Fog has two central uses. As a lexical transitive verb, it means “grasp, hold, catch”: fogom a táskát “I am holding the bag.” As an auxiliary followed by an infinitive, it marks future time: indulni fogok “I will leave.” The same present endings serve both uses, including the indefinite–definite object contrast.
That shared morphology has an important consequence. In el fogom olvasni a könyvet, the finite auxiliary fogom is definite because a könyvet, the object of olvasni, is definite. English will never changes for its object, so English speakers must learn to look through the infinitive and choose the Hungarian auxiliary ending from the whole construction.
For the wider choice between the present tense and explicit future marking, see the future forms overview. This page concentrates on the forms and valency of fog itself.
Principal parts and nonfinite forms
The lexical verb has a regular -ni infinitive and productive participles. The future auxiliary, by contrast, is normally used only in its present indicative paradigm; forms such as fogtam and fogjak are ordinarily interpreted as forms of lexical “grasp/catch,” not as past or imperative future auxiliaries.
| Function | Form | Register or note |
|---|---|---|
| Dictionary / present 3sg | fog | neutral |
| Past 3sg | fogott | neutral, lexical verb |
| Infinitive | fogni | neutral, lexical verb |
| Present participle | fogó | neutral: “grasping/catching” |
| Past participle | fogott | neutral; often in compounds or with a prefix |
| Future participle | fogandó | (formal), rare outside fixed technical language |
| Adverbial participle | fogva | neutral, especially “holding/held by” |
A kisfiú erősen fogja az apja kezét a tömegben.
The little boy is holding his father’s hand tightly in the crowd.
Kézen fogva sétáltak végig a rakparton.
They walked along the embankment holding hands.
The personal infinitive is fognom, fognod, fognia, fognunk, fognotok, fogniuk. It belongs to lexical fog: Erősen kell fognod a kötelet “You must hold the rope tightly.” It does not create a construction meaning “for me to will.”
Present indicative: lexical and auxiliary
| Person | Indefinite | Definite |
|---|---|---|
| én | fogok | fogom |
| te | fogsz | fogod |
| ő / Ön | fog | fogja |
| mi | fogunk | fogjuk |
| ti | fogtok | fogjátok |
| ők / Önök | fognak | fogják |
Lexically, use an indefinite form with no object or an indefinite object, and a definite form with an identified object. The same choice appears in the future construction. Fogok olvasni egy tanulmányt contains indefinite egy tanulmányt; el fogom olvasni a tanulmányt contains definite a tanulmányt.
Fogok neked egy taxit a pályaudvar előtt.
I’ll hail you a taxi in front of the station.
Fogod a létrát, amíg felmászom?
Will you hold the ladder while I climb up?
Este fogok írni egy rövid összefoglalót.
I’ll write a short summary this evening.
Este meg fogom írni az összefoglalót.
I’ll write and finish the summary this evening.
Past and conditional of lexical fog
The past and conditional tables below belong to lexical fog. Hungarian normally does not build a “past future” by using fogtam + infinitive. Depending on meaning, it uses a past-tense main verb, reported-speech framing, or a conditional construction.
| Person | Past indefinite | Past definite | Conditional indefinite | Conditional definite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| én | fogtam | fogtam | fognék | fognám |
| te | fogtál | fogtad | fognál | fognád |
| ő / Ön | fogott | fogta | fogna | fogná |
| mi | fogtunk | fogtuk | fognánk | fognánk |
| ti | fogtatok | fogtátok | fognátok | fognátok |
| ők / Önök | fogtak | fogták | fognának | fognák |
A kapus könnyedén fogta a büntetőt.
The goalkeeper saved the penalty easily.
Megfognám a forró edényt, ha lenne kesztyűm.
I would pick up the hot dish if I had an oven glove.
Notice the identical first-person singular past fogtam in both conjugations. Context and the object reveal the structure: fogtam egy halat “I caught a fish,” but megfogtam a halat “I caught/held the particular fish.”
