Tag Archives: Vocabulary

Similar Words With Different Meanings

There are words in every language that look/sound almost or entirely the same, but you should be careful with the meaning of such words.

szék – chair; it is pronounced similarly to sake
the Hungarian word for sake is kedv

kép – picture; it is pronounced similarly to cape
the Hungarian word for cape is köpeny

csík – stripe; it is pronounced similarly to cheek
the Hungarian word for cheek is orca

puszi – kiss on the cheek; it is pronounced similarly to pussy
the Hungarian word for pussy is cica; (and also punci > children’s word for vagina)

bél – bowels; it is pronounced similarly to bale
the Hungarian word for bale is balszerencse; csomag

szél – wind; it is pronounced similarly to sale
the Hungarian word for sale is eladás

kéj – lust, sensual pleasure; it is pronounced similarly to the letter K > kay

mer – to dare; it is pronounced similarly to mare
the Hungarian word for mare is kanca

tél – winter; it is pronounced similarly to tale
the Hungarian word for tale is mese

szól – to inform, to tell; it is pronounced similarly to soul
the Hungarian word for soul is lélek

bór – boron; it is pronounced similarly to bore
the Hungarian word for bore is furat; unalmas ember

csók – kiss; it is pronounced similarly to choke
the Hungarian word for choke is fuldoklás

pók – spider; it is pronounced similarly to poke
the Hungarian word for poke is bökés

ló – horse; it is pronounced similarly to low
the Hungarian word for low is alacsony

kész – ready; it is pronounced similarly to case
the Hungarian word for case is eset

méz – honey; it is pronounced similarly to maze
the Hungarian word for maze is útvesztő, labirintus

réz – copper; it is pronounced similarly to raise
the Hungarian word for raise is emelés

mély – deep; it is pronounced similarly to may; May
the Hungarian word for may is lehet and for May is május

dór – Dorian, Doric; it is pronounced similarly to door
the Hungarian word for door is ajtó

part – shore; it is pronounced similarly to part
the Hungarian word for part is rész

fog – tooth; it is pronounced similarly to fog
the Hungarian word for fog is köd

sok – much, many; it is pronounced similarly to shock
the Hungarian word for schok is sokk with double k

héj – shell; it is pronounced similarly to hay
the Hungarian word for hay is széna

gép – machine; it is pronounced similarly to gape
the Hungarian word for gape is ásítás

rét – meadow; it is pronounced similarly to rate
the Hungarian word for rate is arány

lék – leak, ice-hole; it is pronounced similarly to lake
the Hungarian word for lake is tó

nép – folk, a people; it is pronounced similarly to nape
the Hungarian word for nape is tarkó

toll – pen; it is pronounced similarly to toll
the Hungarian word for toll is vám (customs duty); harangszó (sound of bell)

só – salt; it is pronounced similarly to show
the Hungarian word for show is műsor; bemutatás; kiállítás

buli – party; it is pronounced similarly to bully
the Hungarian word for bully is szájhős

túl – over there; it is pronounced similarly to tool
the Hungarian word for tool is szerszám

szed – to gather, to collect, to pluck; it is pronounced similarly to sad
the Hungarian word for sad is szomorú

kuki – willy (children’s word for penis); it is pronounced similarly to cookie
the Hungarian word for cookie is keksz

gót – Gothic; it is pronounced similarly to goat
the Hungarian word for goat is kecske

szent – saint, holy; it is pronounced similarly to scent
the Hungarian word for scent is illat

Hungarian Compound-Words

When it comes to putting words together, you can observe that the various nations think differently about certain aspects of an object or an action. For a Hungarian one feature is more important than it is for other nations, and the opposite of it is also true.

Note that the first member of a Hungarian compound-word is sometimes turned into an adjective, which is not always the case in English.

Hungarian Word – English Equivalent > Literal Translation

  1. kézfej – back of the hand > kéz+fej = hand+head
  2. lábfej – foot >láb+fej = foot+head
  3. szemüveg – a pair of glasses > szem+üveg = eye+glass
  4. tollbamondás – dictation > tollba+mondás = into pen+saying
  5. ékszer – jewel > ék+szer = ornament/decoration+tool
  6. mosószer – detergent > mosó+szer=washing+chemical
  7. gyógyszer – medicine > gyógy+szer = curing+chemical
  8. rendőr – police officer > rend+őr = order+guard
  9. tűzoltó – fireman > tűz+oltó = fire+extinguisher
    >>this word can mean the fireman and the tool to put out the fire with
  10. gördeszka – skateboard > gör-+deszka = rolling+board
  11. ágynemű – bed linen > ágy+nemű = bed-kind
    >>nemű means sort of, belonging to, -kind, -type
  12. ágytál – bedpan > ágy+tál = bed+bowl
  13. kémcső – test tube > kém+cső = spying/watching+tube
  14. távcső – telescope > táv+cső = distance/remote+tube
  15. hőkép – infrared image > hő+kép = heat+image
  16. kézfogás – handshake > kéz+fogás = hand+grip
  17. épületegyüttes – a block of buildings > épület+együttes = building+group
  18. zenekar – orchestra > zene+kar = music+choir
  19. kukásautó – garbage truck > kukás+autó = garbage+car
  20. számítógép – computer > számító+gép = computing+machine
  21. repülőgép – airplane > repülő+gép = flying+machine
  22. nyaklánc – necklace > nyak+lánc = neck+chain
  23. lelkiismeret – conscience > lelki+ismeret = soul+knowledge
  24. hűtőszekrény – refrigerator >hűtő+szekrény = cooling+cupboard
    >>or cooling wardrobe/closet. You decide! 🙂
  25. ablaktörlő – windscreen wiper > ablak+törlő = window+wiper
  26. visszapillantó tükör – rear-view mirror > visszapillantó+tükör = backglancing+mirror
  27. izomkolosszus – jock > izom+kolosszus = muscle+giant
  28. háromajtós szekrény – beefy/muscular man > háromajtós+szekrény = triple-door+wardrobe 🙂
  29. égbolt – firmament > ég+bolt = sky+arch
  30. tűlevél – pine needle > tű+levél = needle+leaf
  31. nyakkendő – necktie > nyak+kendő = neck+cloth
  32. hüvelykujj – thumb, big toe > hüvelyk+ujj = inch+finger
  33. éjjeli szekrény – bedside table > éjjeli szekrény = night closet
  34. személyi igazolvány – identity card > személyi igazolvány = personal certificate
    >>igaz – true/real; igazol – to identify, to certify; igazolvány – certificate
  35. szempilla – eyelashes > szem+pilla = eye+glancer
    >>the verb pillant (to blink) comes from pilla
  36. tépőzár – velcro > tépő+zár = tearing+lock
  37. gombostű – pin > gombos+tű = button+needle
  38. esernyő – umbrella > esó+ernyő = rain+shade
    >>eső is shortened as ‘es’ for easier pronunciation
  39. ejtőernyő – parachute > ejtő+ernyő = dropping+umbrella
    >>ernyő itself can mean umbrella, screen, shade
  40. zuhanyrózsa – shower head > zuhany+rózsa = shower+rose
    >>due to the form of the shower head
  41. melltartó – bra > mell+tartó = breast+holder
  42. lábujj – toe > láb+ujj = foot+finger
  43. pénztárca – purse, wallet > pénz+tárca = money+holder/case
  44. belváros – downtown > bel+város = inner+town
    >>külváros – suburb >kül+város = outer+town
  45. röppálya – trajectory > röp+pálya = flying+path
    >>röp is the root for repül, röpül – to fly
  46. úszógumi – rubber ring > úszó+gumi = swimming+rubber
  47. továbbképző tanfolyam – refresher course > továbbképző+tanfolyam = further training+course
  48. fényszóró – search light, headlights > fény+szóró = light+spreader/scatterer
  49. vagyontárgy – property, asset > vagyon+tárgy = fortune/property object
  50. államcsíny – coup d’etát > állam+csíny = state+trick/prank

