need (in am nevoie de)
The construction that replaces the English verb. The de is obligatory before whatever you need.
Am nevoie de ajutor.
I need help.
Ai nevoie de ceva?
Do you need anything?
#83 · Noun
nevoie
In Romanian, nevoie means “need (in am nevoie de)”. It’s the #83 most frequently used Romanian word. Below you’ll find how to use it, its forms, real example sentences, and common word pairings.
Meaning & Use
Nevoie is "need" — and it is on this list at rank 83 for one reason: Romanian has no verb "to need". You say am nevoie de, "I have need of". The measured data shows how total that is — the bare form nevoie outnumbers every other form of the word roughly ninety to one, because almost every use is inside this one construction.
neutralneed (impersonal, e nevoie de)
Without a person: e nevoie de means "there is a need for", "it takes".
E nevoie de timp.
It takes time.
Nu e nevoie.
There's no need.
necessity / requirement
The plain noun, mostly in the plural: nevoile oamenilor, "people’s needs".
nevoile de bază
basic needs
if need be (la nevoie)
A fixed adverbial meaning "if necessary".
La nevoie, sun eu.
If need be, I'll call.
Forms you’ll actually hear
Ranked by how often each form shows up in spoken Romanian. The top form cover about 98% of everyday use — learn these first.
nevoie98%
Show 4 more forms
nevoia1%
nevoile<1%
nevoi<1%
nevoilor<1%
Noun Forms
- Gender
- feminine
- Countability
- both
| singular indefinite | nevoie | |
|---|---|---|
| singular definite | nevoia | |
| plural indefinite | nevoi | |
| plural definite | nevoile | |
| genitive dative singular | nevoii | |
| genitive dative plural | nevoilor |
A regular feminine noun in -e: nevoie, nevoia, nevoi, nevoile. The full table is worth knowing but is barely used — inside am nevoie de the noun is always bare and never takes an article, which is why the other forms are so rare in the corpus.
Examples
Am nevoie de tine.
I need you.
nevoie - The core construction. Note the stressed pronoun tine after de — never the clitic te.
Nu e nevoie, mulțumesc.
There's no need, thank you.
nevoie - The impersonal form, and the standard polite way to decline an offer.
De ce ai nevoie?
What do you need?
nevoie - The de moves to the front with the question word. Read literally it is "of what do you have need".
Aveam nevoie de o pauză.
I needed a break.
nevoie - Only the verb a avea changes for tense; nevoie itself never does. That is why one form carries the whole word.
Am înțeles nevoile lor.
I understood their needs.
nevoile - The definite plural, in the rare use where nevoie is an ordinary countable noun rather than part of the construction.
There is no verb "to need" in Romanian. Build it with a avea: am nevoie de, ai nevoie de, are nevoie de. The verb that changes is a avea — nevoie itself stays fixed, and the de can never be dropped.
In expressions
Common phrases built around nevoie — worth learning as whole units.
a avea nevoie de— to need (something)
lit. “to have need of”
e nevoie— it's necessary; there's a need
lit. “is need”