Az autó megfelel a feltételeknek.

A natural translation is The car meets the requirements or The car satisfies the conditions.

In many contexts, feltételek is better translated as requirements, criteria, or conditions, depending on what kind of situation you are talking about.

Az is the definite article, meaning the.

So:

• az autó = the car

Hungarian has two forms of the definite article:

• a
• az

Az is used before words that begin with a vowel sound, and autó begins with a, so it must be az autó.

Here, autó is the subject of the sentence, so it stays in its basic dictionary form.

• autó = car
• az autó = the car

Nothing is added because it is not showing direction, possession, or any other case here. It is simply the thing that meets the requirements.

Megfelel means to be suitable, to comply, to correspond, or to meet requirements/conditions.

In this sentence, the most natural meaning is:

• megfelel a feltételeknek = meets the requirements / satisfies the conditions

It is a very common verb in formal or practical contexts, such as rules, standards, applications, legal requirements, job qualifications, and technical specifications.

For example:

• A jelölt megfelel a követelményeknek. = The candidate meets the requirements.
• Ez az eszköz megfelel a szabványnak. = This device complies with the standard.

Because megfelel does not take a direct object in Hungarian. Instead, the thing being met or complied with appears in the dative case.

So:

• feltételek = conditions / requirements
• feltételeknek = to the conditions / to the requirements

That may feel unusual to an English speaker, because English says meet the requirements with a direct object. Hungarian structures it differently:

• English: meet the requirements
• Hungarian: be suitable to / correspond to / comply with the requirements

So -nak / -nek is required after megfelel.

-nek is the dative case ending, often meaning to or for.

Here the structure is:

• feltétel = condition, requirement
• feltételek = conditions, requirements
• feltételeknek = to the conditions / to the requirements

The verb megfelel regularly uses this pattern:

• megfelel valaminek = to meet / comply with something

So learners often memorize it this way:

• megfelel + dative

Examples:

• megfelel a szabályoknak = complies with the rules
• megfelel az elvárásoknak = meets the expectations
• megfelel a feltételeknek = meets the requirements

Because the sentence refers to multiple conditions or requirements.

• feltétel = condition, requirement
• feltételek = conditions, requirements
• feltételeknek = to the conditions, to the requirements

So the word contains both:

• the plural marker -k
• the dative ending -nek

Structure:

• feltétel
• feltétel + ek → feltételek
• feltételek + nek → feltételeknek

That a is again the definite article the.

So:

• a feltételeknek = to the requirements / to the conditions

Even though feltételeknek has a case ending, Hungarian still uses the article before it when the noun phrase is definite.

This is very normal in Hungarian:

• a háznak = to the house
• a tanárnak = to the teacher
• a feltételeknek = to the requirements

Yes, megfelel is written as one word.

It contains the verbal prefix meg- plus felel, but in modern Hungarian megfelel functions as a standard dictionary verb with its own meaning.

A very useful thing to know is that the prefix can move in some sentence types, especially with negation or focus.

For example:

• Az autó megfelel a feltételeknek. = The car meets the requirements.
• Az autó nem felel meg a feltételeknek. = The car does not meet the requirements.

So in a negative sentence, you often see meg move after the verb.

Yes. Megfelel here is the third person singular form:

• ő megfelel = he/she/it meets, complies
• az autó megfelel = the car meets, complies

Hungarian often leaves out subject pronouns, so the noun itself tells you who or what is doing the action.

Also, this verb does not have a direct object here, so learners should not think of it as a typical verb + direct object structure. The phrase a feltételeknek is a dative complement, not a direct object.

Yes, that is possible, and it means something very similar: The car fulfills the requirements.

But there is a difference in structure:

• megfelel a feltételeknek → uses the dative
• teljesíti a feltételeket → uses a direct object

So:

• megfelel valaminek
• teljesít valamit

Both can be correct, but megfelel a feltételeknek is especially common when talking about suitability, compliance, or matching a set of standards.

Yes. Hungarian word order is flexible, and changing it often changes the emphasis rather than the basic meaning.

The neutral order here is:

• Az autó megfelel a feltételeknek.

But you could also say:

• A feltételeknek megfelel az autó.

This puts more emphasis on a feltételeknek, as if answering What does the car meet? or contrasting it with something else.

So the original sentence is a normal, neutral way to say it.

This is due to vowel harmony.

The dative ending has two forms:

• -nak
• -nek

Since feltétel contains front vowels, it takes -nek:

• feltétel
• feltételek
• feltételeknek

Compare:

• ház → háznak
• autó → autónak
• feltétel → feltételnek

So -nek is the correct form here.

It is very common in formal, practical, and administrative contexts.

For example:

• rules and regulations
• job applications
• legal standards
• technical specifications
• school or visa requirements

Typical phrases include:

• megfelel a követelményeknek = meets the requirements
• megfelel a szabályoknak = complies with the rules
• megfelel az előírásoknak = complies with the regulations
• megfelel az elvárásoknak = meets expectations

So this sentence sounds completely natural if you are talking about whether a car is acceptable according to some standards.