Language/Hungarian/Grammar/Descriptive-Adjectives

Hungarian → Grammar → 0 to A1 Course → Adjectives and Adverbs → Descriptive Adjectives

As a Hungarian language teacher with over 20 years of teaching experience, I believe that adjectives are essential for any learner of Hungarian. In this lesson, we will focus on descriptive adjectives, which are used to describe the characteristics of nouns. I will teach you the most common adjectives, their usage, and pronunciation, and provide examples to help you practice using them in sentences.

Descriptive Adjectives

Adjectives are used to describe the characteristics of nouns. In the Hungarian language, adjectives usually come before the noun they describe.

For example:

• "Nagy kutya" (big dog)
• "Kicsi ház" (small house)
• "Szép virág" (beautiful flower)

Here are some of the most common Hungarian adjectives:

Hungarian	Pronunciation	English
nagy	[nɒɟ]	big
kicsi	[kit͡ʃi]	small
jó	[joː]	good
rossz	[roʒ]	bad
szép	[seep]	beautiful
csúnya	[t͡ʃuːɲɒ]	ugly
magas	[mɒɡɒʃ]	tall
alacsony	[ɒlɒt͡ʃonj]	short
hosszú	[hoʃ.uː]	long
rövid	[røvid]	short

Using Adjectives in Sentences

Here are some examples of how to use adjectives in sentences:

• "Az autó nagy." (The car is big.)
• "A kutya kicsi." (The dog is small.)
• "Az időjárás jó." (The weather is good.)
• "A leves rossz." (The soup is bad.)
• "Az új hajó szép." (The new boat is beautiful.)
• "A régi épület csúnya." (The old building is ugly.)
• "A kosaras nagyon magas." (The basketball player is very tall.)
• "A gyerek alacsony." (The child is short.)
• "A pók hosszú lábak." (The spider has long legs.)
• "Az ujjam rövid." (My finger is short.)

Comparative and Superlative Forms of Adjectives

In Hungarian, comparative and superlative forms of adjectives are formed by adding suffixes. Here are the most common suffixes for comparative and superlative forms of adjectives:

• Comparative form: -bb (e.g., nagyobb - bigger, kisebb - smaller)
• Superlative form: -leg- (e.g., legszebb - most beautiful, legjobb - best)

Here are some examples:

• Nagy - nagyobb - legnagyobb (big - bigger - biggest)
• Kicsi - kisebb - legkisebb (small - smaller - smallest)
• Jó - jobb - legjobb (good - better - best)
• Rossz - rosszabb - legrosszabb (bad - worse - worst)
• Szép - szebb - legszebb (beautiful - more beautiful - most beautiful)
• Csúnya - csúnyább - legszebb (ugly - uglier - ugliest)
• Magas - magasabb - legmagasabb (tall - taller - tallest)
• Alacsony - alacsonyabb - legalacsonyabb (short - shorter - shortest)
• Hosszú - hosszabb - leghosszabb (long - longer - longest)
• Rövid - rövidebb - legrövidebb (short - shorter - shortest)

Here are some examples of sentences using comparative and superlative forms of adjectives:

• "Az autó nagyobb, mint a mező." (The car is bigger than the field.)
• "Az én kutyám a legszebb." (My dog is the most beautiful.)
• "A kávé rosszabb, mint a tea." (The coffee is worse than the tea.)
• "Az Óperenciás tengeren túl mindenki ismeri a legszebb lányt." (Beyond the ocean, everyone knows the most beautiful girl.)

Exceptions

As with every rule, there are exceptions in Hungarian. Some common adjectives have irregular comparative and superlative forms. Here are some examples:

• jó - jobb - legjobb (good - better - best)
• rossz - rosszabb - legrosszabb (bad - worse - worst)
• sok - több - legtöbb (many - more - most)
• kevés - kevesebb - legkevesebb (few - fewer - fewest)
• kicsi - kisebb - legkisebb (small - smaller - smallest)
• nagy - nagyobb - legnagyobb (big - bigger - biggest)

Practice

Now, it's time to practice using adjectives in sentences. Choose an object in your room or outside, and describe it using adjectives. Here are some examples:

• "Az asztal kicsi és fehér." (The table is small and white.)
• "Az ég kék és szép." (The sky is blue and beautiful.)
• "A fa nagy és zöld." (The tree is big and green.)
• "A macska puha és kicsi." (The cat is soft and small.)

Table of Contents - Hungarian Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

  ---

Greetings and Introductions

• Basic Greetings
• Introducing Yourself

  ---

Pronouns and Verb Conjugation

• Personal Pronouns
• Present Tense Verb Conjugation

  ---

Numbers and Time

• Numbers 1-100
• Telling Time

  ---

Questions and Negation

• Asking Questions
• Negation

  ---

Family and Relationships

• Family Members
• Relationships

  ---

Adjectives and Adverbs

• Descriptive Adjectives
• Adverbs of Time and Frequency

  ---

Food and Dining

• Common Foods and Drinks
• Ordering at a Restaurant

  ---

Prepositions and Location

• Common Prepositions
• Expressing Location

  ---

Travel and Transportation

• Modes of Transportation
• Asking for Directions

  ---

Hungarian Customs and Traditions

• Holidays and Celebrations
• Traditional Foods

  ---

Possessive Pronouns and Plurals

• Possessive Pronouns
• Forming Plurals

  ---

Hobbies and Leisure Activities

• Common Hobbies
• Discussing Interests

  ---

Hungarian History and Geography

• Important Historical Events
• Geography of Hungary

Related Lessons

• Asking Questions
• Plural
• Personal Pronouns
• Negation
• 0 to A1 Course
• Pronunciation and accentuation
• Adjectives
• Possessor
• Common Prepositions
• Adjectives and adverbs

Sources

• Adjectives in Hungarian [HungarianReference.com > Grammar ...
• Hungarian grammar - Wikipedia
• The Basics of Hungarian Sentence Structure & Word Order