Learn Hardcore Hungarian: Újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban. - I read newspapers less often, and books more often.

With könyv, Hungarian inserts a linking vowel and drops the final v before -t: könyv + -t → könyvet. So újságot ritkábban olvasok literally means “a newspaper I read less often” / “I read newspapers less often.”

Why is there no article before újságot and könyvet?

Hungarian often uses bare singular nouns without an article to talk about things in general or as a habit.

Újságot olvasok. ≈ “I read newspapers / I read the paper (in general).”
Könyvet olvasok. ≈ “I read books / I read a book (as an activity).”

If you add an article, it usually becomes specific:

Az újságot olvasom. = “I’m reading the newspaper (a particular one).”

In the original sentence, the speaker is contrasting general habits, so no article is used.

What exactly does pedig mean here? Is it “and”, “but”, or something else?

Pedig is a contrastive connector. In this sentence it means something like “whereas / while / on the other hand”:

Újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban.
“I read newspapers less often, whereas I read books more often.”

It is weaker than a strong “but” (de), and it typically comes after the word it contrasts:

Én pedig… = “I, on the other hand…”
Könyvet pedig… = “Books, on the other hand…”

Why is the verb olvasok missing in the part könyvet pedig gyakrabban?

Hungarian often omits repeated verbs in the second clause when they are identical and easily understood from context.

The full, non-elliptical version would be:

Újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban olvasok.

Since olvasok is the same in both parts, the second one is dropped to avoid repetition. The meaning remains “I read books more often.”

Are ritkábban and gyakrabban adverbs or adjectives? How are they formed?

They are comparative adverbs, formed from adverbs:

ritkán = rarely → ritkábban = more rarely, less often
gyakran = often → gyakrabban = more often

Pattern: many adverbs in -an / -en form their comparative with -bban / -bben:

lassan (slowly) → lassabban (more slowly)

Here, ritkábban and gyakrabban modify the verb olvasok (“I read”), so they function as adverbs of frequency.

Could I say Ritkábban olvasok újságot, pedig könyvet gyakrabban? How flexible is the word order?

Some word order variation is possible, but not all orders sound natural, especially with pedig.

The original:

Újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban.

Structure (very simplified):

[Topic] [Focus] [Verb]
Újságot (topic: as for newspapers)
ritkábban (focus: what is being emphasized: less often)
olvasok (verb)

Your version “Ritkábban olvasok újságot, pedig könyvet gyakrabban” sounds off because:

pedig usually appears after the element it contrasts (here: könyvet pedig),
and each clause has its own internal topic–focus–verb order.

A more natural alternative that changes the emphasis but is grammatical:

Ritkábban olvasok újságot, könyvet pedig gyakrabban.

Here the focus is more on how often I read (in general), while the original highlights newspapers vs. books as topics.

What’s the difference between olvasok and olvasom here?

The difference is indefinite vs. definite conjugation:

olvasok = “I read” with an indefinite / non-specific object
olvasom = “I read it / I read the [specific thing]”

In the given sentence the objects are indefinite and generic (újságot, könyvet with no article), so olvasok (indefinite) is correct.

If you made the objects definite with articles, you would also need the definite verb:

Az újságot ritkábban olvasom, a könyvet pedig gyakrabban.
“I read the newspaper less often, and the book more often.”

Why are újságot and könyvet singular even though in English we say “newspapers” and “books”?

Hungarian often uses singular count nouns in a generic sense where English prefers the plural.

Újságot olvasok. = “I read newspapers / I read the paper (as an activity).”
Könyvet olvasok. = “I read books / I read a book (habitually).”

So Újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban refers to the two activities in general — reading newspapers vs. reading books — even though the Hungarian nouns are morphologically singular.

How would I say “I read the newspaper less often, but the book more often” referring to specific items?

You would typically add definite articles and use the definite verb:

Az újságot ritkábban olvasom, a könyvet pedig gyakrabban.

Here:

az újságot = the newspaper (a specific one both speaker and listener know)
a könyvet = the book (also specific)
olvasom = “I read it” (definite conjugation)

This sentence contrasts two particular items, not the activities in general.

Could I use ritkán and gyakran instead of ritkábban and gyakrabban? How would the meaning change?

Yes, but the meaning changes from relative to absolute frequency:

Újságot ritkán olvasok.
“I rarely read newspapers.” (just states it’s rare, no explicit comparison)
Újságot ritkábban olvasok.
“I read newspapers less often (than something else).”
A comparison is implied — here it’s books.

In the original sentence, the comparative forms ritkábban / gyakrabban are used precisely because we are comparing how often the speaker reads newspapers vs. books.

Where is the subject “I” in this sentence? Do I need to say én?

The subject “I” is expressed by the verb ending:

olvas-ok → -ok = 1st person singular (“I”).

Hungarian is a pro-drop language: subject pronouns are usually omitted when the verb ending makes the subject clear.

(Én) újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban.

You would include én mainly for emphasis:

Én újságot ritkábban olvasok, könyvet pedig gyakrabban.
“I read newspapers less often, (but) books more often.” (implying: maybe others don’t)