Common Hungarian mistakes
Most learner errors in Hungarian come from a handful of sources: choosing the wrong conjugation (látok vs látom), using plurals after numbers (két almák), picking the wrong case (Budapestben, a házba vagyok), forgetting to move verbal prefixes, misusing van (nem van), and English-style word order or informality.
On this page
The mistakes below are the ones teachers correct again and again, grouped by the underlying rule so that fixing one fixes a family of errors. Each row gives the error, the correct form, a one-line explanation and a link to the page that explains the rule properly. An asterisk (*) marks an incorrect form.
Why learners make these mistakes
Almost every item here has one of four causes:
- English transfer. English marks plurals after numbers, uses "in" for all cities, puts the subject pronoun everywhere and stresses words by position. Hungarian does none of these.
- A rule learned in isolation. Learners master the accusative -t but forget that the verb must also agree with the object's definiteness.
- The prefix slot. The position before the verb is contested by prefixes, nem, question words and focused words. Most word order errors come from this one slot.
- Invisible social grammar. Formality is grammatical in Hungarian, so a social mistake is also a conjugation mistake.
Grammar mistakes: verbs, numbers and cases
Verbs and conjugation
| # | Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | *Látok a házat. | Látom a házat. | A definite object (a/az + noun) needs the definite conjugation. Rule |
| 2 | *Kérem egy kávét. | Kérek egy kávét. | The reverse error: egy + noun is indefinite. Rule |
| 3 | *Péter látja engem. | Péter lát engem. | Engem, téged, minket, titeket take the indefinite. Rule |
| 4 | *Szeretem téged. | Szeretlek. | "I + you (informal)" has its own ending, -lak/-lek. Rule |
| 5 | *Nem látom semmit. | Nem látok semmit. | Semmit, valamit, mindent are indefinite objects. Rule |
| 6 | *Én lakok Budapesten. | Budapesten lakom. | In careful standard usage, -ik verbs take -m in the 1st person singular (lakik → lakom, eszik → eszem); lakok is widespread but stigmatised. Drop én unless contrastive. Rule |
| 7 | *Én tetszik a film. | Nekem tetszik a film. | With tetszik the thing liked is the subject and the person is in the dative. Rule |
Quick check for 1 to 5: would the English object take "the", a possessive, a name, or "him/her/it/them"? Then the verb is definite. "Me", "you", "a", numbers and "something/nothing/everything" are indefinite.
Numbers and plurals
| # | Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | *két almák | két alma | Nouns stay singular after numbers. Rule |
| 9 | *sok emberek | sok ember | The same applies to sok, kevés, néhány, több, hány. Rule |
| 10 | *Három ember jöttek. | Három ember jött. | The verb agrees with the singular noun. Rule |
| 11 | *kettő kávé | két kávé | Before a noun, "two" is két; kettő stands alone. Rule |
| 12 | *fél három = 3:30 | fél három = 2:30 | Fraction words (negyed, fél, háromnegyed) point to the next hour. Rule |
Cases and suffixes
| # | Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | *Budapestben | Budapesten | Hungarian towns mostly take the surface cases -n/-ra/-ról. Rule |
| 14 | *Magyarországban | Magyarországon | Hungary itself also takes -on; most foreign countries take -ban. Rule |
| 15 | *A házba vagyok. | A házban vagyok. | Static location needs the "where" case, not the "where to" case. Rule |
| 16 | *Péterbe megyek. | Péterhez megyek. | Going to a person uses -hoz/-hez/-höz. Rule |
| 17 | *a házben | a házban | Suffix vowels follow the word's vowels. Rule |
| 18 | *Beszélek magyar. | Beszélek magyarul. | "In a language" is -ul/-ül: magyarul, angolul, németül. Rule |
| 19 | *hétfőben / *szeptember 27 | hétfőn / szeptember 27-én | Days take -n; dates take -án/-én. Rule |
| 20 | *a alma | az alma | Before a vowel the article is az. Rule |
Grammar mistakes: possession, "to be" and word order
Possession and "to be"
| # | Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | *Péter nem van itthon. | Péter nincs itthon. | 3rd-person present negative of van is nincs. Rule |
| 22 | *Péter van tanár. | Péter tanár. | No van before a noun/adjective in the 3rd person present. Rule |
| 23 | *Tanár. (meaning "I'm a teacher") | Tanár vagyok. | The omission applies only to the 3rd person. Rule |
| 24 | *Nekem van egy kutya. | Van egy kutyám. | "Have" needs the possessive suffix on the noun. Rule |
| 25 | *az én könyv | az én könyvem / a könyvem | A possessive pronoun never replaces the suffix. Rule |
| 26 | *Péter könyv | Péter könyve | "Péter's book": the possessed noun carries -a/-e. Rule |
Word order and prefixes
| # | Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | *Nem elmegyek. | Nem megyek el. | Nem takes the slot before the verb; the prefix moves after it. Rule |
| 28 | *Mikor elmész? | Mikor mész el? | Question words also push the prefix behind the verb. Rule |
| 29 | *Hol mész? | Hová mész? | Motion toward a place needs hová/hova. Rule |
| 30 | *Én vagyok tanár. (as a neutral statement) | Tanár vagyok. | Putting én before the verb focuses it: "I am the teacher (not someone else)". Rule |
| 31 | *Senki jött. | Senki sem jött. / Nem jött senki. | Negative words need a negated verb too. Rule |
Number 30 deserves a comment. Én vagyok tanár is grammatical, but it answers the question "Who is the teacher?". Because Hungarian drops subject pronouns (see personal pronouns), every pronoun you add carries emphasis. Overusing én makes learners sound self-centred without meaning to.
