Questions & Answers about Én vizet kérek a pincértől.
Is the pronoun Én necessary here?
No. Hungarian usually drops subject pronouns because the verb ending already shows the person. Én adds contrastive emphasis, roughly “I, for my part.” Neutral and most common in a restaurant would be: Vizet kérek a pincértől.
Why is it vizet and not víz?
Vizet is the accusative (direct object) form of víz “water.” The -t marks the direct object, and an extra linking vowel -e- appears: víz → vizet. This also shortens í to i. With mass nouns like water, the bare accusative vizet typically means “some water.”
Why kérek and not kérem?
Hungarian has two verb conjugations: indefinite and definite.
- Kérek is 1st person singular indefinite, used when the object is indefinite (vizet “some water”).
- Kérem is definite, used with a specific/definite object (a vizet “the water,” ezt “this,” azt “that”). Examples:
- Kérek vizet. = I’d like some water.
- Kérem a vizet. = I want the water (a specific one, e.g., “I’ll have the water” from a menu choice). Note: Kérem on its own can also function as a polite “please” or “you’re welcome,” depending on context.
What does the suffix -től mean, and why is it used with kér?
-tól/-től means “from.” The verb kér “to ask for/request” typically uses the pattern kér valamit valakitől = “ask for something from someone.” Hence a pincértől “from the waiter.” Vowel harmony picks -től because pincér has front vowels (é).
Could I say a pincérről instead of a pincértől?
No. -ról/-ről means “off a surface” or “about” (e.g., A pincérről beszélünk = “We’re talking about the waiter”). For asking something from a person, use -tól/-től: a pincértől.
Is this sentence a polite way to order in a restaurant?
Yes. Kérek… is a standard, polite way to order. You can make it even more polite/formal or softer:
- Kérek szépen vizet. (adding “please”)
- Szeretnék vizet. (“I would like some water.”)
- Kaphatok vizet? (“Could I get some water?”)
- Hozna vizet, legyen szíves? (very polite: “Would you bring water, please?”)
Why is vizet placed before the verb? What happens if I change the word order?
Hungarian uses word order to mark focus. The element right before the verb is focused (new/important information).
- Én vizet kérek a pincértől. = It’s water that I’m asking for (from the waiter).
- Kérek vizet a pincértől. = Neutral, common ordering with no special emphasis.
- A pincértől kérek vizet. = It’s from the waiter (as opposed to someone else) that I’m asking for water.
Can I leave out a pincértől?
Yes, if it’s obvious you’re addressing the waiter. Simply saying Kérek vizet. is natural at a table when the waiter is present. You add a pincértől only if you need to specify the source.
Why is it spelled vizet (short i), not vízet (long í)?
Because of a regular spelling/phonological pattern when adding the accusative -t with a linking vowel -e: the long í in víz shortens to i. Common parallels:
- tűz → tüzet (fire)
- kéz → kezet (hand)
- híd → hidat (bridge) Not all nouns behave this way (e.g., bor → bort), but víz → vizet is the standard form.
How do I say “a glass/bottle of water” or “one water” when ordering?
- Kérek egy pohár vizet. = I’d like a glass of water.
- Kérek egy üveg vizet. = I’d like a bottle of water.
- Kérek egy vizet. = Colloquial for “one water” (understood as a portion: a glass/bottle). For multiples: Kérek két vizet. or more explicitly Kérek két pohár/üveg vizet.
How do I negate this?
- Nem kérek vizet a pincértől. = I’m not asking the waiter for water / I don’t want water from the waiter. If the object is definite, the verb must be definite too:
- Nem kérem a vizet. = I’m not asking for the water (the specific water). “To ask nobody” uses senkitől:
- Nem kérek vizet senkitől. or Senkitől sem kérek vizet. = I’m not asking anyone for water.
What’s the difference between kér and kérdez?
- kér = ask for/request something (an object, a favor): Vizet kérek. = I ask for water.
- kérdez = ask a question: Megkérdezem a pincért, van-e víz. = I ask the waiter whether there is water. Don’t use -tól/-től with kérdez in the basic pattern; you usually take a direct object (the person) or a clause.
Related verbs like megkér, elkér, kikér—how do they differ?
- megkér valakit (hogy …) = ask someone (to do something): Megkérem a pincért, hogy hozzon vizet. = I ask the waiter to bring water.
- elkér valamit valakitől = ask to have/borrow something from someone: Elkértem egy tollat a pincértől. = I asked the waiter for a pen.
- kikér valamit = request/obtain officially or firmly (e.g., documents, the bill): Kikértem a számlát. = I requested the bill.
Is the article a before pincértől necessary?
If you mean “the waiter” in your immediate context, yes: a pincértől. Without an article, pincértől sounds generic (“from waiters”). If you mean “from a waiter,” say egy pincértől:
- Kérek vizet egy pincértől. = I’ll ask a waiter for water.
How do I pronounce this?
- Én: long é; stress on the first syllable of each word (always in Hungarian).
- vizet: VEE-zet (i is short; z as in “zero”).
- kérek: KAY-rek (é is long).
- a: like a short “aw/uh.”
- pincértől: peen-TSEER-tøl (c = ts; é long; ő is a long front rounded vowel). Overall stress pattern: Én VIZ-et KÉ-rek a PIN-cér-től (primary stress always on word-initial syllables).
Which case is pincértől, and how does it compare to -ból/-ből and -ról/-ről?
Pincértől is the ablative case (“from, away from [a person or vicinity]”).
- -tól/-től = from (a person/place): a pincértől = from the waiter; az iskolától = from (near) the school.
- -ból/-ből = out of/from inside: a pohárból = from the glass.
- -ról/-ről = off a surface / about: az asztalról = off the table; a pincérről beszélünk = we’re talking about the waiter.
Is akarok vizet a pincértől okay?
Grammatically yes (“I want water from the waiter”), but akarok is blunt and can sound rude in service contexts. Prefer kérek or the softer conditional szeretnék/kérnék:
- Kérnék szépen vizet a pincértől. = I’d like some water, please.
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