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Learn MoreLearn Hungarian Tutorial for Beginners
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Learn Hungarian Tutorial for Beginners
A fun and informal guide to the Hungarian language.
Created byJohn Purcell, Zsófia Schütze
Last updated 8/2014
English
What you'll learn
- understand and be able to speak basic Hungarian
- be able to accomplish basic tasks in Hungary without resorting to English
Explore related topics
Course content
5 sections • 39 lectures • 2h 50m total length
- Greetings3:59How to say hello in Hungarian. In this tutorial we’ll see how to say three highly useful greetings in the Hungarian language. We managed to keep from laughing through large parts of the video, although not all of it.
Words in this Tutorial
Jó reggelt
Good morningJó napot
Good dayJó estét
Good evening - Thankyou3:11Let’s look at how to say “thankyou” in Hungarian. After all, when you buy your first coffee, glass of wine or beer in Hungary, you’ll want to be able to say thankyou. We’ll also take a look at how to make thankyou sound even nicer and how to make it less formal, depending what appeals to you the most at the time.
Words in this Tutorial
köszönöm
thankyouköszönöm szépen
thankyou very much (literally, thankyou nicely)köszi
thanks - Test 12:08Test your knowledge of the words you've learned so far!
- Yes, No, Please2:14How to say three vital words in Hungarian; yes, no and please. Without these words, you’re going to be pretty stuck when you get off the plane in Budapest. Unless you just shout loudly in English all the time instead, of course.
Words in this Tutorial
igen
yesnem
nokérek
please - Names of Drinks3:47How to say beer, wine and coffee in Hungarian. Once you know these, you won’t need to be thirsty in Budapest! Also some discussion of accents.
Words in this Tutorial
sör
beerbor
winekávé
coffee - Test 21:33
- One, two, three3:29Beginning numbers with the highly-useful one, two and three in Hungarian. You’ll need these even if all you want to do is order beer. Note: “a” and “one” are the same in Hungarian.
Words in this Tutorial
egy
onekettő / két
twoharom
three - A Drink Please3:20Now we can tackle our very first full sentences: asking for drinks in Hungarian. We’ll also take our first look at an interesting feature of the Hungarian language; the final “t” that marks out the object of the sentence.
Words in this Tutorial
Kérek egy bort
A wine, pleaseKérek egy sört
A beer, pleaseKérek egy kávét
A coffee, please - Test 31:24A test on "one, two, three" and buying drinks.
- Nationalities3:25Let’s look at how to say stuff like “I am American” in Hungarian. We won't cover many nationalities in this tutorial, but enough for you to get the gist.
Words in this Tutorial
Amerikai vagyok
I am AmericanAngol vagyok
I am EnglishMagyar vagyok
I am HungarianOlasz vagyok
I am Italian - In a Shop or a Café5:57
In this tutorial we’ll take a look at some dialogue that might take place if you’re in a shop. I’m not sure what Zsófi’s laughing about in this tutorial …
Words in this Tutorial
Mit adhatok
What can I give you
[What can I do for you?]Tessék
Please?
[What can I do for you?]Egy sört kérek
A beer pleaseKét kavét kérek
Two coffees pleaseMég valamit?
Still something?
[Anything else?]Mást nem, köszönöm
Nothing more, thankyouViszont látásra!
Goodbye!
[See you later!]Viszlát!
Bye! - Numbers Up To Ten5:33We’ve already seen the numbers one, two and three; it’s time to look at the other numbers up till ten in Hungarian, including zero.
Words in this Tutorial
négy
fouröt
fivehat
sixhét
sevennyolc
eightkilenc
ninetíz
ten - What's Your Name?3:00How to ask “what’s your name?” and how to reply to the question in Hungarian.
Words in this Tutorial
Mi a neved?
What is your name?A nevem …
My name is …Hogy hívnak
What’s your name?
[literally, "how do they call (you)?"]Zsófinak hívnak
My name is Zsófi
[literally, "They call (me) Zsófi] - Where Are You From?4:51A tutorial on how to ask and reply to the question “Where are you from?” in Hungarian.
Words in this Tutorial
Honnan jöttél?
Where are you from?Amerikából jöttem.
I come from America.Angliából jöttem.
I come from England.Magyaroszágról jöttem.