There are also some peculiar words that cannot be translated literally:

lábbeli – footwear > láb+-beli = belonging to foot
>>the suffix -beli is kind of equivalent to ‘belonging to something’

fülbevaló – ear ring > fülbe+való = tool belonging into ear
>>való also refers to ‘belonging’ just as -beli, but it is not a suffix

fehérnemű – underwear > fehér+nemű = a white kind of clothing
>>the word ‘nem’ has a couple of meanings: gender; no; sort of
(see ágynemű above)

 

Charlie Chaplin: Dictator Speech

Charlie Chaplin: Egy zsarnok beszéde

1. I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be an emperor. That’s not my business.

I’m sorry – Sajnálom
but – de
I don’t want – nem akarok
to be – lenni
an Emperor – uralkodó
That’s not – Az nem
my business – az én dolgom

Sajnálom, de nem akarok uralkodó lenni. Az nem az én dolgom.

2. I don’t want to rule or conquer anyone.

I don’t want – nem akarok
to rule – uralkodni + -n, -on, -en, -ön
or – vagy
conquer – meghódítani + -t accusative case
anyone – senki

Nem akarok senkin uralkodni vagy meghódítani.
>the verb uralkodni requires the suffix -n = uralkodni valakin. The verb meghódítani takes the accusative case -t = meghódítani valakit. In this case anyone is in negation, so Hungarian says senki. As uralkodni precedes meghódítani, it is enough to say senkin uralkodni. It is obvious for a Hungarian that meghódítani requires -t and not -n.

3. I should like to help everyone if possible- Jew, Gentile, black men, white.

I should like to – szeretnék
help – segíteni + -n, -on, -en, -ön OR -nak, -nek
everyone – mindenki
if possible – ha lehetséges, lehetőleg, ha lehet
Jew – zsidó
Gentile – nem zsidó
black men – feketék
white – fehér

Segíteni szeretnék mindenkinek, ha lehetséges: zsidónak, nem zsidónak, feketének, fehérnek.
>the verb segít requires the suffix -n or -nak, -nek unlike in English. When listing Jew, Gentile, etc., you can make them plural or leave them in singular form, but keep it consistent. You can also say zsidóknak, nemeseknek, feketéknek, fehéreknek. In this case, the singular form is more powerful as it clearly refers to people as a whole.

4. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that.

We all – mi mind, mi mindannyian, mi mindnyájan
we want – akarunk
to help – segíteni + -n, -on, -en, -ön OR -nak, -nek
one another – egymás
Human beings – az emberek
are like that – ilyenek.

Mi mindannyian segíteni akarunk egymáson. Az emberek ilyenek.

5. We want to live by each others’ happiness, not by each other’s misery.

We want – akarunk
to live – élni
by each other’ happiness – egymás boldogságában
misery – nyomorúság

Egymás boldogságában akarunk élni, nem egymás nyomorúságában.
>English says by each other, but it is a better Hungarian translation if we say -ban, -ben: boldogságában, nyomorúságában.

6. We don’t want to hate and despise one another.

We don’t want – Nem akarjuk
to hate – utálni + -t accusative case
to despise – megvet + -t accusative case
one another – egymás

Nem akarjuk utálni és megvetni egymást.
>We translate We don’t want as nem akarjuk because it refers to somebody definite: egymást. Nem akarunk would be incorrect.

7. In this world there is room for everyone and the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone.

In this world – A világon
there is room for – jut hely…-nak, -nek
everyone – mindenki
and – és
the good earth – a jó Föld, a jóságos Föld
is rich – gazdag
can – -hat, -het; képes; tud
provide for – gondoskodik …-ról, -ről
everyone – mindenki

A világon mindenkinek jut hely és a jó Föld gazdag, gondoskodik mindenkiről.
>There is no need to say Ezen a világon because we know that we live on this planet. It is enough to say A világon. It is not necessary that we translate the modal verb can. It sounds more powerful without -hat, -het. It is my opinion. It is a matter of what the translator thinks is the better solution.

8. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way.

The way of like – Az életünk, az életmódunk
can be – lehet
free – szabad
beautiful – gyönyörű
but – de
to lose the way – eltéved; eltévelyedik; rossz irányba megy

Az életünk szabad és gyönyörű lehet, de rossz irányba megyünk.

