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Learn Hardcore Hungarian: A rezsi drága. - The utility costs are expensive.

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A rezsi drága.

A rezsi drága.

The utility costs are expensive.

Breakdown of A rezsi drága.

household utility costs

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Questions & Answers about A rezsi drága.

What does a mean in A rezsi drága?

A is the definite article, so it corresponds to the in English.

a is used before a consonant
az is used before a vowel

So:

a rezsi = the utilities / the household overhead
az alma = the apple

Why is there no word for is?

In Hungarian, the verb to be is often omitted in the present tense, third person.

So English The utilities are expensive becomes simply:

A rezsi drága.

This is completely normal Hungarian.

You do use forms of to be in other cases, for example:

Drága vagyok. = I am expensive / dear
Drága volt. = It was expensive
Drága lesz. = It will be expensive

Why does drága come after rezsi?

Because here drága is part of the predicate: The utilities are expensive.

In Hungarian:

when an adjective describes the noun directly, it usually comes before the noun
- a drága rezsi = the expensive utilities
when the adjective is the main statement, it usually comes after
- A rezsi drága. = The utilities are expensive.

So the word order tells you whether the adjective is attributive or predicative.

Does drága change for gender, like expensive/expensive in some languages?

No. Hungarian has no grammatical gender, so adjectives do not change for masculine, feminine, or neuter.

That means drága stays the same regardless of whether the noun would be he, she, or it in English.

This is one of the simpler parts of Hungarian grammar for English speakers.

What exactly does rezsi mean?

Rezsi is an everyday Hungarian word for household running costs, especially utility bills such as:

electricity
gas
water
heating

Depending on context, it can mean utilities, overhead, or household bills.

It is a very common word in daily life, especially when people talk about housing costs.

Is rezsi a formal word?

It is common and natural in everyday speech, but it is somewhat more colloquial than some longer official-style terms.

You may also see:

rezsiköltség = utility cost / overhead cost
more specific words like villanyszámla = electricity bill

So rezsi is perfectly normal, but in official or technical writing you may see more precise vocabulary.

How do you pronounce A rezsi drága?

A rough pronunciation guide is:

A = short aw/uh sound
rezsi = REH-zhee
drága = DRAA-gaw

A few important points:

stress is on the first syllable of each word
zs sounds like the s in measure
á is a long vowel
g is always a hard g

So approximately: aw REH-zhee DRAA-gaw

Why is it a and not az?

Because rezsi starts with a consonant, r.

Hungarian definite articles work like this:

a before consonants
az before vowels

So:

a rezsi
az ár

Can I also say Drága a rezsi?

Yes. That is also correct.

Hungarian word order is flexible, and changing the order often changes the focus or emphasis.

A rezsi drága. = neutral statement: The utilities are expensive.
Drága a rezsi. = stronger focus on expensive, something like The utilities are expensive or Utilities are expensive, you know.

Both are grammatical; the difference is mostly about emphasis.

Can drága mean something other than expensive?

Yes. Drága can also mean dear or beloved, depending on context.

For example:

drága barátom = my dear friend
Ez túl drága. = This is too expensive.

In A rezsi drága, the meaning is clearly expensive, not dear.

Would the sentence change if it were negative?

Yes. You would add nem before the adjective:

A rezsi nem drága. = The utilities are not expensive.

This is the normal way to negate this kind of sentence.

How would I turn this into a question?

Usually just use rising intonation in speech, or a question mark in writing:

A rezsi drága? = Are the utilities expensive?

You could also say:

Drága a rezsi?

Again, that version puts a bit more focus on drága.

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