I come from Hungary. - What's Your Number?2:35How to ask a Hungarian what their telephone number is; a very useful phrase for making new Hungarian friends.
Words in this Tutorial
Mi a telefonszámod?
What is your phonenumber?Mi a számod?
What’s your [phone]number?Note: “mi” does not end in “t” here because it is not the object of the sentence.
The international dialling code for Hungary is +36 (or 0036 on phones with no plus sign).
- At the Airport3:23Some useful words that you’ll need when you land at the airport in Budapest, including words like “exit”, and “train”!
Words in this Tutorial
kijárat
exitbejárat
entranceNote: “ki” means “out” and “be” means out. These are common prefixes for Hungarian words.
tolni
pushhúzni
pulltaxi
taxibusz
busvonat
train - Tickets and Traveling Into Budapest5:09How to say “ticket” in Hungarian and how to get from Budapest airport into the town itself.
Words in this Tutorial
jegy
ticketvonaljegy
ticket
[literally, "line ticket"]egy volanjegyet kérek
one ticket please
[Note: jegy becomes jegyet because it is the object in the sentence]két volanjegyet kérek
two tickets please
[Note: it is not necessary to use the plural form of "jegy"]Note: Bus 200E takes you from Budapest airport to the Kőbánya Kispest metro station, where you can take a metro into town. You can buy a ticket on the bus. One ticket is good for one journey on the bus or metro.
- Sightseeing in Budapest8:18A guide to Budapest tourist attractions and how to pronounce their names in Hungarian.
Words in this Tutorial
Parlament
ParliamentBuda, Pest
The two main towns that make up Budapest. Buda is West of the river, Pest north. Buda is quieter and leafier and contains the Fisherman’s Bastion and castle, while Pest is busy and bustling and contains the parliament. Many prefer to live in Buda, although personally I like Pest — it’s more vibrant.Margit Sziget
Margaret Island, a pretty island in the Danube with lots of trees and flowers.Margit Híd
Margaret Bridge, from which you can descend to Margaret Island.Budai Vár
Buda CastleFürdő
BathSzéchenyi Fürdő
Széchenyi Baths, probably the most famous spa bath in BudapestGellért Hegy
Gellért Hill (Hegy also means mountain)Gellért Fürdő
Gellért Baths, the baths at the foot of the hillAndrássy út
Famous, rather posh tree-lined street in BudapestHősök tere
Heroes Square, the big square at the far end of Andrássy útLánchíd
Chain Bridge, a very beautiful bridge across the DanubeDuna
Danube, the river
- In the Restaurant 16:39In this tutorial we'll look at a small dialogue of the type you might engage in when entering a restaurant. By the end of the tutorial, you will understand the whole dialog!
Dialog in this Tutorial
Egy asztalt kérek, két személyre.
A table for two, please.Parancsoljon!
Here you go.Mit szeretnének inni?
What you you like to drink?Két pohár vörösbort kérünk.
Two glasses of red wine, please.Discussion
Egy asztalt kérek, két személyre: this means literally, “a table I ask, for two people”. Note that the word for table, asztal, gets a “t” added to the end, because it’s the object of the sentence; the thing the sentence is actually about. The word for person, személy, has “re” added to the end of it. This suffix actually takes the place of the English “for” in this sentence. It’s common in Hungarian to use suffixes where we would use a separate word in English.
Parancsoljon: the waiter uses this word to say something like “there you go” or “here you are”; in other words, “here’s your table”.
Mit szeretnének inni?: we’ve seen mi (what) before; it means “what”. Here it has “t” added to it because it’s the object in the sentence. inni means “to drink”; it’s technically the infinitive form of the verb “to drink”. szeretnének means “would you like”, where the “you” is plural.szeretni actually means to love or like something, while szeret (the “stem” of the verb) means “he/she/it likes”. We’ll get into verb conjugation more later on, but for now it’s enough to note that the né bit added to the stem of this verb is what makes this verb conditional (“would you like” rather than “do you like”), while the ek ending makes it apply to multiple people. It’s common in Hungarian to add multiple suffixes to a word like this. Don’t worry, we’re going to explore this slowly!
- In the Restaurant 29:33
In this tutorial we'll order dessert and ask for the bill! You won't understand the dialog at first, but by the end it'll make sense.
Dialog in this TutorialTessék, az étlap!
The menu, please.Mit hozhatok?
