A barátok ma közösen vacsorát terveznek.

the friend

Breakdown of A barátok ma közösen vacsorát terveznek.

• ma: today
• vacsora: the dinner
• tervezni: to plan
• közösen: together

Questions & Answers about A barátok ma közösen vacsorát terveznek.

Why does the sentence begin with "A barátok"?

In Hungarian, "a" (or "az" before a vowel) is the definite article, similar to "the" in English. Even when referring to multiple people, Hungarians still use this definite article, so "A barátok" means "The friends."

Why is "ma" placed after "barátok" instead of at the very beginning or end of the sentence?

Hungarian word order is relatively flexible, but it often puts the time expression (e.g., "ma" meaning "today") early in the sentence to emphasize when something is happening. Placing "ma" here naturally emphasizes "today" while keeping the focus on what the friends are doing.

What does "közösen" mean, and how is it different from "együtt"?

Both "közösen" and "együtt" can mean "together." However, "közösen" often emphasizes a shared or collaborative action, implying they are jointly involved in planning or acting in a shared way. "Együtt" is a more general term for "together" and doesn’t necessarily carry this emphasis on joint responsibility.

Why is "vacsorát" in the accusative case here?

In Hungarian, the direct object of a sentence (the thing being acted upon) takes the accusative case, often indicated by a suffix like "-t." Since they are planning a dinner ("vacsorát"), it becomes the direct object of "terveznek," hence the "-t" ending.

Is "terveznek" in the correct form for "they are planning"?

Yes. "Terveznek" is the third-person plural conjugation of "tervez" (meaning "to plan"). When talking about "A barátok" (the friends) who are several people, Hungarian uses the third-person plural form, which is "terveznek."