Learn Hardcore Hungarian: Sem én, sem te nem írunk ma levelet. - Neither I nor you are writing a letter today.

Hungarian uses negative concord: every negated element carries a negative marker. Here, sem negates the two subjects (“neither I nor you”), and the finite verb must also be negated with nem. Without nem, the sentence is ungrammatical. You can omit nem only if each clause has its own sem directly in front of the verb, e.g. Sem telefonálok, sem írok (“I neither phone nor write”).

Why is the verb írunk (1st person plural) when the subjects are én (I) and te (you)?

With coordinated subjects of different persons, Hungarian follows a person hierarchy (1 > 2 > 3) and uses plural agreement:

If 1st person is included (like én + te), the verb is 1st person plural: írunk.
If 1st person isn’t included but 2nd is (e.g. te + ő), you get 2nd person plural: írtok.
Otherwise, 3rd person plural is used: írnak.

Could the verb be singular (írok or írsz) instead?

No. Because two subjects are coordinated by sem … sem, the predicate is plural. The pair én + te functions as “we,” so the correct form is írunk.

Can I drop the pronouns én and te?

Not in this structure, because sem needs something to attach to. Alternatives that avoid repeating pronouns:

Egyikünk sem ír ma levelet. (“Neither of us is writing a letter today.”)
Mi ketten ma nem írunk levelet. (“We two are not writing a letter today.”)

Where can I put ma (“today”)? Does it have to be after the verb?

It’s flexible and depends on what you want to emphasize:

Neutral with the subjects topicalized: Sem én, sem te nem írunk ma levelet.
Emphasizing the day: Ma sem én, sem te nem írunk levelet.
Slightly emphasizing the negated action with the time before the object: Sem én, sem te ma nem írunk levelet. All are correct; Hungarian word order serves information structure more than strict positioning.

Why is levelet after the verb, and why does it end in -t?

-t is the accusative ending for direct objects: levél → levelet.
The stem changes from levél- to level- before many suffixes (a common stem-shortening pattern), so you get levelet.
In a neutral sentence, an indefinite object like levelet typically appears after the verb (unless focused).

Why is the verb in the indefinite conjugation (írunk) and not definite (írjuk)?

Hungarian verb conjugation depends on the object’s definiteness, not the subject’s:

Indefinite object (e.g. levelet, “a/any letter”): írunk.
Definite object (e.g. a levelet, ezt a levelet, a possessed noun): írjuk. So: Sem én, sem te nem írjuk ma a levelet. (“…not writing the letter.”)

Can I add egy (“a/one”) before levelet? What changes?

Yes: Sem én, sem te nem írunk ma egy levelet.

With egy, you often imply “not even one letter” (a minimal-quantity nuance).
It’s still an indefinite object, so the verb remains írunk.

Is the present tense here talking about the future (“today we won’t write”)? Would fogunk írni be better?

Hungarian present commonly covers near-future when a time expression is present. Nem írunk ma levelet naturally means “we aren’t going to write a letter today.” You can use the future:

Sem én, sem te nem fogunk ma levelet írni. Both are correct; the present is simpler and very common.

Could I use se instead of sem?

Yes, se is a common informal/colloquial variant:

Se én, se te nem írunk ma levelet. In careful or written standard Hungarian, sem is preferred.

Do I need the comma after Sem én?

It’s customary to separate the two coordinated parts with a comma: Sem én, sem te …. In short, simple pairs you’ll also see it without a comma, but the comma is standard and improves readability.

How would I say “Neither of us is writing a letter today”?

Egyikünk sem ír ma levelet. This construction packages “neither of us” into a single phrase (egyikünk sem) and is very natural.

What if I want to contrast the object (“It’s not the letter that we’re writing today”)?

Put the object in the pre-verbal focus position and make it definite:

Sem én, sem te nem a levelet írjuk ma (hanem az e-mailt). Because the object becomes definite (a levelet), the verb switches to definite conjugation (írjuk).

Does ír need a preverb like meg- with levelet?

No. Levelet ír is the neutral “write a letter.” Adding meg- (→ megír) implies completion:

Sem én, sem te nem írjuk meg ma a levelet. (“…won’t finish writing the letter today.”) Under negation, preverbs typically appear after the verb (írjuk meg).

Is sem only for subjects? Can it modify other parts?

It can modify many constituents:

Object: Egy levelet sem írunk ma. (“We’re not writing even a single letter today.”)
Adverbial: Ma sem írunk levelet. (“We aren’t writing a letter today either.”)
Multiple items: Sem én, sem te, sem ő…

Pronunciation tips for the sentence?

Word stress is always on the first syllable of each word.
írunk: long í (“EE-roonk”), r is tapped/flapped, final -nk is a nasal + k cluster.
levelet: LE-ve-let; both e are short; t is a crisp dental stop.

Can I say it with a plural object?

Yes:

Sem én, sem te nem írunk ma leveleket. (“Neither I nor you are writing letters today.”) The verb remains írunk; indefinite conjugation does not change with object number.