Sok a nedvesség.

the

Breakdown of Sok a nedvesség.

• sok: a lot
• nedvesség: moisture or dampness

Questions & Answers about Sok a nedvesség.

Why is there no separate word for is in Sok a nedvesség?

Because Hungarian normally leaves out the copula van in the present tense, third person, when the predicate is a noun, adjective, or quantity word.

Here, sok is the predicate, so Hungarian simply says:

Sok a nedvesség.

Not Sok van a nedvesség.

But in other tenses, the verb appears:

• Sok volt a nedvesség. = There was a lot of moisture.
• Sok lesz a nedvesség. = There will be a lot of moisture.

Also, this zero-copula pattern is different from true there is/there are sentences with van, such as:

• Sok nedvesség van a levegőben. = There is a lot of moisture in the air.

What is the grammatical subject here?

The subject is a nedvesség.

The word sok is the predicate part, describing the amount. So structurally, Hungarian is doing something closer to:

• The moisture is a lot

But in natural English, that usually becomes:

• There is a lot of moisture

So even though the English translation may use there is, the Hungarian sentence is built as a normal subject + predicate sentence.

Why is there an article a before nedvesség?