Imperative–subjunctive
| Person | Indefinite | Definite |
|---|---|---|
| én | fogjak | fogjam |
| te | fogj / fogjál | fogd / fogjad |
| ő / Ön | fogjon | fogja |
| mi | fogjunk | fogjuk |
| ti | fogjatok | fogjátok |
| ők / Önök | fogjanak | fogják |
Fogj meg egy széket! has an indefinite object, whereas Fogd meg ezt a széket! has a definite demonstrative object. These are commands to grasp or take something, never commands to form a future.
Fogd meg a doboz alját, mert kiszakadhat!
Hold the bottom of the box because it might tear!
Azt szeretném, hogy mindenki fogjon egy tiszta poharat.
I’d like everyone to take a clean glass.
Future meaning and word order
Hungarian often uses the simple present with a future-time expression: Holnap találkozunk “We’re meeting tomorrow.” Fog + infinitive is useful for explicit prediction, intention, or a neutral statement about what will happen. It is not obligatory whenever English has will.
With an unprefixed infinitive, both dolgozni fogok and fogok dolgozni are possible; the first is a common neutral arrangement. With a prefixed perfective verb in a neutral future statement, the prefix commonly stands before fog, separated from its infinitive: el fogom olvasni. This is one construction and must not be written as one word.
A meteorológusok szerint hajnalban havazni fog.
According to the meteorologists, it will snow at dawn.
A hétvégén be fogjuk fejezni a festést.
We will finish the painting this weekend.
Negation precedes the auxiliary, and the verbal prefix normally remains attached to the infinitive: nem fogjuk befejezni. A focused constituent also occupies the preverbal focus position: PÉNTEKEN fogjuk befejezni, with the prefix again on the infinitive. Compare lexical megfog: ordinary negation separates its prefix, nem fogta meg.
Ma már nem fogom felhívni az ügyfélszolgálatot.
I’m not going to call customer service anymore today.
PÉNTEKEN fogjuk befejezni a festést, nem csütörtökön.
We’ll finish the painting ON FRIDAY, not Thursday.
A gyerek nem fogta meg jól a vizes labdát, ezért elejtette.
The child did not catch the wet ball properly, so he dropped it.
Lexical frames and common prefixed verbs
Bare fog takes an accusative object. Megfog means take hold of, catch, or physically affect; elfog can mean capture or intercept; felfog means catch physically or comprehend; hozzáfog valamihez means get down to something and requires -hoz/-hez/-höz. These are lexicalized meanings, not predictable translations of English hold.
A rendőrök hajnalban elfogták a gyanúsítottat.
The police arrested the suspect at dawn.
Elsőre nem fogtam fel, miért változott meg a menetrend.
At first I didn’t grasp why the timetable had changed.
Ebéd után rögtön hozzáfogunk a leltárhoz.
Right after lunch we’ll get down to the inventory.
Common Mistakes
❌ Holnap elfogom olvasni a könyvet.
Incorrect spelling — the prefix of the infinitive cannot be joined to fog.
✅ Holnap el fogom olvasni a könyvet.
I’ll read the book tomorrow.
❌ El fogok olvasni a jelentést.
Incorrect — the definite object requires definite fogom.
✅ El fogom olvasni a jelentést még az értekezlet előtt.
I’ll read the report before the meeting.
❌ Nem el fogom küldeni ma a számlát.
Incorrect neutral negation and prefix order.
✅ Ma nem fogom elküldeni a számlát.
I’m not going to send the invoice today.
❌ Hozzáfogtam a javítást.
Incorrect — hozzáfog requires a -hoz/-hez/-höz complement.
✅ Hozzáfogtam a kerékpár javításához.
I got down to repairing the bicycle.
Key Takeaways
- Lexical fog means grasp, hold, or catch and has full indefinite and definite paradigms.
- Present fog + infinitive is the future auxiliary construction; its ending reflects the infinitive’s object.
- Neutral prefixed futures use el fogom olvasni, while negation gives nem fogom elolvasni.
- Past, conditional, imperative, infinitive, and participial forms normally belong to lexical fog, not to the future auxiliary.
- Learn prefixed verbs with their valency: megfog valamit, elfog valakit, felfog valamit, hozzáfog valamihez.
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