Marad means “remain” or “stay.” It can locate someone (otthon marad “stay at home”), describe a continuing state (nyugodt marad “remain calm”), or say that something is left (maradt még leves “there is still some soup left”). It is fundamentally intransitive, so it has no ordinary definite-object conjugation.
English stay and remain do not show whether the complement is a location, a resulting state, or a time span. Hungarian does: locations carry the locally appropriate case, an adjective can be an unmarked result predicate, and duration may appear with -ig or as an accusative measure. A reliable reference must therefore give more than the gloss “stay.”
For the broader spatial opposition behind a szobában marad, see the inessive-case usage guide. This page focuses on the forms and complement patterns of marad itself.
Principal parts and nonfinite forms
| Function | Form | Register or note |
|---|---|---|
| Dictionary / present 3sg | marad | neutral |
| Past 3sg | maradt | neutral |
| Infinitive | maradni | neutral |
| Present participle | maradó | neutral: “remaining/staying” |
| Past participle | maradt | neutral: “left over/remaining” |
| Future participle | maradandó | lexicalized adjective “lasting/enduring” |
| Adverbial participle | maradva | possible but uncommon; finite clauses are often more natural |
A megmaradt zöldségekből másnap levest főztünk.
The next day we made soup from the vegetables that were left over.
A felfedezés maradandó hatást gyakorolt az orvostudományra.
The discovery had a lasting impact on medicine. (formal)
The personal infinitive is maradnom, maradnod, maradnia, maradnunk, maradnotok, maradniuk. It is frequent after impersonal necessity: Tovább kell maradnom “I have to stay longer.” An overt infinitival subject takes dative case: Péternek itt kell maradnia.
Present, past, and conditional
Because marad does not select a direct object, one paradigm serves normal finite uses. Do not build forms such as maradom or maradja. Even when an accusative duration appears, it measures time rather than functioning as an object.
| Person | Present | Past | Conditional |
|---|---|---|---|
| én | maradok | maradtam | maradnék |
| te | maradsz | maradtál | maradnál |
| ő / Ön | marad | maradt | maradna |
| mi | maradunk | maradtunk | maradnánk |
| ti | maradtok | maradtatok | maradnátok |
| ők / Önök | maradnak | maradtak | maradnának |
Ma itthon maradok, mert várom a szerelőt.
I’m staying home today because I’m expecting the repair technician.
A vendégek éjfélig maradtak, és segítettek elpakolni.
The guests stayed until midnight and helped tidy up.
Szívesen maradnék még egy napot, ha lenne szabad szobájuk.
I’d gladly stay one more day if you had a room available.
In the last example egy napot is an accusative measure of duration. Even a definite duration leaves the verb intransitive: Az egész hetet vidéken maradsz? “Are you staying in the countryside all week?”, never object-marked *maradod. The absence of object conjugation follows from valency, not merely from the visible case ending.
Imperative–subjunctive
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| én | maradjak |
| te | maradj / maradjál |
| ő / Ön | maradjon |
| mi | maradjunk |
| ti | maradjatok |
| ők / Önök | maradjanak |
These forms make commands, wishes, and subordinate subjunctives. Since marad is intransitive, there is no indefinite–definite contrast in this table.
Maradj itt egy percre, mindjárt visszajövök!
Stay here for a minute; I’ll be right back!
Azt szeretnénk, hogy a rendelő hétvégén is nyitva maradjon.
We would like the clinic to remain open at weekends too.
Maradjunk az eredeti tervnél, mert azt már mindenki jóváhagyta!
Let’s stick to the original plan because everyone has already approved it!
Locations, states, and choices
A location takes the same case it would take with van: a szobában marad “stay in the room,” Budapesten marad “stay in Budapest,” az asztalnál marad “remain at the table.” The choice among -ban/-ben, -on/-en/-ön, and -nál/-nél belongs to the noun’s spatial construal, not to a special requirement of marad.
A csomag a portán marad, amíg érte nem jön valaki.
The parcel will remain at reception until someone comes for it.