What can I bring you?Egy gulyáslevest és egy rakott krumplit kérek!
A goulash soup and a layered potato*, please.És Önnek mit hozhatok?
And you, what can I bring you?Egy húslevest és töltött paprikát kérek!
A meat soup and stuffed peppers, please!*explanations below!
DiscussionTessék, az étlap!: we’ve seen tessék before; it has several different meanings, many of which can perhaps be best translated by “please”. az means “the”. In Hungarian, we use a to mean “the” before words that start in a consonant, and az before words that start with a vowel (rather like the way “a” can change to “an” in English).
Mit hozhatok?: after some time, the waiter or waitress asks, “what can I bring you?”. The verbhoz means “bring”; by adding hat we turn it into “can bring”, and by further adding ok, we turn it into “I can bring” or “can I bring”. For the moment, it’s enough to understand the explanation of how this works; we’ll return to verb structure later in the course.
Egy gulyáslevest és egy rakott krumplit kérek: the food known as “goulash” (gulyás) in English-speaking countries is usually a stew; in Hungary, the home of goulash, it’s actually usually a soup. leves is the word for soup, and we add a “t” because this is one of the two objects in this sentence. rakott krumplit means literally “layered potato” (krumpli means “potato”). This is a delicious Hungarian dish containing potato, Hungarian sausage, boiled eggs and cream. Rakott krumpli is particularly great to eat when it’s cold and you’re very hungry, but it’s good any time of the year too
És Önnek mit hozhatok?: és means “and”, as we’ve seen before. Ön is actually the formal way of saying “you” in Hungarian. You use it with strangers. nek is added to the end where we would prefix the word with “to” in English; so instead of “to you”, Hungarians say “Önnek”.
Egy húslevest és töltött paprikát kérek!: hús means “meat”, but húsleves is actually usually chicken soup. töltött means “stuffed”, and paprika is the Hungarian word for the vegetable we call “sweet pepper” in English. When we add the t to paprika, the vowel sound at the end becomes longer, and we denote this with an accent in writing. So the a at the end of paprikachanges to á. Stuffed peppers is a Hungarian delicacy; the peppers in question are medium-sized sweet yellow peppers, and they are usually stuffed with pork, tomato and other stuff. Delicious!
- In the Restaurant 34:16
Let's order desert! The best bit of any meal ....
Hozhatok desszertet?
Igen, két túrós palacsintát kérünk!
Rögtön hozom.
A számlát kérem!
Parancsoljon!
Köszönjük!
- Asking and Giving Directions2:43
In this video we'll look at asking for directions and giving a simple reply.
- Hol van a parlament?
(Where is the parliament?)
- Fordulj jobbra, menj egyenesen, majd fordulj balra! A Parlament a Duna mellett van.
(Turn right, go straight ahead, then turn left! The Parliament is beside the Danube.)
- Directions Exercise Review1:07Let's go through the homework from the directions section! Even if you didn't actually do it, you'll at least gain more understanding of Hungarian from this video.
Where is the supermarket?
Hol van a szupermarket?
Turn left, go straight ahead.
Fordulj balra, menj egyenesen.
Thank you!
Köszönöm!
- Likes and Dislikes3:32
A tutorial on how to talk about stuff you like doing in your free time. Or don't, as the case may be.
What do you like to do in your free time?
- Mit szeretsz csinálni a szabadidődben?
- I like reading.
- Szeretekolvasni.
- I like playing football.
- Szeretek focizni.
- I like dancing.
- Szeretek táncolni.
- I like drinking.
- Szeretek inni.
Do you like hiking?
- Szeretsz túrázni?
- Yes, I like hiking.
- Igen, szeretek túrázni.
- No, I don't like hiking.
- Nem szeretek túrázni.
- Likes and Dislikes Exercise Review0:59Time for a review of the last homework!
Do you like dancing?
Szeretsz táncolni?
Yes, I like dancing, and I like drinking.
Igen, szeretek táncolni, és szeretek inni.
Do you like playing football?
Szeretsz focizni?
No, I don't like playing football; I like eating.
Nem szeretek focizni; szeretek enni.
- Numbers Up to Twenty3:05
Let's tackle the numbers up to twenty. They're not too bad, if you've mastered numbers up till ten.
