Most Hungarian endings come in two or three versions, such as -ban and -ben (in), or -hoz, -hez and -höz (to). Which one you use depends on the vowels in the word you attach it to. This is called vowel harmony: the ending "matches" the word. It sounds like extra work, but it quickly becomes automatic, because the wrong version simply sounds odd.
Vowel harmony is introduced in Lesson 5 with verbs and explained fully in Lesson 6 with the plural. This page collects all the rules in one place.
Three groups of vowels
| Group | Vowels | Where your tongue is | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Back | a á o ó u ú | pulled back in the mouth | ház, bor, autó, kutya |
| Front unrounded | e é i à | forward, lips spread | kert, szék, kép, mese |
| Front rounded | ö ő ü ű | forward, lips rounded | sör, bőrönd, fül, gyümölcs |
A word is back if it has a back vowel, and front if it has only front vowels. Most native words keep to one group: alma (apple) has only back vowels, szem (eye) only front ones.
Two-way and three-way endings
Some endings have two forms: a back one and a front one. Others have three, because the front version also splits into unrounded and rounded.
| Type | Back word | Front unrounded word | Front rounded word |
|---|---|---|---|
| Two-way: -ban/-ben (in) | házban | kertben | sörben |
| Two-way: -nak/-nek (to, for) | háznak | kertnek | sörnek |
| Two-way: -ból/-ből (out of) | házból | kertből | sörből |
| Three-way: -hoz/-hez/-höz (to) | házhoz | kerthez | sörhöz |
| Three-way: -on/-en/-ön (on) | házon | kerten | sörön |
| Three-way: plural -k with a linking vowel | házak | kertek | sörök |
Notice that a two-way ending uses its front form (-ben, -nek) for both kinds of front word. Only the three-way endings have a special form with ö.
A few endings never change at all: -ig (until), -ért (for), -kor (at a time) and -ként (as). házig, kertig; hatkor (at six), éjfélkor (at midnight).
How to decide in four steps
- Only back vowels? Use the back ending: autóban, autóhoz.
- Only front vowels? Use a front ending. If the last vowel is ö, ő, ü or ű, use the rounded form of a three-way ending: fülhöz (to the ear), but kerthez, ötlethez (to the idea: the last vowel is e).
- A back vowel plus i, à or é? These three vowels are "neutral" and don't count. The word behaves as a back word: papÃr (paper) → papÃron, kávé (coffee) → kávéhoz, Mária → Máriának.
- A loanword that mixes back vowels with e, ö, Å‘, ü or ű? The last vowel usually decides: sofÅ‘r (driver) → sofÅ‘rnek, november → novemberben.
Words with only i, à or é
Most words whose only vowels are i, à or é are front: vÃz (water) → vÃzben, szÃv (heart) → szÃvhez. A small group of very old words take back endings instead, and you simply learn them: hÃd (bridge) → hÃdon, cél (aim) → célhoz, and the verb Ãr (writes) → Ãrok (I write).
Compound words
In a compound, only the last part counts. Budapest has a back vowel, but the last part, pest, is front, so you say Budapesten (in Budapest). The word fürdőszoba (bathroom) ends in szoba, so it is back: fürdőszobában.
Linking vowels
When an ending starts with a consonant and the word also ends in a consonant, Hungarian often puts a linking vowel between them, to keep the word easy to say. The linking vowel also obeys vowel harmony.
| Ending | After a vowel | Back word | Front word | Rounded word |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plural -k | autók | asztalok | kertek | gyümölcsök |
| Accusative -t | autót | asztalt | kertet | gyümölcsöt |
| "On" -n | autón | asztalon | kerten | gyümölcsön |
| "My" -m | autóm | asztalom | kertem | gyümölcsöm |
Some back words take a instead of o as their linking vowel. They are called lowering words, and many are short, common words: ház → házak, házat; toll (pen) → tollak; nyár (summer) → nyarak. Front words of this kind take e where you might expect ö: könyv (book) → könyvek, könyvet; fül (ear) → fülek.
Final a and e get longer
When a word ends in a or e, that vowel becomes á or é before almost any ending.
alma, almák, almát, almában (apple, apples, apple (object), in the apple)
iskola, iskolába, iskolám (school, into the school, my school)
mese, mesék, mesét (story, stories, story (object))
kefe, kefével (brush, with a brush)
Vowel harmony in verbs
Verb endings follow exactly the same rules. Here are the "I" and "you (plural)" forms of three regular verbs:
| Verb | I ... | we ... | you (pl.) ... |
|---|---|---|---|
| tanul (studies) | tanulok | tanulunk | tanultok |
| beszél (speaks) | beszélek | beszélünk | beszéltek |
| ül (sits) | ülök | ülünk | ültök |
For the full verb tables, see Verb Conjugation. For every case ending in its back and front forms, see The 18 Cases.