Essive-modal -ul/-ül creates adverbial expressions of language or manner and survives in a set of role, state, and discourse expressions: magyarul “in Hungarian,” rosszul “badly,” vendégül lát “host,” például “for example.” The language-name pattern is productive; the wider pattern is lexically restricted. English in, as, and -ly therefore do not license a new -ul/-ül form automatically. This page concentrates on shape and productivity; the companion usage and contrast pages develop contextual choices.
Two harmonic forms
Back-harmonic bases take -ul; front-harmonic bases take -ül. Rounded and unrounded front vowels share -ül, so there is no third rounded allomorph.
| Base | Essive-modal | Segmentation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| magyar | magyarul | magyar-ul | in Hungarian |
| angol | angolul | angol-ul | in English |
| német | németül | német-ül | in German |
| svéd | svédül | svéd-ül | in Swedish |
| francia | franciául | franciá-ul | in French |
| egyszerű | egyszerűen | not -ül | simply |
The last row is a deliberate limit: front-rounded spelling does not mean every adjective selects -ül. General adjective-to-adverb formation often uses -an/-en; egyszerűen is “simply,” while egyszerűül is not the standard adverb. Suffix choice is partly lexical.
Beszélsz magyarul?
Do you speak Hungarian?
A levelet angolul és németül is elküldtük.
We sent the letter in both English and German.
A tárlatvezetés franciául is elérhető.
The guided tour is also available in French.
Final short a/e lengthen before vowel-initial -ul/-ül, as francia → franciául shows. Other bases attach directly; there is no consonant assimilation.
Language expressions are the productive core
Language names built from ethnic/language adjectives regularly take -ul/-ül to answer milyen nyelven? “in what language?” or hogyan? “how?”
A recepciós folyékonyan beszél spanyolul.
The receptionist speaks Spanish fluently.
Hogy mondják ezt olaszul?
How do you say this in Italian?
A nevét japánul és magyarul is leírta.
He/She wrote the name in both Japanese and Hungarian.
The language form is adverbial and takes no article: magyarul beszél, not a magyarul beszél. To refer to the language as a noun, use a magyar nyelv or contextually a magyar: A magyar nehéz nyelv “Hungarian is a difficult language.”
Some language names have stem details that should be learned from actual forms: francia → franciául, kínai → kínaiul, orosz → oroszul. Vowel harmony remains regular once the base is known.
Lexical manner adverbs
A number of very frequent adverbs end in -ul/-ül, but speakers do not freely extend the pattern to every adjective.
| Form | Meaning | Status |
|---|---|---|
| rosszul | badly / unwell | common lexical adverb |
| jól | well | irregular contracted form |
| egyedül | alone | common lexical adverb |
| véletlenül | accidentally | common lexical adverb |
| végül | finally | discourse/temporal adverb |
| rendkívül | extremely | degree adverb |
Ma rosszul érzem magam, ezért otthon maradok.
I feel unwell today, so I'm staying home.
Véletlenül bezártam a kulcsot az autóba.
I accidentally locked the key in the car.
Végül mindenki elfogadta a javaslatot.
In the end, everyone accepted the proposal.
Jól is historically related to this family but must be learned as the modern form; jóul is wrong. For ordinary manner adjectives, use the established adverb: gyorsan “quickly,” szépen “beautifully/nicely,” csendesen “quietly.” Note that gyorsul is a verb meaning “accelerate,” not “quickly.”
Lexical roles and states
Older role/state uses survive in productive-looking but lexically fixed expressions. Learn the whole phrase rather than replacing -ként freely.
| Expression | Meaning | Register |
|---|---|---|
| vendégül lát | host / receive as a guest | neutral |
| feleségül vesz | marry / take as wife | neutral |
| segítségül hív | call on for help | neutral-formal |
| tanúul hív | call as a witness | formal |
| rabul ejt | capture / take prisoner | literary-formal |
A hétvégén vendégül látjuk a barátainkat.
We're hosting our friends this weekend.
A védelem tanúul hívta az egyik szomszédot.
The defense called one of the neighbors as a witness.
A katonákat rabul ejtették.
The soldiers were taken prisoner.
Tanúul hív is characteristic of legal or elevated language (formal); ordinary role description is tanúként vallott “gave evidence as a witness.” Rabul ejt is frequent in historical narrative and figurative prose (literary). The forms are current but register-sensitive.