Numbers Up to Twenty
Eleven: tizenegy
Twelve:tizenkettő
Thirteen:tizenhárom
Fourteen: tizennégy
Fifteen:tizenöt
Sixteen: tizenhat
Seventeen:tizenhét
Eighteen:tizennyolc
Nineteen: tizenkilenc
Twenty: húsz
Vocabulary
Apple: alma
Glass: pohár
Flower: virág
Person: ember
Book: könyv
Bottle: üveg
Chair: szék
Scone: pogácsa
Bread: kenyér
Water: víz
Homework
Eleven scones.
Fourteen tickets.
Twelve books.
Twenty chairs.
Fifteen flowers.
Eighteen apples.
- Numbers Up to Twenty Homework Review2:03
Eleven scones. Tizenegy pogácsa.
Fourteen tickets. Tizennégy jegy.
Twelve books. Tizenkét könyv.
Twenty chairs. Húsz szék.
Fifteen flowers. Tizenöt virág.
Eighteen apples. Tizennyolc alma.
- Vowel Harmony4:44
Although perplexing at first, vowel harmony is used instinctively by Hungarians and is a vital part of the language. Don't worry, it gets easier .... maybe ...
Back vowels
u, ú
o, ó
a, á
Front vowels
i, í
ü, ű
e, é
ö, ő
Rounded
ü, ű
ö, ő
Unrounded
i, í
e, é
Homework
Scone - scones
P_g_cs_ - p_g_csák
Ticket - tickets
J_gy - j_gyek
Book - books
K_nyv - k_nyvek
Chair - chairs
Sz_k - sz_kek
Flower - flowers
V_r_g - v_r_gok
Apple - apples
_lm_ - _lmák
- Vowel Harmony Homework Review3:55
Pogácsa - pogácsák
o - back
á - back
a - back
Jegy - jegyek
e - front, unrounded
Könyv - könyvek
ö - front, rounded
Szék - székek
é - front, unrounded
Virág - virágok
i - front, unrounded
á - back
alma - almák
a - back
- Plurals - Words Ending in Vowels5:04
Although the rules for forming plurals might seem complex at first, similar rules are found in many places in the Hungarian language and are actually largely a matter of creating words that "sound right".
Plural Suffixes
-k, -ak, -ok, -ek, -ök
-k
After words ending with a vowel
The last vowel gets lengthened
o => ó
u => ú
a => á
i => í
e = é
ö => ő
ü => ű
Examples
autó => autók (car => cars)
alma => almák (apple => apples)
vessző => vesszők (comma => commas)
bicska => bicskák (pocket knife, pocket knives)
Homework: form the plural of these.
boka (ankle)
könyvelő (bookkeeper)
tégla (brick)
tonna (ton)
eladó (salesperson)
festő (painter)
zsebkendő (handkerchief)
vese (kidney)
tüdő (lung)
autópálya (motorway)
- Plurals - Words Ending in Vowels - Homework Review3:01
boka (ankle) => bokák (ankles)
könyvelő (bookkeeper) => könyvelők (bookkeepers)
tégla (brick) => téglák (bricks)
tonna (ton) => tonnák (tons)
eladó (salesperson) => eladók (salespeople)
festő (painter) => festők (painters)
- Plurals - The -ok and -ek Suffixes4:58
-ok and -ek
Only for words ending in
consonants (usually)
-ek
● Single-vowel words containing e or é, or
● Multiple-vowel words containing front vowels
Examples -ek
● kés (knife) => kések (knives)
● szék (chair) => székek (chairs)
● .pület (building) => .pületek (buildings)
-ok
● After words containing back vowels, or mixed
back and front
Examples -ok
● ananász (pineapple) => ananászok
(pineapples)
● villamos (tram) => villamosok (trams)
● kabát (coat) => kabátok (coats)
Homework
● szúnyog (mosquito)
● leves (soup)
● lekvár (jam)
● sziget (island)
● sivatag (desert)
● étlap (menu)
- Plurals - The -ok and -ek Suffixes Homework Review2:33
szúnyog (mosquito) => szúnyogok
leves (soup) => levesek
lekvár (jam) => lekvárok
sziget (island) => szigetek
sivatag (desert) => sivatagok
étlap (menu) => étlapok
- Plurals - The -ak and -ök Suffixes6:14
-ök and -ak
The last two plural endings to
learn! Used after words ending
in consonants.