9. Greed has poisoned men’s souls; has barricaded the world with hate; has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed.

Greed – kapzsiság
to poison – megmérgez
men – az ember, az emberek
soul – lélek
to barricade – elbarikádoz + -t accusative case
the world – a világ
with – -val, -vel
hate – gyűlölet
to goose-step – díszlépésben megy; in this case: díszlépéssel vezet
misery – nyomorúság
bloodshed – vérontás

A kapzsiság megmérgezte az ember lelkét, gyűlölettel barikádozta el a világot, díszlépéssel vezetett minket a nyomrúságba és vérontásba.

10. We have developed speed, but we have shut ourselves in: machinery that gives abundance has left us in want.

To develop – kifejleszt
speed – sebesség
but – de; mégis
to shut in – bezár
machinery – gépezet; gépek
that – mely
to give – ad; szolgáltat
abundance – bőség
to leave – hagy
want – szükség, nélkülözés

Növeltük a sebességet, mégis bezárkóztunk; a gépek, melyek bőséget szolgáltatnak nélkülözésbe taszítottak minket.
>It sounds much better to write növeltük a sebességet-we have increased than kifejlesztettük-we have developed. Machinery is better translated as gépek, than gépezet because it expresses that mankind is already using machines everywhere. The verb to give-ad sounds better if we say szolgáltat + -t = to provide with. The verb to leave-hagy is weak in Hungarian in this context, so it is not incorrect to translate it as taszít-to push.

11. Our knowledge has made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind.

Our – (a mi)…-unk, -ünk
knowledge – tudás
to make sy sg – tesz valakit valamivé/valamilyenné
us – minket
cynical – cinikus
cleverness – okosság, ügyesség
hard – szigorú
unkind – faragatlan

Tudásunk cinikussá tett minket. Okosságunk szigorúvá és faragatlanná.

12. We think too much and feel too little.

We think – gondolkozunk
too much – túl sok; túl sokat
to feel – érez
too little – túl kevés, túl keveset
Túl sokat gondolkozunk és túl keveset érzünk.
>In this case gondolkozik és érez requires the suffix -t for túl sok and túl kevés.

13. More than machinery, we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness.

More than – …helyett inkább
to need – szükség van …-ra, -re; kell valakinek
humanity – emberség
kindness – kedvesség
gentleness – gyengédség

A gépek helyett inkább emberség kell. Az okosság helyett inkább kedvesség és gyengédség.
>If we simply say kell for to need, it is more powerful in this case.

14. Without these qualities, life will be violent and all will be lost.

Without – nélkül
these – ezek; ezen
quality – tulajdonság
life – élet
will be – lesz; válik valamivé
violent – erőszakos
all – minden
will be lost – elveszik

Ezen tulajdonságok nélkül az élet erőszakossá válik és minden elvész.
>The demonstrative pronoun ez is ezek in plural form. In this case, we should repeat it like ezek nélkül a tulajdonságok nélkül. To avoid that and make the translation more elevated, we can use a more elegant form ezen, so we do not need to repeat it: ezen tulajdonságok nélkül.

15. The aeroplane and the radio have brought us closer together.

Aeroplane – repülőgép
radio – rádió
to bring – hoz
us – minket
closer – közelebb
together – egymás

A repülőgép és a rádió közelebb hozott minket egymáshoz.
>the verb hoz-bring takes -hoz, -hez,- höz. That is why: egymáshoz.

16. The very nature of these inventions cries out for the goodness in man, cries out for universal brotherhood, for the unity of us all.

The very nature of – …-nak, -nek a természete; in this case> természetüknél fogva
these inventions – ezen találmányok
to cry out for – kiált …-ért
goodness – jóság
in man – az emberben lévő
universal – egyetemes
bortherhood – testvériség
unity – egység
of us all – mindannyiunk

Ezen találmányok természetüknél fogva az emberben lévő jóságért kiált, egyetemes testvériségért, mindannyiunk egységéért.
> We do not need to repeat cries out for-kiált…-ért. It gives more kick if we do not repeat it.

17. Even now my voice is reaching millions throughout the world, millions of despairing men, women, and little children, victims of a system that makes men torture and imprison innocent people.

Even now – most is (éppen)
my voice – hangom
to reach – elér + -t accusative case
millions – milliók; milliókat
throughout the world – világszerte
millions of – milliónyi
despairing – kétségbeesett
men, women, little children – férfi, nő, kisgyermek
victim – áldozat
system – rendszer
that – amely
to make sy torture – kínoz
to imprison – bebörtönöz, börtönbe vet
innocent – ártatlan
people – ember; emberek

Hangom most is milliókat ér el világszerte; milliónyi kétségbeesett férfit, nőt és kisgyermeket. Egy olyan rendszer áldozatait, amely kínozza őket és ártatlanokat vet börtönbe.

18. To those who can hear me, I say “Do not despair.”

To those who – Azokhoz szólok, akik
can hear – hall
me – engem
I say – WE DO NOT NEED TO TRANSLATE IT
Do not despair – Ne csüggedjetek

Azokhoz szólok, akik hallanak engem: ne csüggedjetek!
>The literal Hungarian translations is: I am speaking to those who can hear me: do not despair. That is why I did not translate I say.

19. The misery that is now upon us is but the passing of greed, the bitterness of men who fear the way of human progress.

misery – nyomorúság
that – amely
is now upon us – literally: rajtunk van. I translate is as: minket sújt – afflicts us
but – de; in this case csupán OR nem több, mint
passing – múló mivolta
greed – kapzsiság
bitterness – keserűség
who – aki; akik
to fear sg – fél …-tól, -től
human progress – emberi fejlődés; az emberek/az emberiség fejlődése

A nyomorúság, amely minket sújt csupán a kapzsiság múló mivolta, olyan emberek keserűsége, akik félnek az emberiség fejlődésétől.

