The present

Formation

The stem of a regular verb is its third person singular, the form under which it is listed: tanul, beszél, ül. The third person singular has no ending; the other persons add an ending to the stem, chosen by vowel harmony: one set for back-vowel verbs, one for front unrounded verbs, and one for verbs whose last vowel is front rounded (ö, ő, ü, ű).

Use

Hungarian has one present for what is happening now and for what happens regularly: Most tanulok (“I’m studying now”), Minden nap tanulok (“I study every day”). A word of time shows which is meant. With a word such as holnap (tomorrow), the present also speaks of the future: Holnap dolgozom. The pronoun is expressed only for contrast: Én főzök, te pihensz.

Formation

A stem that ends in s, sz or z takes -ol, -el or -öl for te instead of -sz, so that two hissing sounds do not meet: olvas → olvasol, néz → nézel, főz → főzöl. The other persons have the regular endings: olvasok, olvas, olvasunk, olvastok, olvasnak.

Formation

The -ik verbs end in -ik in the third person singular, their dictionary form: lakik (live), dolgozik (work), úszik (swim), utazik (travel), reggelizik (have breakfast). The stem is the form without -ik: lak-, dolgoz-. In the first person singular the standard ending is -m with a linking vowel, -om, -em or -öm: lakom, dolgozom, reggelizem; casual speech often has the regular -ok, -ek (dolgozok). The other persons have the regular endings, -ol, -el, -öl for te after s, sz, z included: laksz, but dolgozol.

Formation

A stem that ends in two consonants or in -ít takes a linking vowel before the endings of te, ti and ők: segít → segítesz, segítetek, segítenek. The vowel follows vowel harmony. The endings of én and mi begin with a vowel and need none: segítek, segítünk. Verbs of this kind are segít (help), tanít (teach), takarít (clean), ért (understand), küld (send) and mond (say).

Use

A stem with a long vowel and a single consonant, other than -ít, has no linking vowel: vár → vársz, vártok, várnak; lát → látsz, láttok, látnak.

Formation

The verbs megy (go) and jön (come) are irregular. Megy has megyek, megy, megyünk, and mész, mentek, mennek for te, ti, ők. Jön has jövök, jövünk for én and mi, jössz, jöttök for te and ti, and jön, jönnek for ő and ők.

Use

Megy says a movement away from the speaker or towards another place; jön a movement towards the speaker or the person spoken to. The answer to a call is Jövök! (“Coming!”). With a place, the two verbs take the endings of Going into and onto: -ba, -be, -ra, -re and Coming from: -ból, -ből, -ról, -ről.

Formation

Eszik (eat) and iszik (drink) are -ik verbs whose stem ends in sz: the first person singular is eszem, iszom (eszek, iszok are casual speech, not the standard), te takes -el, -ol: eszel, iszol. Vesz (buy) and visz (take, carry) are not -ik verbs: veszek, viszek, and veszel, viszel for te. The two pairs differ in one vowel only: eszik, iszik; vesz, visz.