-ak
● Single-vowel words containing a or á
● Some multiple-vowel words where the last
vowel is a or á
(This ending is not very common)
Examples -ak
● agy (brain) => agyak
● ház (house) => házak
● fal (wall) => falak
● madár (bird) => madarak (slightly irregular)
-ök
● After words containing only front rounded
vowels; ö, ő, ü, ű
Examples -ök
● kör (circle) => körök
● köröm (fingernail) => körmök (slightly irregular!)
● bőrönd (suitcase) => bőröndök
● rönk (log) => rönkök
Homework
● ágy (bed)
● tök (pumpkin)
● öltöny (suit)
● hal (fish)
● vaj (butter)
● bűn (sin)
- Plurals - The -ak and ök Suffixes Homework Review2:21
ágy (bed) => ágyak
tök (pumpkin) => tökök
öltöny (suit) => ötönyök
hal (fish) => halak
vaj (butter) => vajak
bűn (sin) => bűnök
- Multiple Letter Consonants7:31
Some single consonants in Hungarian are written using two letters in the Latin alphabet (which Hungarians have used for a thousand years or so). They can also be lengthened to create longer sounds.
- Objects and Linking Vowels16:53
Objects
The object is the thing that the subject of the
sentence acts upon.
I drive a car.
I eat an apple every day.
I'm buying a house.
Object Suffixes
● In Hungarian a 't' must be added to the object of
the sentence.
You may also need a linking vowel.
● There are five common endings:
-t, -at, -ot, -et, -öt
-t (first case)
● Add to words ending in vowels. Lengthen the
final vowel if it's short.
alma (apple) => almát
autó (car) => autót
vese (kidney) => vesét
cipő (shoe) => cipőt
-t (second case)
● Add to words ending in s, sz or r.
bőr (skin) => bőrt
sör (beer) => sört
kés (knife) => kést
kolbász (sausage) => kolbászt
hús (meat) => húst
-et (first case)
● After words ending in cs, t, ty, gy, k or m
kert (garden) => kertet
hegy (hill / mountain) => hegyet
szék (chair) => széket
-et (second case)
● After words ending in a double consonant and
containing front vowels.
meggy (sour cherry) => meggyet
több (more) => többet
csekk (bank cheque) => csekket
-ot
● Usually added to words with back or mixed
vowels
pók (spider) => pókot
kabát (coat) => kabátot
virág (flower) => virágot
vonat (tram) => vonatot
-at
● Single-vowel words containing a or á and
ending in a consonant
agy (brain) => agyat
ágy (bed) => ágyat
máj (liver) => májat
vár (castle) => várat
-öt
● Multiple-vowel words containing front rounded
vowels (ö, ő, ü, ű)
bőrönd (suitcase) => bőröndöt
könyök (elbow) => könyököt
főnök (boss) => főnököt
köröm (nail) => körmöt (slightly irregular)
Irregular Objects
● Many words are irregular, so try to learn the
object when you learn the word. e.g. fagyi (icecream)
=> fagyit (“i” does not get lengthened)
● If the last vowel is long, often it will get
shortened: víz (water) => vizet, kerék (wheel)
=> kereket, út (road) => utat
● Single-vowel words ending in a vowel often get
a “v” added and the vowel may be shortened:
kő (stone) => követ, ló (horse) - lovat
Homework
Form the objective version of each of the
following words:
● város (town)
● ország (country)
● kincs (treasure)
● tál (bowl)
● öröm (happiness)
● fa (tree)
- Objects and Linking Vowels Homework Review1:40
város (town) => várost
ország (country) => országot
kincs (treasure) => kincset
tál (bowl) => tálat
öröm (happiness) => örömöt
fa (tree) => fát
- Beginning Verbs10:29
Finally it's time to get into the admitted complexities of Hungarian verbs. We'll take it slowly! See the attached PDF.
Requirements
- Understanding of English
Description
A fun and informal guide to the Hungarian language. We introduce you to Hungarian gently, starting with the words you'll need the most, and gradually building up your vocabulary and understanding of Hungarian grammar. You'll learn the basics of Hungarian in a natural way, enabling you to accomplish many basic tasks in Hungarian and providing you with a solid basis for further study.
Who this course is for:
- Tourists thinking of taking a holiday in Budapest or Hungary
- Anyone who wants an introduction to Hungarian
- Anyone who enjoys a challenge!