Spelling and long-vowel mistakes
Hungarian vowel and consonant length is meaningful, so a missing accent can produce a different word. These minimal pairs show why accents are not decoration.
| # | Wrong (in context) | Right | What the wrong form means |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32 | *Kerek egy kávét. | Kérek egy kávét. | kerek = round |
| 33 | *Szeretem öt. (him/her) | Szeretem őt. | öt = five |
| 34 | *Egy sort kérek. (at a bar) | Egy sört kérek. | sor = row, queue; sör = beer |
| 35 | *egy kiló megy | egy kiló meggy | megy = goes, meggy = sour cherry |
| 36 | *szivesen, *koszonom | szívesen, köszönöm | missing accents; kosz means "dirt" |
Two further spelling patterns trip up even advanced learners: the long-vowel alternation in stems (kéz → kezek, víz → vizet, tűz → tüzet) and double consonants from assimilation (Péterrel, busszal, Kováccsal). See the alphabet and pronunciation and the instrumental.
Social and register mistakes
| # | Wrong | Right | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | *Szia, hol van a posta? (to an older stranger) | Jó napot kívánok! Meg tudná mondani, hol van a posta? | Adult strangers get formal address. Rule |
| 38 | *Kovács úr, hogy vagy? | Kovács úr, hogy van? | A title requires 3rd-person (formal) verbs. Rule |
| 39 | *János Nagy (in a Hungarian text) | Nagy János | Family name first in Hungarian. Rule |
| 40 | *Kati néni (to a 35-year-old colleague) | Kati (with formal or informal verbs as appropriate) | Néni marks someone as clearly older. Rule |
How to fix mistakes for good
- Pick one family at a time. Spend a week noticing only definiteness, or only prefixes. Trying to monitor everything at once monitors nothing.
- Learn in chunks, not words. Memorise Budapesten, Budapestre, Budapestről together, and Nem megyek el as a unit.
- Use minimal pairs. Contrast Látok egy házat / Látom a házat and Beteg voltam / Beteg lettem aloud.
- Keep an error log. Write down every correction a teacher or tutor gives you, with the correct sentence, and review the list weekly. Most learners find that a small number of patterns account for most of their corrections, and those are the ones worth drilling.
- Record yourself. Errors such as a missing definite ending or a misplaced prefix are easy to hear on a recording and hard to notice while speaking. Listening back once a week turns unconscious errors into conscious ones.
- Drill with tools. The case quiz and the suffix builder target errors 13 to 20 directly.
Sources and further reading
- Carol H. Rounds, Hungarian: An Essential Grammar (2nd ed., Routledge, 2009)
- Miklós Törkenczy, Hungarian Verbs and Essentials of Grammar (2nd ed., McGraw-Hill, 2008)
- Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, A magyar helyesírás szabályai (12th ed., Akadémiai Kiadó, 2015)
- Nyelvtudományi Kutatóközpont (HUN-REN Hungarian Research Centre for Linguistics), language advice service (e-nyelv.hu / nyelvtudomanyi.hu)
Key takeaways
- Definite object, definite verb: Látom a házat; indefinite object, indefinite verb: Kérek egy kávét.
- Singular after numbers and quantity words: két alma, sok ember.
- Budapesten, Magyarországon; static location uses -ban, not -ba.
- Nem and question words push prefixes behind the verb.
- Nincs, never *nem van; no van in Péter tanár.
- Accents change meaning: kerek / kérek, öt / őt.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common mistake in Hungarian?
Mixing up definite and indefinite conjugation (látok vs látom) is the error learners make longest. Plurals after numbers and wrong local cases are also very common.
Is it Budapestben or Budapesten?
Budapesten. Budapest and most Hungarian towns take the surface cases: Budapesten, Budapestre, Budapestről.
Why is "két almák" wrong?
After a number, Hungarian nouns stay singular because the number already expresses plurality: két alma.
Is "lakok" wrong?
It is very common in speech, but standard usage prefers lakom, and many Hungarians notice lakok as non-standard. Use -m with -ik verbs in the 1st person singular.
Why can't I say "Nem elmegyek"?
The position directly before the verb holds only one element. Nem takes it, so the prefix moves behind the verb: Nem megyek el.
Do accents really matter in Hungarian?
Yes. Vowel length changes meaning: kerek "round" vs kérek "I ask for", öt "five" vs őt "him/her".