20. The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people.

hate – gyűlölet
to pass – elmúlik
dictator – diktátor, zsarnok
to die – meghal
power – hatalom
to take from – elvesz…-tól, -től
to return – visszatér
Az emberek gyűlölete elmúlik, a zsarnokok meghalnak. A hatalom, melyet elvettek az emberektől, ismét az embereké lesz.

21. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.

so long as – amíg
to die – meghal
liberty – szabadság
never – soha
to perish – elpusztul

És amíg az emberek meghalnak, a szabadság soha nem pusztul el.

22. Soldiers! Don’t give yourselves to brutes, men who despise you and enslave you; who regiment your lives, tell you what to do, what to think and what to feel. Who drill you, diet you, treat you like cattle, use you as cannon fodder.

Soldier – katona
to give – ad; in this case: odavet
yourselves – magatok; magatokat
brute – fenevad
to despise – megvet + -t accusative case
to enslave – rabigába dönt, szolgasorba taszít
to regiment – vezényel
life – élet
to tell – megmond
what to do, what to feel and what to think – in this case: mit csináljatok, mit érezzetek, mit gondoljatok
to drill – kiképez
to diet – in this case:éheztet
to treat – bánik valakivel valahogyan/mint
cattle – marha, jószág; in this case: állatok
to use as – használ valamiként/valaminek
cannon fodder – golyó fogó

Katonák! Ne vessétek oda magatokat fenevadaknak; embereknek, akik megvetnek és rabigába döntenek; akik vezénylik az életeteket; megmondják, hogy mit csináljatok, mit érezzetek, mit gondoljatok. Akik kiképeznek és éheztetnek; állatként bánnak veletek, golyó fogónak használnak.

23. Don’t give yourselves to these unnatural men—machine men with machine minds and machine hearts.

to give – ad; in this case: odavet
yourselves – magatok(at)
unnatural – természetellenes
machine men – gépemberek
mind – elme
heart – szív

Ne vessétek oda magatokat ezeknek a természetellenes embereknek; gépies elméjű, gépies szívű gépembereknek.

24. You are not machines. You are not cattle. You are men.

machine – gép
cattle – marha; in this case: állatok

Nem gépek vagytok. Nem állatok vagytok. Emberek vagytok.

25. You have a love of humanity in your hearts.

To have – van neki; in this case: hordoz-to carry

love – szeretet
humanity – emberiség
heart – szív

A szívetekben hordozzátok az emberiség iránti szeretetet.
>Literally translating to have is weak in Hungarian and sounds a little bit weird.

26. You don’t hate, only the unloved hate; the unloved and the unnatural.

to hate – gyűlöl; gyűlölködik
unloved – nem szeretett; much better: szeretetre éhező-starving for love
unnatural – természetellenes

Ti nem gyűlölködtök, csak a szeretetre éhezők; a szeretetre éhezők és a természetellenesek.

27. Soldiers! Don’t fight for slavery. Fight for liberty.

Soldier – katona
to fight for – harcol …-ért
slavery – rabszolgaság
liberty – szabadság

Katonák! Ne a rabszolgaságért harcoljatok! Harcoljatok a szabadságért!

28. In the seventeenth chapter of St. Luke, it’s written:

“The kingdom of God is within man”

Not one man, nor a group of men, but in all men; in you.

seventeenth – tizenhetedik
chapter – fejezet
St. Luke – Szent Lukács
it is written – az áll …-ban, -ben; azt írja

Szent Lukács tizenhetedik fejezetében az áll:
”Isten királysága az emberben lakozik”
Nem egy emberben, nem egy embercsoportban, hanem minden emberben: bennetek.

29. You, the people, have the power, the power to create machines, the power to create happiness.

power – hatalom
to have the power to – hatalma van, hogy
to create – létrehoz
machine – gép
happiness – boldogságába

Nektek, az embereknek, van hatalmatok; hatalmatok, hogy gépeket, boldogságot teremtsetek.

30. You, the people, have the power to make this life free and beautiful, to make this life a wonderful adventure.

to make sg sg – valamit valamivé/valamilyenné tesz
free – szabad
beautiful – gyönyörű
wonderful – csodálatos
adventure – kaland

Nektek, az embereknek, van hatalmatok, hogy az életet szabaddá és gyönyörűvé tegyétek; hogy az életet csodálatos kalandként éljétek.
>I translated to make this life a wonderful adventure as to live life like it is a wonderful adventure. Sounds better in Hungarian.

31. Then in the name of democracy, let us use that power.
Then – akkor; in this case: hát

in the name of – -nak, -nek a nevében
democracy – demokárcia
let us – USUALLY TRANSLATED AS IMPERATIVE MOOD
to use – használ; él valamivel
that – azt a

Éljünk hát azzal a hatalommal a demokrácia nevében.

32. Let us all unite.

to unite – egyesül

Egyesüljünk!

33. Let us fight for a new world, a decent world that will give men a chance to work, that will give youth a future and old age a security.

to fight for – harcol …-ért
new world – új világ
decent – rendes
that – amely
to give sy a chance – esélyt ad valakinek valamire
to work – dolgozik
youth – fiatalság; a fiatalok
future – jövő
old age – az idősek
security – biztonság

Harcoljunk egy új világért, egy rendes világért, amely esélyt ad az embernek, hogy dolgozhasson; amely a fiataloknak jövőt ad, az időseknek biztonságot.

34. By the promise of these things, brutes have risen to power, but they lie.

By the promise of – -nak, -nek az ígéretével, …-t ígérve
brute – fenevad
to rise to power – hatalomra jut
to lie – hazudik

Ezeket ígérve fenevadak jutottak hatalomra, de hazudnak.

35. They do not fulfill their promise. They never will.

to fulfill – teljesít + -t accusative case
promise – ígéret
never – soha
will – in this case: fog

Nem teljesítik az ígéretüket. Soha nem fogják.

36. Dictators free themselves, but they enslave the people.
dictator – diktátor, zsarnok
to free oneself – felszabadítja magát
to enslave – rabigába dönt, szolgasorba taszít

A zsarnokok magukat szabadítják fel, de szolgasorba taszítják az embereket.

