Learn Romanian › trebui
trebui
to have to (must, to be necessary) /tre.buˈi/
verb#31 most common
Also: to need to, to be necessary, should (in the conditional "ar trebui")
Example sentences
Trebuie să mănânc.
I have to eat.
Copilul trebuie să doarmă acum.
The child must sleep now.
Trebuie să plecăm devreme mâine.
We have to leave early tomorrow.
Nu trebuia să spui asta.
You shouldn't have said that.
Va trebui să găsim o soluție rapidă.
We will have to find a quick solution.
Ar fi trebuit să te gândești mai bine înainte de a semna contractul.
You should have thought harder before signing the contract.
Conjugation
| Present Active | Simple Past Active | Simple Future Active | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3sg | trebuie | trebui | va trebui |
Word family
trebuințănecessity, need
trebuitornecessary, needed (archaic/regional)
netrebnicworthless, good-for-nothing
ar trebuiconditional form: should, ought to
Etymology
Romanian "a trebui" comes from a Slavic verb related to Old Church Slavonic "trěbovati", meaning to need or require. Romanian absorbed many such Slavic terms during centuries of contact with South Slavic populations and the Slavonic-language church administration. The verb settled into Romanian as an impersonal form, used almost only in the third person, much like its close Bulgarian relative.
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