at, to, in, by, on
A highly flexible preposition whose meaning depends on the verb or phrase.
la școală
at school
la București
in Bucharest
la mine acasă
at my place
#12 · Preposition · ADP
In Romanian, la means “at, to, in, by, on”. It’s the #12 most frequently used Romanian word. Below you’ll find how to use it, its forms, real example sentences, and common word pairings.
Very common Romanian preposition. It often marks location, direction, possession-like relations, the person affected, and several set structures with articles and names.
neutralA highly flexible preposition whose meaning depends on the verb or phrase.
at school
in Bucharest
at my place
Used with movement or transfer.
I'm going to the doctor.
Send him to me.
Ranked by how often each form shows up in spoken Romanian. The top form cover about 100% of everyday use — learn these first.
Usually followed by a noun phrase or pronoun.
It links to places, people, times, and many fixed structures.
la ușă
at the door
Common with proper names and articles in place names.
Often used before city names, institutions, or named places.
la Cluj
in Cluj
Can introduce the person affected by an action.
Often corresponds to 'to', 'at', 'with', or 'from' depending on context.
Am fost la dentist.
I went to the dentist.
vs. în
'la' often means at/to a point or place as a destination or meeting point; 'în' usually means inside/in a space.
Sunt la școală. / Sunt în clasă.
I am at school. / I am in the classroom.
vs. pe
'la' does not usually mean surface contact; 'pe' is typically on a surface or onto it.
Cartea e pe masă. / Sunt la masă.
The book is on the table. / I'm at the table.
Sunt la serviciu.
I'm at work.
la - Location with a place.
Ne vedem la ora șase.
We'll meet at six o'clock.
la - Time expression.
Am lăsat cheia la Ana.
I left the key with Ana.
la - Person receiving or keeping something.