37. Now let us fight to fulfill that promise.

now – most; in this case: hát
let us – TRANSLATED AS IMPERATIVE MOOD
to fight – harcol

Harcoljunk, hogy teljesítsük azt az ígéretet.

38. Let us fight to free the world, to do away with national barriers, to do away with greed, with hate and intolerance.

to free – felszabadít
to do away – megszabadul …-tól, -től
national barriers – nemzeti határok; nemzetek határai
intolerance – intolerancia

Harcoljunk a világ felszabadításáért, hogy megszabaduljunk a nemzetek határaitól, hogy megszabaduljunk a kapzsiságtól, gyűlölettől, intoleranciától.

39. Let us fight for a world of reason, a world where science and progress will lead to all men’s happiness.

reason – értelem, ésszerűség
science – tudomány
progress – fejlődés
to lead to – (el)vezet …-hoz, -hez, -höz

Harcoljunk egy észszerű világért, egy világért, ahol a tudomány és fejlődés mindannyiunk boldogságához elvezet.

40. Soldiers, in the name of democracy: let us all unite!
Katonák! A demokrácia nevében: egyesüljünk!

Hungarian Folk Song

If the video shouldn’t work, you can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_YPfTXDDqo

 

Repülj, madár

 

Ifijúság olyan madár,
Addig víg, míg szabadon jár
Ha elfogják, fogoly madár,
Többet szabadon már nem jár.
Nem vagyok magammal szabad,
Kezemen, lábamon lakat.

Repülj, madár, repülj!

Ifijúságom telik el,
Azért a szívem hasad el.
A szabadság gyöngykoszorú,
Ki elveszti, de szomorú.
Nem vagyok magammal szabad,
Kezemen, lábamon lakat.

Repülj, madár, repülj!
Vigyél el magaddal!
Repülj, madár, repülj!
Szállj fel magasra!

Szabad madár vagy, te rózsám,
Mégis ritkán jössz el hozzám.
Ha én olyan szabad volnék,
Minden este nálad volnék.

 Fly, bird

 

Youth is a bird,
That is joyous until it’s free.
If it’s captured, it’s a captive bird,
It will never be free ever again.
I’m not free with myself,
My hands and legs are chained.

Fly, bird, fly.

My youth is going by,
That’s why my heart is broken.
Youth is a wreath of pearl,
The one who loses it, is so sad.
I’m not free with myself,
My hands and legs are chained.

Fly, bird, fly.
Take me with you.
Fly, bird, fly.
Fly up to the sky.

You’re a free bird, darling,
Yet you come to see me rarely.
If I were that free,
I’d be with you every night.

Roots H-, H-V, Har; H-R

Root H-, H-V, HaR

When it comes to weather and temperature you can think of some words as a group. It is the root H-. I keep writing the consonants in capitals.

Hi is an abstract root for Hideg – cold
Hű is an abstract root for HűVös – cool
Hó means snow > HaVas is snowy
Hő means heat > HeVes fierce (man), heated (debate)
Ha is an abstract root for HaRmat – dew

A hó hő hatására elolvad. – Heat causes snow to melt.
Hűvös az idő, de nem hideg. – It’s a cool weather, but it’s not cold.

A heves vita közepette nem vették észre a virágról lehulló harmatot.
While having a heated debate, they didn’t notice the dew falling from the flower.

Root H-R for decaying

HeRvad – to wither;
A virágok elhervadnak. – Flowers wither.

KoRhad – to rot, to decay;
A kidőlt fa elkorhad. – The fallen tree rots away.

SoRvad – to waste away, to recede;
A fogad elsorvad, ha nem húzzák ki. – Your teeth will recede if it is not removed.

Root M-G and More

The Hungarian roots can be used like this:

-keeping the consonants and shading with vowels: magyar = megyer
-mutating the consonants: KöR (circle) > GuRul (to roll)
-using the inversion of the root: MaG (seed) <> GaM (no meaning in itself today)

The first solution can have the same meaning or it can shade the original meaning. In case of magyar-megyer it is the same meaning. Our ancestors used megyer just as magyar.

The second solution implies that consonants can be turned into other consonants. For example the M at the end of a word often changes into NG, ND, N to shade the meaning of that word. Or in case of kör-gurul the words express the same kind of thing, that is a circular motion and K often mutates into G.

I’d like to talk about the third solution in details because the inversion of the root can have the same meaning, it can shade the meaning or it can express the opposite of the base root. Look at this example: CsaVar – FaCSar. What happened in csavar? The root Cs_V was reversed and the V mutated into F, which is also very common. As a result, the two verbs have the opposite meaning. Csavar means to twist, facsar means to wring. The first implies – fundamentally – a motion inwards, the second a motion outwards.

Another example can be megy (to go) – jön (to come). Would you tell about these verbs that they are inversions? This is how it goes: MeGY <> GYeM > GYeN > GYüN > JöN.

So what is it about MaG<> GaM? They imply the same thing: something spherical that has a seed in it or it has the shape of a seed. The vowels and the consonants can change to shade the meaning. The root GaM has no meaning today, but its derivatives do. I’ll keep writing the consonants carrying the meaning in capital letters, so that you see the root better.

MaG – seed

Derivatives of MaG are:

MáK – poppy-seed
MaKK – acorn
MaGYar – Hungarian
MaGyal – holly
MaGzat – embryo
MáGlya – bonfire
MaGas – tall
and possibly NaGY – big
MeGGY – sour cherry
MeGYe – county (Originally means earth, ground. Ancient villages were circular, probably that’s the reason for this word)

The inversion of MaG is GaM. Take a look at the words that originated from it:

GuMó = GüMő – tuber
GoMB – button
GoMBa – mushroom
GoMBóc = GöMBőc – dumpling or something ball-shaped
GöMB – orb
GoMBolyag – skein, hank
GoMolyog – to wreathe
GöMBölyű – round, spherical
GuBó – cocoon
GőG – haughtiness (originally means something empty, spherical, inflatable)
GöNGYöleg – bundle, bale
GYöNGY – pearl
GYüMölcs – fruit

Other examples from our Kun ancestors. The Kuns liked to change the Hungarian consonants like this: G, GY > D, ND, NG, NT, MD, K; D > T.

