Everyday Hungarian
This section covers what you need on day one in Hungary: saying numbers and times, reading dates, addressing people politely, asking questions and saying no. Each topic is short on theory and long on the forms people actually use.
Quick reference
| You want to say | Hungarian | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| It is 2:30. | Fél három van. | Telling time |
| on 15 March | március 15-én | Dates |
| two coffees | két kávé | Numbers |
| Could you help me? (formal) | Tudna segíteni? | Formal and informal you |
| There is no bread. | Nincs kenyér. | Van and nincs |
| Nobody came. | Senki sem jött. | Negation |
| Cheers! / Bless you! (formal) | Egészségére! | Egészségedre or egészségére |
| I'm at home. / I'm going home. | Itthon vagyok. / Megyek haza. | Otthon, itthon or haza |
| Excuse me, where is...? (to a stranger) | Elnézést, hol van...? | Elnézést or bocsánat |
| Feri closed the window again. | Feri újra becsukta az ablakot. | Megint, ismét or újra |
All everyday Hungarian guides
- Beginner
Hungarian numbers
Count in Hungarian from zero to a billion: két vs kettő, the one-word and hyphen spelling rule, ordinals, fractions, decimals and numbers with suffixes.
- Beginner
Telling the time in Hungarian
How to tell the time in Hungarian: Hány óra van?, negyed, fél and háromnegyed pointing to the next hour, múlt and múlva, the 24-hour clock and -kor.
- Beginner
Dates, days and months in Hungarian
Days and months in Hungarian, the year-month-day date format, how to say "on the 27th" (27-én, 1-jén, 2-án), seasons, national holidays and name days.
- Beginner
Formal and informal "you" in Hungarian
Te or Ön? How tegeződés and magázás work in Hungarian, with 3rd-person verb forms, tessék and tetszik, Csókolom, who to address how, and how to switch to te.
- Beginner
Hungarian names and titles
Why Hungarians put the family name first, what -né means in married names, how to use úr, néni, bácsi and doktor úr, common nicknames, and suffixes on names.
- Beginner
Asking questions in Hungarian
How to ask questions in Hungarian: the question words (ki, mi, hol, hová, mikor, hány, melyik), yes/no intonation, the -e particle, word order and answers.
- Beginner
Negation in Hungarian: nem, ne, sem
How negation works in Hungarian: nem vs ne, sem and sincs, obligatory double negation (Senki sem jött), nincs instead of nem van, and prefix movement.
- Beginner
How do you say "me too" in Hungarian: én is or nekem is?
Me too is én is, nekem is or engem is, depending on the case the original sentence gives the person. Table of 16 replies, me neither with sem, and where is goes.
- Beginner
Már or még: how do you say already, still, yet and no longer in Hungarian?
Már marks a change that has happened, még a state that goes on. Grid of már, még, már nem and még nem, why "yet" splits in two, még mindig, mégis and more.
- Beginner
De or hanem: which "but" do you use in Hungarian?
Hanem replaces a negated element, de adds a second true fact, pedig contrasts two parallel things, viszont and azonban mean however. Decision table with German.
- Beginner
Nagyon or sok: how do you say very, much, many and a lot in Hungarian?
Nagyon is "very" (degree), sok is "much, many" (amount). Which one goes with adjectives, nouns and verbs, why "much bigger" is sokkal nagyobb, and a test using the "more" forms.
- Beginner
Ha or amikor: how do you say "when" and "if" in Hungarian?
Amikor is "when" for a time; ha is "if", and also "when" for an expected future event. A one-line test, the past rule, mikor, -e for "whether", 11 more words.
- Beginner
Minden, mind, összes or mindegyik: how do you say "all", "every" and "each" in Hungarian?
Minden diák and az összes diák take a singular noun; mindent takes the indefinite verb, mindet and mindegyiket the definite. Nine words in one table.
- Intermediate
What does hát mean in Hungarian?
Hát is the noun "back" and also Hungarian's most common spoken particle: "well", "so", "of course". Table of its uses by position, with how long you say it.
- Beginner
The verb "to be": van, nincs, lesz
How the Hungarian verb lenni works: van and vannak, when van is dropped (Péter tanár), nincs, "there is", "to have" (Van egy kutyám), location, and lesz.
- Beginner
Mert, hiszen or ugyanis: how do you say "because" in Hungarian?
Mert is the neutral "because" that answers miért?; hiszen means "as you know, after all"; ugyanis means "you see". Plus mivel, a decision table and treebank data.
- Beginner
Nő, asszony or hölgy: which Hungarian word for "woman" should you use?
Nő is the neutral word for woman; asszony means a married woman or, colloquially, wife; hölgy is a formal "lady". Plus feleség, néni, -né and -nő in one table.
- Intermediate
Piros or vörös: what is the difference between the two Hungarian words for red?
Piros is the everyday red; vörös is darker and more dramatic, and fixed in names like Vöröskereszt. Usage table with corpus counts for 16 nouns.
- Beginner
Régi, öreg or idős: which Hungarian word for "old" do you use?
Régi is "old" as in not new; öreg and idős are "old" as in not young. A table by noun type, régi barát vs öreg barát, Milyen idős?, id. and régebbi.
- Intermediate
Common Hungarian mistakes
The Hungarian mistakes English speakers make most, in wrong-to-right tables: conjugation, cases, plurals, word order, van and nincs, spelling, and social slips.
- Beginner
Egészségedre or egészségére: how do you say "cheers" in Hungarian?
Egészségedre means "to your health": a toast, "bless you" after a sneeze, and the reply when thanked for food. Its ending follows who you address: all five forms.
- Beginner
Elnézést or bocsánat: how do you say "sorry" and "excuse me" in Hungarian?
Elnézést is the sorry for strangers and for "excuse me", bocsánat and bocs for people you are close to. Plus ne haragudj, bocsáss meg and sajnálom, by situation.
- Beginner
Otthon, itthon or haza: how do you say "home" and "at home" in Hungarian?
Otthon and itthon both mean "at home": itthon if you are at home as you speak. Haza is "(to) home", otthonról "from home". The full grid, a phone call and the errors.
- Intermediate
Megint, ismét or újra: how do you say "again" in Hungarian?
Megint, ismét and újra all mean "again", but only megint and újra can mean a state is back. Megint can sound annoyed, újra can be a prefix. The full table.
Frequently asked questions
Should I use te or Ön with Hungarians?
Use te with friends, family, children and most people your age in informal settings; use Ön (with 3rd person verbs) with strangers, officials and older people until they offer te.
Why do Hungarians put the family name first?
Hungarian name order is family name followed by given name, like Nagy János. It follows the general Hungarian pattern of placing the modifier before what it modifies.