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Questions & Answers about Ő ma itt marad.
Why is the verb in the present tense (marad) if English would say “will stay / is staying”?
Hungarian often uses the simple present to talk about near or scheduled future when a time word makes the timing clear. Here, ma (today) supplies that. So Ő ma itt marad naturally means “He/She will stay here today.” If you want an explicit future, use fog + infinitive: Ő ma itt fog maradni.
Do I have to say the pronoun Ő, or can I drop it?
You can drop it: Ma itt marad. Hungarian is pro‑drop because the verb ending shows the person/number. Keeping Ő adds emphasis or clarity (for instance, contrasting with someone else).
Does Ő mean “he” or “she”? Does Hungarian mark gender?
Ő covers both “he” and “she.” Hungarian third‑person pronouns don’t mark gender. Plural is ők (“they”): Ők ma itt maradnak. If you must specify gender, you add a noun like a férfi (the man) or a nő (the woman) for context.
How do I pronounce Ő? What’s the difference between ö and ő?
- ő is a long front rounded vowel (IPA: /øː/), like German long “ö.”
- ö is the short counterpart (IPA: /ø/).
Length matters in Hungarian. Also, sentence-initial Ő is capitalized only because it starts the sentence.
Why is itt right before marad? What does that word order emphasize?
In Hungarian, the element immediately before the verb is in focus. Here itt (here) sits before marad, so the sentence highlights the place: “He/She is staying here (not elsewhere) today.”
To focus a different element, put it before the verb:
- Focus “today”: Ő ma marad itt.
- Focus “he/she”: Ő marad ma itt.
Can I use ide instead of itt?
No. itt = “here” (location). ide = “to here” (direction of motion). With “stay,” you need location: itt marad. Use ide with motion verbs: ide jön (comes here).
How do I say it in the plural (“They will stay here today”)?
Ők ma itt maradnak. The verb gets the 3rd‑person plural ending -nak/-nek: maradnak.
How do I negate it?
Place nem before the verb (and its focus): Ő ma itt nem marad.
If you move focus, nem still comes before the focus+verb chunk:
- Focus “today”: Ő ma nem marad itt.
How do I make a yes/no question?
- By intonation: Ő ma itt marad?
- With the -e question particle (more formal or written): Ő ma itt marad-e?
You can also move focus to ask a nuanced question: Itt marad ma? (Is it here that he/she’s staying today?)
What’s the infinitive of marad, and how do I say “to stay”?
The infinitive is maradni (“to stay”). Future with fog takes the infinitive: Ő ma itt fog maradni.
Why can’t I say something like “maradja”? What’s going on with verb endings?
Hungarian has indefinite vs definite conjugation. Marad is intransitive here (no direct object), so it uses the indefinite form. Forms like maradja would be a (wrong) definite form implying a definite object. To “leave something,” you’d use a different verb: hagyni (e.g., itt hagyja = “he/she leaves it here”).
How do I put it in the past or conditional?
- Past: Ő tegnap itt maradt. (“He/She stayed here yesterday.”)
- Conditional: Ő ma itt maradna. (“He/She would stay here today.”)
- Imperative: Maradjon itt ma! (formal “Please stay here today.”)
Can I stress that it’s specifically he/she who will stay?
Yes—put Ő in the focus slot before the verb: Ő marad ma itt. This means “It is he/she who will stay here today (not someone else).”
How do I say formal “you” here?
Use Ön (formal you), but keep the verb in 3rd person: Ön ma itt marad. You may see Ön capitalized; that’s a politeness convention in writing.
Is there a difference between itt marad and megmarad?
Yes. itt marad = “stay here.” megmarad = “remain, survive, be left over” (e.g., A pénz megmarad. “The money remains/is left.”). For “stay here,” use itt marad.
Where is the stress in this sentence?
Hungarian stresses the first syllable of each word: Ő (only one syllable), ma, itt, MA-rad. Sentence focus is shown by word order, not by moving the stress.
Is any copula (“to be”) or article missing?
No. marad itself carries the meaning “stay/remain,” so no copula is needed. Pronouns like ő don’t take articles.
Can I say Marad itt instead of itt marad?
You’ll usually place a place adverb like itt immediately before the verb in neutral statements: … itt marad. Marad itt appears when something else occupies the focus slot or in certain structures (e.g., with a focused adverb: Ma ő marad itt.). As a safe default in simple statements, use … itt marad.