áGas > áKas = today’s word is eke = plough

We had a word like KiJó. Nowadays we say KíGYó (snake). The inversion of KíGY is GYíK. GYíK means lizard. Animals belonging to the same kind of species, so to say. With consonant mutation GYíK became CSíK (streak, stripe). Obviously lizards and snakes look like a streak from the distance.

Other examples would never really ”show themselves” if we wouldn’t know their origins. Such roots are: ék, kő, üt, tű. Kő (stone) is the inversion of éK (wedge). It is obvious that a stone, especially a sharp one resembles a wedge. With a wedge you can hit things, and so some consonant and vowel mutations will allow us to create the verb üT (hit). The inversion of üt is Tű (needle). And a needle still looks like a small wedge. Out of the root éK, our eKe (plough) was born.

Another phenomenon is when the consonant H modifies the original root. Such root is aL (below, beneath). If you put an h at the beginning of the word, it becomes HaL (fish). Where do fish live? Under the ocean.

A HaL aLul van. – The fish is beneath.

The poetic way of thinking of our ancestors allowed them to identify fish with death:

HaL (fish-noun) – megHaL (to die-verb) – HaLLgat (to listen, to be silent)

What does a person do who died? If someone dies at sea, you say: That man perished at sea = Az az ember tengerbe HALT. And what does a dead person do? He’s silent like a fish, that is HaLLgat. This is how these words developed: aL (beneath) > HaL (fish-to die) > HaLott (dead) > HaLLgat (to be silent, to listen). Also, if someone’s listening to you while you’re speaking, they’re silent.

So much for now. I’ll try to write more.

Bye! 🙂

Hungarian Word Root System

Hungarian has a word root system that has been known for centuries, but for political reasons certain people made sure that the Hungarian people had never really known about it up until now. In the recent years we’ve rediscovered this fundamental aspect of our language.

Linguists say that languages change quickly. That’s only true for young languages like those belonging to the Indo-European branch. Because the story of the settlement of the Magyars in Hungary (Honfoglalás) is a big fat lie and we’ve always known that, some Hungarian linguists and archeologists didn’t rest to prove it wrong. We’ve found houses made of stone in Hungary buried under a considerable amount of soil. Interestingly enough, those houses are 7500 years old. Meaning Hungarians have always lived in the Carpathian Basin and certain groups had migrated to other territories, but the ‘dyed-in-the-wool’ population stayed in Hungary. Forget the Finno-Ugric lie. Nobody capable of critical thinking believes that today.

Nowadays we can clearly prove the Scythian-Hun-Avar-Hungarian continuity. Bad luck for those trying to suppress our history for a thousands years now.

The Hungarian language is the evidence for the fact that we’ve always lived where we live now. To be more precise, its root system is the evidence. Such a complex language can only develope in a closed land protected from foreigners for thousands of years and more.

Honestly, I don’t know if this knowledge helps you understand Hungarian better or confuses you more, but I’ll give it a try.

Our ancestors didn’t write or say anything in vain. The word roots are built up with a vowel + consonant or a consontant + vowel + consonant combination. (VC or CVC)

These roots have their own meaning and the ones that lost their meaning by now (but had it long ago) are shaded with suffixes to create new meanings in the same category the word roots were originally intented to express.

Roots that kept their meaning in themselves are like ég (sky), tér (space)…

Roots that don’t mean anything in themselves are like ker-. This root refers to something circular, enclosed: kerek (round, circular), keret (frame), kert (garden).

          The fundamental meaning of the word is expressed by the consonants, the vowels refer to distance, space, earth-bound or celestial quality. Therefore linguists capitalize the consonants: KeR, éG, TéR…

For example the a-e, á-é word pairs are extremely common. Take a look at this:

tér (space) – tár (to open wide)
>TéR has an é because the sky and the earth is one big space. TáR has an á because you open something wide on the ground.

ég (sky) – ág (branch)

>éG has an é because it refers to the sky itself, áG has an á because it’s on the ground attached to a tree and the branch reaches towards the sky.

It’s clear that we can’t talk about German, French and Slavic loan-words. Our word root system proves that 95% of our words belong to the original Hungarian vocabulary. Foreigners and especially the Vatican want to make us believe that Hungarians were a herd of uneducated people and when (Judeo) Christians arrived and spred their love with iron and fire, suddenly we formed a civilized nation. Apparently the Vatican has really smart people. Hungarians have always been Christians, only Christianity was a positive thing with no blood-shed unlike that blood-thirsty Bible with crucifictions, inquisitions and holy wars. What is so holy about any war? I’m having trouble understanding that part.

Our Hungarian alphabet (runic alphabet if you will) also proves that ordinary people in the ancient Hungary could write and read just our priests, while in the highly developed west only priests could write and the ordinary people were illiterate.

A simple archaeological find proves that our ancestors talked pretty much like we do now 3000 years ago. On a piece of stone, among other words, somebody wrote gyümölcs (fruit) with the Hungarian alphabet. He wrote it with ü and ö just like as we pronounce it now. 3000 years ago! If you read a text from 400 years ago, say, something from Bálint Balassi, there is no need to change one letter in it because it sounds like we speak today. Try to do that with a text from Shakespear. Give it to some English students and ask them if they can understand it without explanation.

Unfortunately, Christians had burnt everything they found, so there’s very little left above the ground. Under the ground archaeologists have found a good number of artifacts with our original Hungarian alphabet. Today a considerable number of Hungarians have rediscovered it (including me) and at least we use it to keep it alive.

The other interesting feature of the Hungarian language that it thinks in images. The word spoken evokes the image of what we talk about. It also heavily relies on dual meanings. Just an example:

ég (sky) – ég (to burn)

What’s the connection between the ég noun and the ég verb? Our ancestors saw that a big fiery ball was up there and it seemed to behave like fire – it burned. And it’s still burning today. So what’s up there? It’s the sky (ég) where the sun burns (ég).

A Nap az égen ég. – The sun burns in the sky.

