Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Hungarian grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about A kapu lassan nyílik.
Why is the article A used before kapu instead of Az?
In Hungarian you have two definite articles: a before words beginning with a consonant, and az before words beginning with a vowel. Kapu (gate) starts with k, a consonant, so you use a. If the noun began with a vowel—say ajtó (door) with an initial a—you’d say az ajtó.
What is kapu, and why isn’t there any ending or suffix on it?
Kapu is a singular, common noun in the nominative case (“gate”). In Hungarian, the basic form of a noun—without plural, possessive, accusative, or other endings—is the nominative singular. Here it’s the subject of the sentence, so no extra ending is needed.
What does lassan mean, and why isn’t it just lassú?
Lassan means slowly.
- Lassú is an adjective meaning slow (e.g. “a slow car” = egy lassú autó).
- To turn an adjective into an adverb in Hungarian, you usually add -an or -en (here lassú → lassan). So you have mennék lassan (“I would go slowly”), ő jár gyorsan (“he walks quickly”), etc.
Why is the verb nyílik used instead of nyit or a passive form?