Learn Hardcore Hungarian: Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel, de egy csésze kávé után végre tudok menni a munkába. - In the morning I sometimes get up with difficulty, but after a cup of coffee I can finally go to work.

a specific morning (“that morning / the morning”), or
morning thought of more as a thing (e.g. A reggel a kedvenc napszakom. – “Morning is my favorite time of day.”)

Here we’re talking about a habitual situation (“in the morning, sometimes…”), so no article is used: Reggel.

What’s the difference between Reggel néha and Néha reggel? Are both correct?

Both are grammatically correct, but the focus is slightly different.

Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel…
→ “In the morning I sometimes get up with difficulty…”
The primary frame is “in the mornings”; inside that time frame it happens sometimes.
Néha reggel nehezen kelek fel…
→ “Sometimes in the morning I get up with difficulty…”
The primary adverb is “sometimes”, and you’re specifying when that sometimes happens: in the morning.

In everyday speech, the difference is subtle, and both can be used. The original sentence with Reggel néha… is very natural.

Why is it nehezen kelek fel and not nehéz kelek fel?

Nehéz is an adjective (“heavy, difficult”), but here we need an adverb (“with difficulty”).

Hungarian typically forms adverbs from adjectives by adding -an / -en / -n:

nehéz → nehezen (with difficulty)
lassú → lassan (slowly)
gyors → gyorsan (quickly)

Since nehezen modifies kelek (“I get up”), we need the adverbial form:
nehezen kelek fel = “I get up with difficulty / I have a hard time getting up.”

Why is it kelek fel and not felkelek?

The verb is felkelni (“to get up”), with a verbal prefix (also called a particle) fel-.

In its neutral, unmarked form (no extra focus elements between), you’d say:
Felkelek. – “I get up.”
But when something else is emphasized (like a negation, an adverb, question word, etc.) and comes before the verb, the verbal prefix usually moves after the verb:
- Most kelek fel. – “I’m getting up now.”
- Nehézen kelek fel. – “I get up with difficulty.”
- Nem kelek fel. – “I’m not getting up.”

In Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel, the adverbs (néha, nehezen) take focus and push the prefix behind the verb: kelek fel, not felkelek.

What does néha exactly mean here, and where can it go in the sentence?

Néha means “sometimes” / “occasionally.”

Common positions:

Néha nehezen kelek fel.
Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel.
Néha reggel nehezen kelek fel.

It normally goes before the verb (or before the adverb + verb group) that it modifies. Earlier in the sentence (like in the original) it sounds very natural:

Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel…

If you put it at the very end (Nehezen kelek fel néha.), it’s still understandable but sounds less natural and more marked.

Why is it egy csésze kávé and not egy csésze kávét?

Egy csésze kávé literally means “a cup (of) coffee.”

In Hungarian, this “of” relationship is often expressed by putting two nouns next to each other:

egy csésze kávé – a cup of coffee
egy pohár víz – a glass of water
egy szelet kenyér – a slice of bread

The second noun (kávé) is in its base form (no accusative -t), because it’s not a direct object of a verb; it’s part of this noun–noun structure.

You could get kávét with a verb:

Szeretek kávét inni. – I like to drink coffee.
(Here kávét is a direct object of inni.)

In egy csésze kávé után, kávé is simply the noun inside the phrase “cup of coffee”, so it stays unmarked.

Could you leave out egy and just say csésze kávé után?

You can say csésze kávé után, but it sounds incomplete or like you’re counting/contrasting:

Egy csésze kávé után → natural, like English “after a cup of coffee”.
Csésze kávé után → more like “after (a) cup(s) of coffee”, missing that normal, indefinite tone.

In everyday speech, egy as the indefinite article is usually kept:

egy csésze kávé – a cup of coffee
egy pohár víz – a glass of water

So egy csésze kávé után is the normal, idiomatic way to say it.

How does után work? Why is it after kávé and not before, like English “after”?

Hungarian has many postpositions instead of prepositions. Után is one of them; it literally means “after”, but it comes after the noun:

ebéd után – after lunch
munka után – after work
egy csésze kávé után – after a cup of coffee

Structure:
[noun phrase] + után

The noun phrase is usually in its base form (here: egy csésze kávé), and után follows it. That whole group functions like “after X” in English.

So:

English: after a cup of coffee
Hungarian: egy csésze kávé után

What does végre add to the sentence?

Végre means “finally / at last”, often with an emotional nuance of relief or impatience.

végre tudok menni a munkába
→ “I can finally go to work.” / “At last I’m able to go to work.”

Without végre, it’s neutral:

tudok menni a munkába – I can go to work.

With végre, it implies that:

Before that, you couldn’t or didn’t want to go yet, or
It took some effort/time (you were tired, needed coffee, etc.).

Why is it tudok menni and not just megyek?

Megyek a munkába. – “I’m going to work.” (just a statement of action)
Tudok menni a munkába. – “I can go to work.” / “I’m able to go to work.”

Tudni + infinitive expresses ability or possibility, similar to English “can”:

tudok úszni – I can swim
nem tudok vezetni – I can’t drive

In this sentence, tudok menni shows that after the coffee the speaker is finally able to go to work (has the energy, is awake enough, etc.), not just that they happen to go.

Why is it a munkába and not just munkába?

Munka means “work” (the activity), and -ba is the illative ending, meaning “into / to (inside)”:

munka – work
munkába – into (the) work / to work (as a place)

In practice, munkába menni is a fixed expression meaning “to go to work (to one’s workplace)”.

The definite article a (the) is very common with places:

a boltba – to the shop
a moziba – to the cinema
a munkába – to (the) work / to work

English usually drops “the” here (“go to work”), but Hungarian often keeps a. You could say munkába megyek without the article, but a munkába megyek is very normal and natural.

What exactly does the ending -ba on munkába mean? Why not -ban?

Hungarian uses location endings:

-ba / -be: into a place (movement toward the inside)
-ban / -ben: in / inside a place (location, no movement)

Examples:

a házba megyek – I’m going into the house.
a házban vagyok – I’m in the house.

So:

munkába megyek – I go to work (into the state/place of being at work).
munkában vagyok – I’m at work.

In the sentence, there is movement (“go”), so -ba is the correct ending: a munkába.

Why is it kelek and tudok? How are these verbs conjugated?

Both kelni and tudni are in 1st person singular indefinite present tense here.

kelni (to rise, get up):
- én kelek – I get up
- te kelsz – you get up
- ő kel – he/she gets up
tudni (to know/can, be able to):
- én tudok – I can / I know
- te tudsz
- ő tud

So:

nehezen kelek fel – “I get up with difficulty.”
végre tudok menni – “I can finally go.”

Is the order of Reggel néha nehezen fixed, or can I rearrange these adverbs?

You have some flexibility, but the original order is very natural:

Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel…

Possible variants (all understandable, with small shifts in emphasis):

Néha reggel nehezen kelek fel…
→ Emphasizes “sometimes” first.
Reggel nehezen kelek fel néha…
→ Grammatically okay, but sounds less natural/neutral.

General tendency:

Time adverbs often come early (Reggel).
Frequency adverbs (néha) usually go before the verb phrase they modify.
Manner (nehezen) is close to the verb.

So Reggel néha nehezen kelek fel follows a very natural pattern:
time → frequency → manner → verb.