Óvatosak vagyunk: vízálló kabátban beszállunk, majd a kikötőnél kiszállunk.

Hungarian usually leaves out subject pronouns when the verb ending already shows the person and number.

Here, vagyunk, beszállunk, and kiszállunk all end in -unk/-ünk, which tells you the subject is we.

So:

• vagyunk = we are
• beszállunk = we board / we get in
• kiszállunk = we get out / we get off

You could add mi for emphasis, but it is not necessary:

• Mi óvatosak vagyunk = We are careful with extra emphasis on we

Because óvatosak is a predicate adjective describing a plural subject.

In Hungarian, when an adjective stands as the complement of to be and the subject is plural, the adjective usually takes the plural ending -k:

• óvatos vagyok = I am careful
• óvatos vagy = you are careful
• óvatosak vagyunk = we are careful

This is different from adjectives used directly before a noun. There, Hungarian usually does not make the adjective plural:

• óvatos emberek = careful people
• not óvatosak emberek

So:

• óvatosak vagyunk = we are careful
• óvatos emberek vagyunk = we are careful people

Vagyunk is the 1st person plural present tense form of lenni, the verb to be.

So:

• vagyok = I am
• vagy = you are
• van = he/she/it is
• vagyunk = we are

A learner often expects van, because it is a very common form, but van only means is. Since the subject here is we, Hungarian uses vagyunk.

The key part is the ending -ban, which means in.

• kabát = coat / jacket
• kabátban = in a coat / wearing a coat

With clothing, Hungarian often uses -ban/-ben where English would naturally say wearing:

• kabátban van = he/she is wearing a coat
• kalapban van = he/she is wearing a hat

So vízálló kabátban beszállunk means something like:

• we board wearing a waterproof coat
• or more literally, we board in a waterproof coat

Also, vízálló means waterproof, and it does not change form here.

Hungarian often omits the article with an indefinite noun in this kind of adverbial phrase.

So vízálló kabátban is a natural way to say something like:

• in waterproof coat
• wearing a waterproof coat
• in waterproof outerwear

If you said egy vízálló kabátban, that would sound more like you are specifically highlighting one coat. The version without egy is more general and natural here.

This is a very natural question for English speakers.

Hungarian can use a bare singular noun in a general or distributive sense, especially in expressions about clothing or manner. So vízálló kabátban does not necessarily mean that all of us are somehow in one single coat. It can simply describe the way we are dressed.

In English, you might naturally translate it as:

• wearing waterproof coats
• or in waterproof jackets

If you wanted to make the plural very explicit in Hungarian, you could say vízálló kabátokban. But the singular version can still sound natural when the emphasis is on the situation or manner, not on the number of coats.

Both verbs are built from száll, with different prefixes:

• be- = in / into
• ki- = out
• száll = part of several motion verbs related to boarding, getting in, getting off, etc.

So:

• beszállunk = we get in / we board
• kiszállunk = we get out / we get off / we disembark

The exact English translation depends on the vehicle or context:

• for a car: get in / get out
• for a bus, train, or boat: board / get off
• for a ship or boat: board / disembark

The Hungarian prefixes are very important, because they change the direction of the action.

Because -nál/-nél means at / by / near.

So:

• kikötő = harbor / port
• a kikötőnél = at the harbor / by the harbor

Compare:

• a kikötőben = in the harbor
• a kikötőbe = into the harbor / to the harbor
• a kikötőnél = at the harbor

So the sentence is locating the point where the action happens: we get off at the harbor.

The article a is there because it refers to a specific harbor.

Majd here means then, after that, or and then.

It links the two actions in sequence:

1. beszállunk = we board
2. majd ... kiszállunk = then we get off

It is a very common Hungarian word for moving the story forward. In many sentences, it sounds more natural than using a heavier word like azután every time.

Yes, majd kiszállunk a kikötőnél is also possible.

Hungarian word order is more flexible than English word order, and it often reflects emphasis rather than strict grammar rules.

In majd a kikötőnél kiszállunk, the phrase a kikötőnél is placed before the verb, which gives the location a little more prominence.

Very roughly:

• majd a kikötőnél kiszállunk = then, at the harbor, we get off
• majd kiszállunk a kikötőnél = then we get off at the harbor

Both are grammatical. The difference is mostly about information structure and emphasis.

This is due to vowel harmony, a major feature of Hungarian.

Suffixes often come in different versions, and the noun usually determines which one is used.

Examples from this sentence:

• kabát has back vowels, so it takes -ban
  • kabátban
• kikötő has front vowels, so it takes -nél
  • kikötőnél

Some common pairs are:

• -ban / -ben = in
• -nál / -nél = at / by
• -ba / -be = into

So vowel harmony is not random; it is a regular pattern you learn as part of the suffix system.

The colon introduces an explanation or illustration of what being careful means in this situation.

So the structure is basically:

• We are careful: this is how we act.

The second part explains the first:

• we board wearing waterproof clothing
• then we get off at the harbor

In English, you might also express this with a full stop, a dash, or words like so or by doing this. The colon is just a neat way to present the explanation.