Questions & Answers about A tempó nagyon gyors.
Why does a mean the here, not a?
In Hungarian, a and az are the definite articles, so they mean the.
- a tempó = the tempo / the pace
- egy tempó would mean a tempo / a pace
Hungarian has two forms of the definite article:
- a before most consonant sounds
- az before vowel sounds
So here, tempó starts with a consonant, so it takes a.
Why is there no word for is in the sentence?
In Hungarian, the verb to be is often left out in the present tense, third person.
So:
- A tempó nagyon gyors. = The pace is very fast.
There is no written is, but the meaning is still complete and natural.
This happens with sentences like:
- A ház nagy. = The house is big.
- A leves forró. = The soup is hot.
But in other persons, Hungarian does use the verb:
- Gyors vagyok. = I am fast.
- Gyors vagy. = You are fast.
What does nagyon mean, and where does it go?