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The object of a verb, the person or thing that the action reaches, takes the ending -t. The ending shows the object wherever it stands in the sentence, and the conjugation of the verb depends on whether the object is definite or indefinite, as The definite conjugation: tudom, várom, kérem sets out.
The object ending -t: kávét, sört, sajtot, házat#
Formation
The object ending is -t. After a vowel it is added directly, -a and -e lengthening: kávé → kávét, alma → almát. After r, l, j, ly, n, ny, s, sz, z, zs it is usually added directly too: sör → sört, pénz → pénzt, telefon → telefont. After the other consonants a linking vowel comes before it: -ot in a back-vowel word, -et in a front unrounded word, -öt in a word whose last vowel is front rounded. A group of back-vowel nouns take -at: ház → házat, toll → tollat; könyv takes -et. These nouns are learnt with their object form.
| Noun ends in | Ending | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| a vowel | -t | kávét, almát, autót, zenét |
| r, l, j, ly, n, ny, s, sz, z, zs | -t | sört, bort, pénzt, lányt, levest |
| another consonant, back word | -ot | sajtot, kulcsot, kabátot |
| another consonant, front unrounded word | -et | jegyet, filmet, könyvet |
| another consonant, front rounded word | -öt | gyümölcsöt |
| some back nouns | -at | házat, tollat, ágyat, falat |
Use
The object answers mit? (what?) or kit? (whom?). It takes -t with or without an article: Levest főz (“He’s making soup”), Egy házat veszünk (“We’re buying a house”). A bare noun or a noun with egy is an indefinite object, and the verb is in the indefinite conjugation.
- Péter levest főz.Péter is making soup.
- Bence filmet néz.Bence is watching a film.
- Kérsz sajtot?Would you like some cheese?
- Eszter lakást keres.Eszter is looking for a flat.
- Egy házat veszünk Egerben.We’re buying a house in Eger.
Difference from English
English shows the object by its place after the verb: “Péter is making soup”. Hungarian shows it by the ending, so the object may stand before the verb: Péter levest főz.
Common mistakes
Bence filmot néz.→ Bence filmet néz.Film has only a front vowel, so the linking vowel is e.tollot→ tollatToll is one of the nouns with -at.orvosot→ orvostAfter s, -t is added directly.
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What and whom: mit?, kit?, ezt, azt#
Formation
The question words and the pronouns ez and az take the object ending: mi → mit? (what?), ki → kit? (whom?), ez → ezt (this), az → azt (that).
Use
Mit? and kit? stand right before the verb, and take the indefinite conjugation: Mit főzöl? (“What are you cooking?”). Ezt and azt stand alone in a short answer: Mit veszel? – Azt. With a verb they take the definite conjugation: Ezt kérem (“I’ll have this one”), as The definite conjugation: tudom, várom, kérem sets out.
- Mit főzöl ma?What are you cooking today?
- Kit vársz?Who are you waiting for?
- Mit veszel? – Azt.What are you buying? – That one.
Difference from English
English who serves for the subject and the object, “Who are you waiting for?”; Hungarian has ki for the subject and kit for the object.
Common mistake
Ki vársz?→ Kit vársz?The person waited for is the object, so the question is kit.
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A number or an adjective as the object: egyet, hármat, pirosat#
Formation
A number or an adjective that stands alone as the object, with no noun after it, takes the ending -t like a noun: egy → egyet, kettő → kettőt, három → hármat, piros → pirosat, nagy → nagyot, kék → kéket, sárga → sárgát. When a noun follows, the number and the adjective take no ending, and the noun takes -t and is singular after a number: három jegyet, egy nagy pizzát.
- Három jegyet veszünk.We’re buying three tickets.
- Hány almát kérsz? – Hármat.How many apples would you like? – Three.
- Kék tollat kérsz? – Nem, pirosat.Would you like a blue pen? – No, a red one.
- Egy nagy pizzát eszünk.We’re eating a big pizza.
Difference from English
English replaces the noun with one: “a red one”. Hungarian puts the object ending on the adjective: pirosat.
Common mistakes
három jegyeket→ három jegyetAfter a number, the noun is singular.Pirosot.→ Pirosat.Piros takes -at.
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The plural object: almákat, könyveket#
Formation
The plural ending comes first, then the object ending with a linking vowel: -at after a back-vowel plural, -et after a front-vowel plural: alma → almák → almákat, kép → képek → képeket, virág → virágok → virágokat.
| Singular | Plural | Plural object |
|---|---|---|
| alma | almák | almákat |
| virág | virágok | virágokat |
| ház | házak | házakat |
| kép | képek | képeket |
| film | filmek | filmeket |
- Anna virágokat vesz.Anna is buying flowers.
- A gyerekek képeket rajzolnak.The children are drawing pictures.
- Szombaton filmeket nézünk.On Saturdays we watch films.
Common mistakes
almákot→ almákatAfter the plural -k, a back word takes -at.sok almákat→ sok almátAfter sok, the noun is singular.
In short
| Point | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| the object ending | -t, -ot, -et, -öt, -at | kávét, sajtot, jegyet, házat |
| what, whom, this, that | mit, kit, ezt, azt | Kit vársz? |
| a number or an adjective alone | + -t | hármat, pirosat |
| the plural object | -k + -at, -et | almákat, képeket |
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