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Questions & Answers about Ez a zene tetszik nekem.
Why is the verb tetszik used here instead of a direct equivalent of like?
Hungarian doesn’t have a simple transitive “to like” verb in the same way English does. Instead it uses tetszik, meaning “it pleases.” The thing you like is the grammatical subject, and the person is marked in the dative. So Ez a zene tetszik nekem literally means “This music is pleasing to me.”
Why is nekem in the dative case?
Because in the tetszik–construction the person experiencing the pleasure is always an indirect object. Dative pronouns in Hungarian are nekem, neked, neki etc., so nekem = “to me.”
Why does Ez a zene have an article (a)?
Ez is a demonstrative (“this”) and a zene is a definite noun phrase (“the music” or “this music”). Hungarian requires an article before a definite noun. Together they form “this music.”
Can I drop nekem and just say Ez a zene tetszik?
Yes. If no other person is mentioned, the dative is implied to be the speaker. Ez a zene tetszik will normally be understood as “I like this music.”
How do I ask Do you like this music? in Hungarian?
You can say either
• Tetszik ez a zene?
• Ez a zene tetszik neked?
Word order in Hungarian is flexible, so you can move neked before or after tetszik for nuance or emphasis.
How do I say I don’t like this music?
Insert nem before the verb:
Ez a zene nem tetszik nekem.
What if I like multiple songs? How does the verb change?
The verb agrees in number with its subject. For plural you use tetszenek:
Ezek a dalok tetszenek nekem.
(“These songs are pleasing to me.”)
How would I express I like this music using szeret?
Use the transitive verb szeret with an accusative object:
Szeretem ezt a zenét.
Here zenét is in the accusative (-t) and the verb takes the first-person singular definite ending (-em).
Why is tetszik conjugated in the third person singular rather than first person?
Because it agrees with its subject (Ez a zene, 3rd person singular). The person who likes it is not the subject (that’s why it’s in the dative).
Can I change the word order to add emphasis?
Absolutely. Hungarian is a topic–comment language. For example:
• Nekem ez a zene tetszik. (Emphasizes to me)
• Ez tetszik nekem. (Emphasizes this)
Both still mean “I like this music.”