Discourse and symbolic-purpose expressions
Several nouns form conventional adverbials that frame an utterance or action: például “for example,” búcsúzóul “by way of farewell,” emlékül “as a keepsake,” ajándékul “as a gift” (literary/formal).
Például holnap délután is ráérek.
For example, I'm free tomorrow afternoon too.
Búcsúzóul adott nekem egy régi fényképet.
As a parting gesture, he/she gave me an old photograph.
Compare példaként említette Budapestet “mentioned Budapest as an example.” Például is a sentence-organizing adverb; példaként marks a noun phrase's assigned role.
Role -ként versus modal -ul/-ül
Productive -ként normally marks an ordinary capacity:
A tárgyaláson tolmácsként dolgozott.
He/She worked as an interpreter at the hearing.
Invented tolmácsul dolgozott is not standard. By contrast, magyarul dolgozott would mean the work was conducted in Hungarian, not that the person worked “as a Hungarian.”
Magyarként büszke erre a hagyományra, és magyarul mesél róla.
As a Hungarian, he/she is proud of this tradition and talks about it in Hungarian.
This single sentence distinguishes identity/capacity magyarként from language/manner magyarul.
Number, possession, and limited inflection
Unlike a broadly inflecting local case, essive-modal forms are adverbial and generally do not build productive plural paradigms. Language magyarul does not become magyarokul to mean “in Hungarians.” Lexical expressions may contain possessed bases in elevated language—segítségemül “as my help” (literary)—but these are not a beginner-level productive series.
Use -ként when number or possession belongs to a role noun: tanárokként “as teachers,” barátomként “as my friend.” This morphological restriction is part of why -ul/-ül must not be treated as a general equivalent of English as.
Segmentation practice
- magyarul → magyar-ul: back-harmonic language form.
- németül → német-ül: front-harmonic language form.
- franciául → franciá-ul: final a lengthens.
- rosszul → rossz-ul: lexical manner adverb.
- vendégül → vendég-ül: fixed expression vendégül lát.
- például → példá-ul: conventional discourse adverb; compare példa-ként.
Common Mistakes
❌ Magyarként beszélek a kollégáimmal.
Wrong for the intended language meaning — this says ‘as a Hungarian,’ not ‘in Hungarian.’
✅ Magyarul beszélek a kollégáimmal.
I speak Hungarian with my colleagues.
❌ Tolmácsul dolgozik a bíróságon.
Incorrect — ordinary professional capacity takes productive -ként, not lexical -ul/-ül.
✅ Tolmácsként dolgozik a bíróságon.
He/She works as an interpreter at the court.
❌ Gyorsul futott haza.
Incorrect — gyorsul is a verb ‘accelerate,’ not the manner adverb ‘quickly.’
✅ Gyorsan futott haza.
He/She ran home quickly.
❌ Az útmutató franciaül is elérhető.
Incorrect harmony — francia is back-harmonic and final a lengthens before -ul.
✅ Az útmutató franciául is elérhető.
The guide is also available in French.
Key Takeaways
- Back-harmonic bases take -ul; front-harmonic bases take -ül.
- Language adverbs are the productive core: magyarul, németül, franciául.
- General manner formation is lexical: compare rosszul/jól with gyorsan/szépen.
- Role/state forms such as vendégül lát and tanúul hív must be learned as whole expressions.
- Productive ordinary roles use -ként; -ul/-ül does not freely inflect for plural and possession.
- English in, as, and -ly do not determine the Hungarian suffix.
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Start learning Hungarian →Related Topics
- The Essive-Modal -ul/-ül: Meanings and UsageB1 — Use Hungarian -ul/-ül in language names, established manner adverbs, and lexicalized role or state expressions.
- The Essive-Modal -ul/-ül: Contrasts and Learner TrapsB2 — Distinguish Hungarian -ul/-ül from -an/-en adverbs, -ként roles, -vá/-vé results, and other language expressions.
- The Essive-Formal -ként: Forms and Core PatternB1 — Form Hungarian -ként expressions for roles, capacities, classification, examples, and life-stage perspectives without confusing state with change of state.
- Manner Adverbs with -an/-en and -ul/-ül: Forms and Core PatternA2 — Form Hungarian manner and language adverbs while recognizing stem changes, lexical suffix choice, and irregular jól and rosszul.
- Back and Front Vowel Harmony: Forms and Core PatternA1 — Choose the back or front form of common Hungarian suffixes by recognizing a stem's vowel class and the main neutral-vowel exceptions.