Learn Hardcore Hungarian: Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban. - We finally do sports together in the park.

So sportolunk literally means “we do sports / we are doing sports.”
Because the -unk ending clearly tells you the subject is “we,” the separate pronoun mi (“we”) is normally omitted.

You could say Mi végre együtt sportolunk a parkban, but it’s only used if you want to emphasize mi (“we, as opposed to others”).

What exactly does végre mean, and what feeling does it add?

Végre means “finally / at last”, and it usually carries a sense of relief or satisfaction after waiting or wanting something for a while.

It often implies: “We’ve been wanting this for some time, and now it’s happening.”
It is emotional, similar to English “Finally!” said with relief.

Examples:

Végre esik az eső. – “Finally it’s raining.”
Végre pihenek egy kicsit. – “At last I’m having a bit of rest.”

How is sportolunk formed, and what is the infinitive?

The base verb is sportolni = “to do sports” / “to exercise”.

Breakdown:

sport – “sport”
-ol – a frequent verb-forming suffix
sportol – “he/she/it does sports”; “to do sports” (dictionary form: sportolni)
sportolunk – 1st person plural (we do sports)

The ending -unk marks:

person: 1st person
number: plural
and it’s the indefinite conjugation (no specific definite object, just “do sports” in general).

So sportolunk = “we (are) do(ing) sports / we exercise.”

Why do we need együtt (“together”) if sportolunk already means “we do sports”?

The -unk ending tells you who is doing the action (we), but it does not say that the people are doing it together.

sportolunk = “we do sports” (could be all separately)
együtt sportolunk = “we do sports together” (as a joint activity)

So együtt adds the meaning that it’s a shared action, not just several people individually doing sports.

Why is the word order Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban and not, for example, Végre sportolunk együtt a parkban?

Both are grammatical, but the focus and rhythm change slightly.

Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban.
- Emphasis: we are together (not alone) doing sports in the park.
- Natural, neutral-sounding version.
Végre sportolunk együtt a parkban.
- Emphasis leans a bit more on sportolunk (“we are actually doing sports (at all), together, in the park”).
- Still fine, just a slightly different feel.

In everyday speech, Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban is very typical because együtt tightly precedes the verb it modifies.

What does együtt literally mean, and where can it go in the sentence?

Együtt means “together”.

Typical positions:

Before the verb: együtt sportolunk – very common, neutral.
After the verb: sportolunk együtt – also correct, with slightly different rhythm/emphasis.

It cannot be detached too far away from the verb in neutral sentences.
These are all possible, with subtle differences:

Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban.
Végre a parkban együtt sportolunk.
Végre a parkban sportolunk együtt.

All are understandable; the most neutral is usually Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban.

Why is it a parkban and not just parkban?

Hungarian uses definite articles a / az (“the”) very often, similarly to English.

park – “park”
a park – “the park”
a parkban – “in the park”

Without the article, parkban would sound either:

too bare / generic, or
like a fragment, not a full normal sentence.

So in a natural, specific sentence like this, Hungarian also uses the article: a parkban = “in the park.”

What does the ending -ban in parkban mean?

The ending -ban / -ben is the inessive case, meaning “in, inside”.

park – park
parkban – in a/the park

Which form you use (-ban vs. -ben) depends on vowel harmony:

Words with back vowels (a, á, o, ó, u, ú) → usually -ban
- park → parkban
- ház → házban (“in the house”)
Words with only front vowels (e, é, i, í, ö, ő, ü, ű) → usually -ben
- kert → kertben (“in the garden”)
- szék → székben (“in the chair”)

So parkban literally means “in (the) park.”

What is the difference between a parkban and a parkba?

They use different cases and express different directions:

a parkban – inessive: “in the park” (location, static)
a parkba – illative: “into the park” (movement towards / into)

Examples:

Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban.
“At last we’re doing sports together in the park.” (we are already there)
Végre együtt megyünk a parkba sportolni.
“At last we’re going to the park to do sports.” (movement to the park)

Can végre appear later in the sentence, like Együtt sportolunk végre a parkban?

Yes, végre is quite flexible, but moving it changes the emphasis.

Végre együtt sportolunk a parkban.
Normal, neutral way: “Finally we are doing sports together in the park.”
Együtt sportolunk végre a parkban.
A bit more like: “We’re doing sports together, finally, in the park.”
The emotional “finally!” comes slightly later in the sentence.

Hungarian often places végre near the beginning when you want to foreground the sense of relief.

Is there any continuous/progressive tense difference in sportolunk, like “we do sports” vs. “we are doing sports”?

Hungarian does not have a separate continuous (progressive) tense like English.

sportolunk can mean:
- “we do sports” (habitually), or
- “we are doing sports” (right now)

Context decides which reading is more natural.
In this sentence, with végre (“finally”) and együtt, the most natural English translation is usually “we are finally doing sports together in the park”.