This original dialogue takes place in a clothing shop in Szeged. Réka wants to try on a coat, asks about another size and color, checks the discount, and decides what to buy. Read the complete exchange first; the analysis then shows why Hungarian repeats case on demonstratives and uses different verb forms as items become identifiable.
The complete Hungarian dialogue
Eladó: Jó napot! Segíthetek?
Réka: Jó napot! Ezt a kabátot szeretném felpróbálni, de nem találom a méretemet.
Eladó: Milyen méretet keres?
Réka: Általában harmincnyolcasat hordok. Van ebből kék?
Eladó: Kék nincs, de ez a sötétzöld ugyanabban a méretben van.
Réka: Felpróbálhatom?
Eladó: Persze. A próbafülke jobbra van.
Néhány perc múlva:
Réka: Ez egy kicsit bő. Tudna hozni egy kisebbet?
Eladó: A harminchatosat?
Réka: Igen. Azt a bézs sálat is megnézném.
Eladó: Tessék, itt a kisebb kabát és a sál.
Réka: Ez a méret már jó. Mennyibe kerül a kabát?
Eladó: Harminckilencezer-kilencszáz forint, de ma húsz százalékkal olcsóbb. A sál tizenkétezer forint.
Réka: Akkor a kabátot elviszem, a sálat viszont nem kérem.
Eladó: Rendben. A pénztárnál tud fizetni.
Réka: Köszönöm a segítséget!
Idiomatic English translation
Sales assistant: Good afternoon! Can I help you?
Réka: Good afternoon! I'd like to try on this coat, but I can't find my size.
Sales assistant: What size are you looking for?
Réka: I usually wear a size 38. Do you have this in blue?
Sales assistant: Not in blue, but this dark-green one is available in the same size.
Réka: May I try it on?
Sales assistant: Of course. The fitting room is on the right.
A few minutes later:
Réka: This is a little loose. Could you bring a smaller one?
Sales assistant: The size 36?
Réka: Yes. I'd also like to look at that beige scarf.
Sales assistant: Here you are—the smaller coat and the scarf.
Réka: This size is right. How much is the coat?
Sales assistant: 39,900 forints, but today it's 20 percent cheaper. The scarf is 12,000 forints.
Réka: Then I'll take the coat, but I won't take the scarf.
Sales assistant: All right. You can pay at the checkout.
Réka: Thank you for your help!
The English translation supplies pronouns such as it and nouns such as one where Hungarian uses the discourse context or an adjective with noun-like endings.
Sentence-by-sentence segmentation
| Hungarian segment | Structural gloss | Natural meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ez-t a kabát-ot | this-ACC the coat-ACC | this coat |
| szeret-né-m fel-próbál-ni | like-COND-DEF.1SG on-try-INF | I would like to try on |
| méret-em-et | size-MY-ACC | my size |
| harmincnyolc-as-at | 38-SIZE-ACC | a size 38 one |
| van ez-ből kék? | is this-FROM blue | is this available in blue? |
| ugyan-abban a méret-ben | same-that-IN the size-IN | in the same size |
| fel-próbál-hat-om? | on-try-CAN-DEF.1SG | may I try it on? |
| tud-na hoz-ni egy kisebb-et? | can-COND.3SG bring-INF one smaller-ACC | could you bring a smaller one? |
| az-t a bézs sál-at | that-ACC the beige scarf-ACC | that beige scarf |
| mennyi-be kerül? | how.much-INTO cost | how much does it cost? |
| húsz százalék-kal olcsóbb | 20 percent-WITH cheaper | 20 percent cheaper |
| a kabát-ot el-visz-em | the coat-ACC away-take-DEF.1SG | I'll take the coat |
The demonstrative system behind ezt a kabátot is detailed on the demonstrative determiner page.
Decision 1: case appears twice with a demonstrative noun phrase
Hungarian marks an inflected ez/az and its definite noun with the same case. Accusative gives ezt a kabátot and azt a sálat; an English-style bare ez a kabátot leaves the demonstrative uninflected.
Ezt a kabátot szeretném felpróbálni.
I'd like to try on this coat. (polite)
Azt a bézs sálat is megnézném.
I'd also like to look at that beige scarf. (polite)
The article a remains between demonstrative and noun. Ez kabát is not the normal Hungarian equivalent of English this coat.
Decision 2: demonstrative pronouns can stand alone
When the noun is recoverable, ez and az stand alone: Ez egy kicsit bő, “This one is a little loose.” With a case, the pronoun changes shape: ebből “from/of this,” not ezből.
Van ebből kék?
Do you have this in blue?
Ez egy kicsit bő.
This one is a little loose.
In ebből, the final consonant of ez assimilates to -ből. The phrase refers to the coat model, while kék names the requested color.
