A kutya, a macska és az ember itt vannak.

to be

Breakdown of A kutya, a macska és az ember itt vannak.

• kutya: the dog
• macska: the cat
• itt: here
• ember: the person
• és: and

Questions & Answers about A kutya, a macska és az ember itt vannak.

Why is vannak in plural form here when the sentence includes multiple subjects?

In Hungarian, when multiple subjects are listed (in this case a kutya, a macska, and az ember), the verb agrees with the plurality of the total subject group. Since there are several entities, vannak is used instead of the singular van.

Why do we see the definite article a or az before each noun?

In Hungarian, it’s common (and grammatically correct) to repeat the definite article before each noun in a list. So when enumerating the dog, the cat, and the human, each word is preceded by a (or az if the following word starts with a vowel sound).

Is it possible to say A kutya, macska és ember itt vannak without repeating the article?

Generally, it is considered more precise and natural to include the articles before each noun. While sometimes speakers may drop an article in fast or informal speech, the standard, grammatically correct form repeats them.

Why do we use itt right before vannak instead of another position in the sentence?

Hungarian word order is quite flexible, but itt often appears before the verb to emphasize the location aspect of “being here.” You could shift itt earlier or later (e.g., Itt vannak a kutya, a macska és az ember), but the current structure is very natural.

Could we use ember in the plural form emberek?

Yes, you could say A kutya, a macska és az emberek itt vannak, which would mean “The dog, the cat, and the people are here.” However, in the original sentence, az ember is used in the singular to emphasize one human being rather than humans in general.