Other example:

láng (flame) – leng (to swing, to wave)

What does the flame do? It swings, waves as it’s blown by the wind.

A láng leng. – The flame is swinging.

Another aspect of our word roots is the reversal of the root (szófordítás). Our ancestors made up the word mag (seed). They shaded its meaning with different vowels and consonants:

mag – seed > meggy (sour cherry)…

Then they reversed the word root to shade its meaning even further or to reverse the meaning. In this case mag became: MaG <> GaM (no meaning today)>GoM (no meaning today) > GoMb (button) > GoMba (mushroom)> GYüMölcs (fruit). These words refer to an object that has a seed or it reminds us of the shape of a seed.

So much for one breath. If you’re interested in more, here are some links for you:

http://www.szozat.org/images/tudastar/A%20magyar%20nyelv%20gyo%CC%88krendszere%CC%81nek%20alapjai4-1.pdf

http://www.hunsor.se/dosszie/adorjan_amagyarnyelv.pdf
> Things start getting interesting from page 4.

Translation part 2

1.

„Manapság magára valamit adó hollywoodi sztár kizárólag műanyagból készült ruhát, cipőt, táskát, kabátot hord, vagy anyaszült meztelenül pózol az állati jogok védelmét szolgáló kampányban. Valódi bundát újabban egyedül az engedhet meg magának, aki abban jött a világra. Vagy mégsem?”

’Nowadays any self-respecting Hollywood star is wearing clothes, shoes, bags, jackets exclusively made of plastic or is posing in the buff for a campaign serving the protection of animal rights. Lately, only those can afford real fur who were born in it. Or not?’

The literal translation is:
Nowadays on herself something giving Hollywood star exclusively of plastic made clothes, shoes, bags, jackets is wearing, or naked as born by her mother is posing in the protection of animal rights serving campaign. Real fur lately only those can afford who in it came into the world. Or not?

manapság = nowadays
magára valamit adó = self-respecting > this idiomatic expression literally: who gives something on him/herself
hollywood + -i (adjectival suffix)
sztár = star > words used frequently enough are transcribed according to the phonetic writing in Hungarian
kizár (to exclude) + -ó (excluding, exclusive) + -lag (suffix for adverb of manner equivalent to –ly) = kizárólag = exclusively

műanyag (plastic) = mű- (artificial) + anyag (material, substance)
műanyag + -ból (suffix equivalent to the OF preposition because ’to be made’ requires ’of’ and in Hungarian ’készült’ requires ’-ból, -ből’)
készül (to be made) + -t (past tense ending) = készült (used as past participle) = made

ruha > ruhát (accusative case)
cipő > cipőt (accusative case)
táska > táskát (accusative case)
kabát > kabátot (accusative case)
> these words are in accusative case because they are the direct object of the verb ’hord=wear’
hord = to wear

vagy = or
anyaszült = as born by his/her mother
mez (shirt) + -telen (privative suffix) = meztelen + -ül (suffix for adverb of manner) = meztelenül = naked
>anyaszült meztelenül = in the buff, totally naked

pózol = to pose
állat + -i (adjectival suffix) = állati = animal
jog (right) + -ok (nominative plural ending with link vowel) = jogok = rights
védelem (protection) > it is a drop-vowel word due to the –elem suffix. The ending –e of the possessive case is added: védelme. The e becomes é because it is followed by the accusative ending –t: védelmét
szolgál (to serve) + -ó (adjectival suffix) = szolgáló = serving
> az állati jogok védelmét szolgáló = serving the protection of animal rights

kampány (campaign) + -ban (equivalent is the IN preposition but now FOR sounds better in English)

valódi = real
bunda (fur) + -t (accusative ending) = bundát
új (new) + -abb (comparative degree suffix = newer) + -an (suffix for adverb of manner) = újabban = lately
egyedül = only; alone

megenged magának = can afford
-het = can
az, aki = he/those who
az engedhet meg magának, aki = those can afford who

az (that) + -ban (in) = abban = in that/it
világra jön = to be born, to come into the world
mégsem > in this case it should be translated as: not

2.

„A forint az igen kedvező nemzetközi befektetői hangulatban, és a két hónap múlva várható magyar EU/IMF-megállapodás reményétől fűtve a héten jelentősen tovább erősödött amellett is, hogy a Magyar Nemzeti Bank váratlanul nem emelt kamatot valószínűleg az új monetáris tanácstagok ellenkezése miatt.”

’In the quite favourable international mood of investment and fired up by the hope of Hungarian EU/IMF agreement expected in two month, this week forint continued getting stronger significantly even apart from the fact that, unexpectedly, the Hungarian National Bank did not raise interest presumably due to the opposition of the new monetary council members.’

The literal translation is:
The forint in the quite favourable international investment mood, and by the hope of the in two month to be exptected Hungarian EU/IMF agreement fired up this week significantly further got stronger even apart from the fact that the Hungarian National Bank unexpectedly did not raise interest probably due to the opposition of the new monetary council members.

igen = quite, very
kedvez (to favour) + -ő (adjectival suffix) = kedvező = favourable
nemzet (nation) + -közi (inter-) = nemzetközi = international
befektet (to invest) + -ő (noun suffix) = befektető = investor
befektető + -i (adjectival suffix) = investing, of investment
hangulat (mood) + -ban (equivalent to the IN preposition)
és = and
két hónap múlva = in two month
vár (to expect) + -ható (suffix for something made possible) = várható = to be expected
magyar = Hungarian > note that magyar is not capitalized
megállapodik (to agree) > remove –ik and add the –ás noun suffix = megállapodás = agreement

reményétől fűtve = fired up by the hope
> remény (hope) + -e (possessive case suffix equivalent to OF) + -től (equivalent to BY in this case = reményétől = by the hope of
> fűt (to heat) + -ve (suffix for condition now) = fűtve = heated, fired up

a héten = this week
jelentős (significant) + -en (equivalent to –ly) = jelentősen = significantly

tovább = further, on, continues doing
erős (strong) + -ödik (verb suffix) = erősödik = to get stronger
> remove –ik and add –ött (past tense ending with proper link vowel) = erősödött = got stronger
> tovább erősödött = continued getting stronger