Decision 3: sizes become noun-like adjectives
Hungarian builds clothing sizes with -as/-es/-os/-ös and then adds case: harmincnyolcasat, harminchatosat. These forms mean “a size 38 one” and “the size 36 one.”
Általában harmincnyolcasat hordok.
I usually wear a size 38.
A harminchatosat szeretném felpróbálni.
I'd like to try on the size 36 one. (polite)
The first is indefinite because it describes a usual size without identifying one garment. The second is definite because the article selects the known size among the offered coats.
Decision 4: colors modify or replace a noun
As modifiers, color words remain uninflected: sötétzöld kabát, bézs sál. When they replace a noun, they take the endings that a noun would take: a kéket, “the blue one.”
Kék nincs, de ez a sötétzöld ugyanabban a méretben van.
Not in blue, but this dark-green one is available in the same size.
A kéket keresem, nem a feketét.
I'm looking for the blue one, not the black one.
English often adds one. Hungarian nominalizes the adjective by context and inflection; inserting a general noun after every color sounds unnecessarily repetitive.
Decision 5: object definiteness reaches the finite modal
Szeretném is definite because its infinitive felpróbálni has definite object ezt a kabátot. The agreement appears on the finite verb, not on the infinitive.
Egy könnyű kabátot szeretnék felpróbálni.
I'd like to try on a lightweight coat. (polite)
Ezt a könnyű kabátot szeretném felpróbálni.
I'd like to try on this lightweight coat. (polite)
The contrast szeretnék/szeretném cannot be translated by different English words. It tracks the lower object's indefiniteness versus definiteness.
Decision 6: focus keeps the prefix on the infinitive
Neutral Fel szeretném próbálni ezt a kabátot allows fel- to climb before the finite modal. Réka instead begins with focused ezt a kabátot, so she says Ezt a kabátot szeretném felpróbálni. The prefix remains attached to the infinitive.
Ezt a kabátot szeretném felpróbálni, nem a hosszabbat.
It's this coat I'd like to try on, not the longer one.
Writing szeretném fel próbálni wrongly splits an infinitive whose prefix is attached in this order. Prefix separation is syntactic, not free spacing.
Decision 7: polite questions package distance in the verb
The assistant uses third-person distanced keres?, while Réka uses conditional tudna to soften a request. The subject pronoun ön is unnecessary.
Milyen méretet keres?
What size are you looking for? (distanced)
Tudna hozni egy kisebbet?
Could you bring a smaller one? (distanced/polite)
Felpróbálhatom? literally asks “may-I-try-it-on?” Definite -om refers to the already offered coat.
Decision 8: prices, percentages, and zero copula
The price can stand as a bare quantified noun phrase: A sál tizenkétezer forint. Third-person present nominal predicates have no overt van. The degree of comparison takes instrumental -kal.
A kabát ma húsz százalékkal olcsóbb.
The coat is 20 percent cheaper today.
A sál tizenkétezer forint.
The scarf costs 12,000 forints.
After numerals, forint and százalék stay singular. The number harminckilencezer-kilencszáz is hyphenated at the thousands boundary because it is above two thousand.
Decision 9: accepting one item and rejecting another
Both established items are definite: a kabátot elviszem, a sálat nem kérem. Viszont highlights the contrast between the two decisions.
Akkor a kabátot elviszem, a sálat viszont nem kérem.
Then I'll take the coat, but I won't take the scarf.
Neutral affirmative elviszem keeps its prefix attached. Negative nem kérem has no prefix to move. An explicit én would add contrast but is not needed.
Common Mistakes
❌ Ez a szürke kabátot szeretném felpróbálni.
Incorrect case agreement: the demonstrative must also be accusative.
✅ Ezt a szürke kabátot szeretném felpróbálni.
I'd like to try on this gray coat.
❌ Egy harmincnyolcasat kabátot keresek.
Incorrect size syntax: use the size adjectivally or let it replace the noun.
✅ Harmincnyolcas kabátot keresek.
I'm looking for a size 38 coat.
❌ Azt a sálat szeretnék megnézni.
Incorrect indefinite modal agreement with a definite object.
✅ Azt a sálat szeretném megnézni.
I'd like to look at that scarf.
❌ Ez az öv kilencezer forint van.
Incorrect overt copula in a third-person present price predicate.
✅ Ez az öv kilencezer forint.
This belt costs 9,000 forints.
Key Takeaways
- Demonstrative and noun carry matching case: ezt a kabátot, azzal a sállal.
- Size adjectives can modify a garment or stand alone with noun-like endings.
- Colors are uninflected as modifiers but inflect when they replace a noun.
- Definite objects control the finite modal across an infinitive.
- Focus determines whether a prefix climbs or stays attached to the infinitive.
- Prices use quantified singular nouns and no third-person present copula.
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