam | găseai | găsea | găseam | găseați | găseau |
| Perfect compus | am găsit | ai găsit | a găsit | am găsit | ați găsit | au găsit |
| Future | voi găsi | vei găsi | va găsi | vom găsi | veți găsi | vor găsi |
| Conditional | aș găsi | ai găsi | ar găsi | am găsi | ați găsi | ar găsi |
| Subjunctive | să găsesc | să găsești | să găsească | să găsim | să găsiți | să găsească |
- The participle also works as an adjective and then agrees: cheile găsite, o soluție găsită.
- a găsi is the result; a căuta is the search. Caut cheile means I am still looking, am găsit cheile means I am done.
- The impersonal se găsește covers both "is located" and "is available", and context decides which.
Examples
Am găsit!
Found it!
găsit - The participle in the compound past, and the most frequent form of the verb. No object is needed when the thing is obvious.
Nu găsesc telefonul.
I can't find my phone.
găsesc - The -esc present. Romanian uses a plain negative present where English needs "can't".
Unde găsesc o farmacie?
Where can I find a pharmacy?
găsesc - The same present form for asking directions. Again no equivalent of "can" appears.
Sper să găsim o soluție.
I hope we find a solution.
să găsim - For noi the subjunctive matches the present, and the -esc syllable is absent — găsim, not *găsescim.
Trebuie să găsească alt loc.
He has to find another place.
să găsească - The 3rd-person subjunctive găsească, the form that changes most in this verb class.
Unde se găsește gara?
Where is the station?
se găsește - The reflexive for location. It is more formal than Unde e gara?, and common on signs and in announcements.
The -esc syllable appears only in four of the six present forms: găsesc, găsești, găsește, găsesc — but găsim and găsiți for noi and voi. The same split governs a vorbi, a citi and most of this large verb class.