A gyerekek a sekély vízben maradtak, amíg erős volt a szél.
The children stayed in the shallow water while the wind was strong.
An adjective or adverbial state can be an unmarked result predicate: csendes marad, életben marad, egyedül marad. A role or identity may likewise remain in the nominative: barátok maradtunk “we remained friends.” Do not insert a Hungarian equivalent of English as.
A váratlan kritika ellenére a szóvivő nyugodt maradt.
Despite the unexpected criticism, the spokesperson remained calm.
Bár más városba költöztünk, közeli barátok maradtunk.
Although we moved to another city, we remained close friends.
The frame valaminél marad means “stick with/retain a choice”: maradok a teánál “I’ll stick with tea.” Here -nál/-nél marks the option maintained, not a literal physical location.
Prefixes and information structure
Prefixes make frequent lexical extensions. Megmarad means survive, be preserved, or remain available. Elmarad can mean be cancelled, fail to happen, fall short, or lag. Kimarad means be omitted or miss participation; lemarad valamiről means miss something or fall behind and selects -ról/-ről.
A régi házból csak a kőfalak maradtak meg.
Only the stone walls of the old house survived.
A szabadtéri előadás az eső miatt elmarad.
The outdoor performance is cancelled because of the rain.
Ha nem indulunk el most, lemaradunk az utolsó vonatról.
If we don’t leave now, we’ll miss the last train.
In a neutral affirmative clause, the prefix normally precedes the verb. Negation and preverbal focus separate it: nem marad el, AZ ESŐ MIATT marad el. The prefix does not disappear; it moves after the finite verb.
A holnapi foglalkozás nem marad el, csak másik teremben tartjuk.
Tomorrow’s session is not cancelled; we are simply holding it in another room.
TECHNIKAI HIBA MIATT maradt el az élő közvetítés.
The live broadcast was cancelled BECAUSE OF A TECHNICAL FAULT.
The causative-related verb marasztal
Marasztal valakit means “urge, invite, or cause someone to stay.” It is historically and lexically connected with marad, but modern Hungarian does not form a productive causative maradtat. Treat marasztal as a separate transitive verb with an accusative person, and therefore with its own object-conjugation contrast.
A házigazdák vacsorára marasztaltak bennünket.
Our hosts persuaded us to stay for dinner.
Hiába marasztaltam a vendégeket, el kellett érniük az utolsó buszt.
Although I urged the guests to stay, they had to catch the last bus.
Prefixed elmarasztal is lexicalized. It means “condemn, find at fault, rule against,” especially in (formal) and legal language; it does not mean simply “make someone remain away.”
A bíróság elmarasztalta a vállalatot, és kártérítés megfizetésére kötelezte.
The court found against the company and ordered it to pay damages. (formal)
Common Mistakes
❌ Maradom még két órát az irodában.
Incorrect — marad is intransitive and has no definite form maradom.
✅ Még két órát maradok az irodában, hogy befejezzem a jelentést.
I’m staying at the office for two more hours to finish the report.
❌ Maradunk mint barátok a szakítás után.
Incorrect transfer from English as; Hungarian uses an unmarked predicate.
✅ A szakítás után is barátok maradunk.
We will remain friends even after the breakup.
❌ Nem elmarad a találkozó, csak később kezdődik.
Incorrect neutral prefix order after negation.
✅ Nem marad el a találkozó, csak később kezdődik.
The meeting is not cancelled; it is merely starting later.
❌ Lemaradtam az utolsó buszt.
Incorrect — lemarad selects a delative complement, not an accusative object.
✅ Lemaradtam az utolsó buszról, ezért taxit hívtam.
I missed the last bus, so I called a taxi.
Key Takeaways
- Marad is intransitive and has no ordinary definite-object paradigm.
- Locations take their normal local cases; states and roles can be unmarked predicates.
- An accusative phrase such as egy hetet measures duration and is not a direct object.
- Prefixes create distinct meanings and separate under negation or focus: elmarad, but nem marad el.
- Use the separate transitive verb marasztal valakit for causing or urging someone to stay.
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