amellett = apart from the fact
is = even
hogy = that
Magyar Nemzeti Bank = Hungarian National Bank
váratlan (unexpected) + -ul (suffix for adverb of manner) = váratlanul = unexpectedly

nem = no, not; in this case: did not
emel (to raise) + -t (past tense ending) = emelt = raised
kamat (interest) + -ot (accusative ending with proper link vowel) = kamatot
> nem emelt kamatot = did not raise interest

valószínű (probable) + -leg (suffix for adverb of manner) = valószínűleg = probably, presumably
új = new
monetáris = monetary

tanács = council
tag = member

>tanácstag (council member) + -ok (nominative plural ending) = tanácstagok = council members
ellenkezés = opposition; disagreement
miatt = due to, because of
> az új tanácstagok ellenkezése miatt = due to the opposition of the new council members

Translations Part 1

I hope I’ll get to Part 2 🙂

One of the hardest part of the Hungarian language for a foreigner is the sentence structure/word order.

In this entry I don’t intend to become profoundly absorbed in how specifically the Hungarian word order is done, but to show you how a sentence looks like compared to the English one.

The following sentences are between dashes because I took them from different newspapers.

1.

„Ezek a háztartási gépek ügyesek, mint a legjobb kukta, és elegánsak, mint egy kifogástalan lakáj.”

’These household appliances are as skilful as the best kitchen boy and as elegant as an unexceptionable valet.”

So the literal transcription of the Hungarian sentence is:
These household appliances skilfuls, as the best kitchen boy, and elegants, as an unexceptionable valet.

ez (demonstrative pronoun) = this
ez + -ek (nominative plural ending with link vowel) = ezek = these
ház (house) + tartás (holding) + -i (adjectival suffix) = háztartási = household
gép (machine, appliance) + -ek (nominative plural ending) = gépek = appliances
ügyes (able, skilful, clever) + -ek (nominative plural ending) = ügyesek = are skilful
mint (the only preposition in Hungarian) = as
a (definite article) = the
leg- + jó + -bb = legjobb (superlative degree of the jó adjective) = best
kukta (originally meaning pressure-cooker, but in a funny way it also refers to a person able to cook well or maybe not so well) = kitchen boy
és (conjunction) = and
elengáns (elegant) + -ak (nominative plural ending with link vowel) = are elegant
egy (indefinite article) = a, an
kifogás (exception, excuse) + -talan (deprivative suffix = un-) = unexceptionable
lakáj = valet, footman

2.

„Sajnos elmaradt a január 20-án, pénteken estére a Liszt-terembe meghirdetett Színpadi Játékvizsga nyilvános előadása.”

’Unfortunately, the public performance of Scenic Acting Exam announced to Liszt Hall the 20th January on Friday night was put off.

So the literal transcription of the Hungarian sentence is:
Unfortunately was put off to the 20th January, to the night on Friday to the Liszt Hall announced Scenic Acting Exam public performance (+ possessive ending)

sajnos (adverb of manner) = unfortunately
elmarad (to be put off, not to take place) + -t (past tense ending) = elmaradt = was put off
január 20-án = the 20th January (say 20-án as huszadikán)
péntek (Friday) + -en (equals to the ON preposition) = on Friday
este (night) + -re (equals to the TO preposition and it is the suffix that the verb meghirdet = announce requires) = estére
terem (room, hall) + -be (in this case English uses the TO preposition)
meghirdet (to announce) + -ett (past tense ending with a link vowel now used as past participle) = meghirdetett = announced
nyilván (obviously, evidently) + -os (adjectival suffix) = nyilvános = public
előadás (performance) + -a (possessive case 3rd PS suffix equivalent to OF) = előadása
> a Színpadi Játékvizsga nyilvános előadása = the public performance of Scenic Acting Exam

3.

„A tapasztalataim azt mutatják, hogy ha a 100 forintos érmét egyszerűen ki lehet húzni a bevásárlókocsiból, akkor szinte biztos, hogy lába kél.”

’My experience suggests that if a hundred forint coin can be simply pulled out of the shopping trolley, then it’s almost sure it’ll vanish into thin air.’

So the literal transcription of the Hungarian sentence is:
My experiences show that if the 100 forint coin (accusative case) simply possible to pull out of the shopping trolley, then almost sure it walks away on its on legs.

tapasztalat (experience) + -aim (possessive case 1st PS suffix referring to plurality – sounds better in Hungarian to say ’my experiences’) = tapasztalataim
azt (that) > it is an antecedent referring to the subordinate clause and expressing the fact that the verb mutat = to show requires accusative case.
mutat (to show, indicate, suggest) + -ják (present tense 3rd PP suffix in definite conjugation)
hogy (conjunction) = that
ha (conjunction) = if
100 = száz = a hundred
forint + -os (adjectival suffix) > English simply says forint
érme (coin) + -t (accusative ending and the e at the end of érme becomes é)
egyszerű (simple) + -en (suffix equivalent to –ly in English) = egyszerűen = simply

ki lehet húzni = it can be pulled out
> kihúz = to pull out
> lehet = it’s possible, it can be, maybe – in this case it has to be translated with passive voice in English because no person is indicated.
> The verb kihúz has the ki verbal prefix. As lehet must be wedged between ki and húz, this verb must be written separately = ki lehet húzni

bevásárlókocsi (shopping trolley) + -ból (from, out of)
akkor = then
szinte = almost
biztos = it’s sure
lába kél > it is an idiomatic expression meaning that something gets lost. I can’t give you a literal translation, but it means something like: ”it grows its own legs and walks away on them”

English-Hungarian Thematic Dictionary

I finally got to the end of writing this dictionary for you. What you’ll find in this 5,38 MB pdf doc is thematically arranged Hungarian words. I hope it’ll help you continue the endless effort you’ve put in your studies so far. 🙂

So here it is. I wish you a good knowledge of Hungarian words for Christmas! 🙂 If there’s any problem with the download, let me know.

English-Hungarian Thematic Dictionary