Signification
Academic tasks that are hard to complete.
Contexte culturel
Romanian students often have 'meditații' (private tutoring) because the 'teme' are so 'grele' that they need extra help outside of school. In Romania, a 'temă grea' is often a point of pride for teachers, showing that their class is rigorous and high-standard. On Romanian TikTok, students often post videos with the hashtag #temagrea to vent about their workload, creating a digital community of shared struggle. Grandparents in Romania often tell stories of how they had 'teme și mai grele' (even harder homework) and had to walk miles to school, using the phrase to teach resilience.
Gender Match
Always remember 'temă' is a girl! She needs her adjective to end in 'a' (grea).
Don't say 'greu'
Saying 'temă greu' is a very common beginner mistake. It sounds like saying 'a heavy boy homework.'
Signification
Academic tasks that are hard to complete.
Gender Match
Always remember 'temă' is a girl! She needs her adjective to end in 'a' (grea).
Don't say 'greu'
Saying 'temă greu' is a very common beginner mistake. It sounds like saying 'a heavy boy homework.'
Use it metaphorically
Impress locals by using it for non-school tasks, like 'Alegerea cadoului e o temă grea.'
The 'Sigh'
In Romania, 'temă grea' is usually accompanied by a dramatic sigh. It's part of the performance!
Teste-toi
Fill in the correct form of 'greu' (grea or grele).
Maria are două teme ______.
'Teme' is plural feminine, so we use 'grele.'
Which sentence is grammatically correct?
Select the right option:
'Tema' is singular feminine, so 'grea' is the correct adjective form.
Complete the dialogue.
Andrei: Ai terminat exercițiile? Ioana: Nu, este o ______ ______.
Ioana is referring to a single assignment in a neutral way.
Match the phrase to the situation.
You are at the library and the math problems are impossible.
'Temă grea' is the standard way to express academic difficulty.
🎉 Score : /4
Aides visuelles
Greu vs. Grea
Banque d exercices
4 exercicesMaria are două teme ______.
'Teme' is plural feminine, so we use 'grele.'
Select the right option:
'Tema' is singular feminine, so 'grea' is the correct adjective form.
Andrei: Ai terminat exercițiile? Ioana: Nu, este o ______ ______.
Ioana is referring to a single assignment in a neutral way.
You are at the library and the math problems are impossible.
'Temă grea' is the standard way to express academic difficulty.
🎉 Score : /4
Questions fréquentes
12 questionsYes, but it's informal. In a professional setting, 'proiect dificil' is better.
The plural is 'teme grele.'
No, it also means physically heavy, like a 'valiză grea' (heavy suitcase).
Both are correct. 'Grea' is more common in daily speech; 'dificilă' is more formal.
You say 'cea mai grea temă.'
It's grammatically possible but sounds like old poetry. Stick to 'o temă grea.'
Yes, it is a standard phrase used from Bucharest to Cluj.
No, for a difficult person we say 'om dificil' or 'om greu de cap' (slow learner).
The opposite is 'temă ușoară.'
It comes from the Latin 'thema,' which was neuter, but Romanian turned most such words into feminine.
Yes, it works perfectly for any task that requires solving.
It sounds like 'gre-AH', with the 'e' and 'a' blending together.
Expressions liées
a-și face temele
builds onto do one's homework
notă mică
similarlow grade
examen dificil
similardifficult exam
muncă de lămurire
specialized formpersuasion work
floare la ureche
contrastpiece of cake
