A szoba sarkában van egy kis asztal.

to be

Breakdown of A szoba sarkában van egy kis asztal.

• asztal: the table
• egy: a
• szoba: the room
• sarok: the corner
• -ban: in
• kis: small

Questions & Answers about A szoba sarkában van egy kis asztal.

Why does the word sarkában appear instead of something like sarokban?

In Hungarian, sarok means "corner," but here it needs to be in a possessive form to indicate "the corner of the room." Thus, sarok → sarka (its corner) → + -ban (in) = sarkában. This suffix combination indicates both the possession ("of the room") and the location ("in").

Why is the word order "A szoba sarkában van egy kis asztal" instead of "Van egy kis asztal a szoba sarkában"?

Both are correct in Hungarian, but placing "A szoba sarkában van egy kis asztal" emphasizes the location first ("In the corner of the room, there is a small table"), while "Van egy kis asztal a szoba sarkában" puts the existence of the table first ("There is a small table in the corner of the room"). Hungarian word order is flexible and often depends on what you want to emphasize.

Why do we use egy before kis asztal if asztal is obviously singular?

Egy in Hungarian can function as the indefinite article, similar to "a" or "an" in English. Even though you know it's singular, Hungarian, like English, needs an article in many cases when referring to a singular noun that hasn’t been previously mentioned.

Is kis just an adjective meaning "small"?

Yes, kis is an adjective meaning "small" in Hungarian. It’s placed before the noun, similar to English, though Hungarian word order remains more flexible overall.

Why do we say a szoba sarkában and not a szobában sarka?

The phrase a szoba sarkában makes it clear we're talking about "in the corner of the room," while a szobában sarka would twist the meaning to something like "its corner in the room," which isn’t the usual phrasing. Hungarian typically expresses location + possession together by using the possessive form of the noun (sarka) plus the locative suffix (-ban), as in sarkában.