Here are the ten most common prefixes, with their basic meaning and some of the verbs they make.
| Prefix | Basic meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| ki- | out | kimegy (to go out) kinyit (to open) kinéz (to look out) |
| be- | in | bemegy (to go in) bejön (to come in) bezár (to close, to lock) |
| fel- | up | felmegy (to go up) feláll (to stand up) felhív (to phone) felvesz (to put on; to pick up) |
| le- | down | lemegy (to go down) leül (to sit down) levesz (to take off) leszáll (to get off) |
| át- | across, over | átmegy (to go across) átjön (to come over) |
| vissza- | back | visszamegy (to go back) visszajön (to come back) visszaad (to give back) |
| haza- | home | hazamegy (to go home) hazajön (to come home) |
| el- | away; completion | elmegy (to leave, to go away) eljön (to come along) elad (to sell) elolvas (to read (to the end)) elindul (to set off) |
| meg- | completion | megír (to write (and finish)) megeszik (to eat up) megnéz (to have a look at, to watch) megcsinál (to do, to fix) megtanul (to learn) |
| össze- | together | összead (to add up) összejön (to get together) |
Where does the prefix go?
| Sentence type | Example | English |
|---|---|---|
| Neutral | Hazamegyek. | I'm going home. |
| Yes / no question | Hazamész? | Are you going home? |
| With nem | Nem megyek haza. | I'm not going home. |
| With a question word | Mikor mész haza? | When are you going home? |
| With a stressed word | Holnap megyek haza. | It's tomorrow that I'm going home. |
| With fog | Haza fogok menni. | I will go home. |
| With nem and fog | Nem fogok hazamenni. | I won't go home. |
| Short answer | Haza. | Yes (I am going home). |