Learn Hardcore Hungarian: A barátnőm ritkán utazik a hegyekhez, inkább a tó mellé megy a térképpel. - My girlfriend rarely travels to the mountains; she would rather go to the lake with the map.

So barátnőm literally means “my (female) friend”, and in many contexts it also means “my girlfriend” (romantic partner).
Hungarian does not clearly separate those two meanings; context decides which one is intended.

Why is there an A before barátnőm, if barátnőm already means my girlfriend?

Hungarian normally uses a definite article with possessed nouns when they are specific:

a barátnőm = my (particular) girlfriend/female friend
barátnőm (without article) can sound more generic or appear in special patterns (e.g. after van: Van barátnőm – “I have a girlfriend.”)

In English you don’t say the my girlfriend, but in Hungarian a barátnőm is the natural way to talk about your specific, known girlfriend/female friend.

Why is ritkán placed before utazik? Could you also say utazik ritkán?

Ritkán is an adverb of frequency (rarely). The neutral word order in Hungarian usually puts such adverbs before the verb:

A barátnőm ritkán utazik… – “My girlfriend rarely travels…”

You can say utazik ritkán, but then ritkán is emphasized or contrasted, something like:

A barátnőm utazik ritkán, nem én. – It’s my girlfriend who travels rarely, not me.

So in your sentence, ritkán utazik is simply the default, unemphasized order.

What is the difference between utazik and megy here? Don’t they both mean go?

Both can be translated as go, but they are not interchangeable:

utazik = to travel
- Suggests a journey (often longer distance, by vehicle, as a trip).
- Ritkán utazik a hegyekhez → She rarely travels to the mountains.
megy = to go (generic movement)
- Very general; can be on foot or by any means, short or long distance.
- …inkább a tó mellé megy… → …instead, she goes to the lakeside…

The sentence contrasts travelling (utazik) to the mountains with simply going (megy) to the lake.

What does a hegyekhez literally mean, and what does the ending -hez do?

Breakdown:

hegy = mountain
hegyek = mountains (plural)
-hoz / -hez / -höz = case ending meaning “to / towards”
- Form depends on vowel harmony:
  - back vowels → -hoz
  - front unrounded → -hez
  - front rounded → -höz
hegyek has the front vowel e, so it takes -hez → hegyekhez.

So a hegyekhez literally means “to the mountains / toward the mountains”.

Could you also say a hegyekbe or a hegyekre? How do they differ from a hegyekhez?

Yes, and the nuance changes slightly:

a hegyekbe (into the mountains) – with -ba / -be = into
- Focuses on entering the mountainous area (as a region).
a hegyekre (onto the mountains) – with -ra / -re = onto
- Often used when you go up onto hills/mountains (e.g. hiking up).
a hegyekhez (to the mountains) – with -hoz / -hez / -höz = to / towards
- More like going to the vicinity or up to the mountains.

All three can be possible in different contexts. In everyday speech, a hegyekbe utazik (travels into the mountains) is very common, but a hegyekhez is also understandable and emphasizes “to that general area / up there”.

How does inkább work here? Does it mean instead or rather?

Inkább means “rather / preferably / instead” and expresses preference or choice.

In this sentence:

…ritkán utazik a hegyekhez, inkább a tó mellé megy…

= she rarely travels to the mountains; *instead / rather, she goes to the lakeside…*

There is no negation in the first clause, so you just use inkább alone.
(With a negative contrast, you might see nem … hanem inkább … = not … but rather …)

Why is there a comma before inkább?

The sentence actually contains two main clauses:

A barátnőm ritkán utazik a hegyekhez,
inkább a tó mellé megy a térképpel.

They are connected in contrast with inkább (“rather, instead”), so Hungarian punctuation uses a comma to separate them, much like in English:

She rarely travels to the mountains, instead she goes to the lakeside with the map.

What exactly does a tó mellé mean, and how is mellé different from a tóhoz?

Mellé is a postposition meaning “to beside, to next to” in a directional sense.

mellett = beside, next to (static location)
mellé = to beside, to next to (movement / direction)

So:

a tó mellé = to beside the lake / to the lakeside (to a place next to the lake)
a tóhoz (with -hoz) = to the lake (to it, to its general vicinity)

They can overlap in meaning, but:

a tó mellé paints a picture of ending up right next to the lake (e.g. to sit or camp by it).
a tóhoz is a bit more general: going to the lake as a destination.

Why is mellé a separate word, while hegyekhez and térképpel are written as one word with endings?

Hungarian has two similar-looking systems:

Case endings (like -hoz/-hez/-höz, -val/-vel, -ba/-be, etc.)
- These are suffixes attached directly to the noun:
- hegyek + hez → hegyekhez
- térkép + vel → térképpel
Postpositions (like mellett, mellé, alatt, alá, fölött, fölé, etc.)
- These are separate words that follow the noun:
- a tó mellett = beside the lake
- a tó mellé = to beside the lake

So mellé is a postposition, not a case suffix, which is why it’s written separately after tó.

What does a térképpel mean exactly, and what does the ending -val/-vel express?

Térképpel comes from:

térkép = map
-val / -vel = “with” (instrumental/comitative case: with, using, accompanied by)

Because of sound assimilation, térkép + vel becomes térképpel (the v disappears and the p is doubled).

So a térképpel means “with the map”, which can be understood as either:

accompanied by the map (she takes it along), or
using the map (she goes there by using a map).

Why does the sentence say megy a térképpel (goes with the map) instead of something like viszi a térképet (takes the map)?

Both are grammatically correct, but they have different focuses:

a tó mellé megy a térképpel
- Emphasizes that her going is accompanied by the map.
- Slightly more neutral / descriptive: her movement includes having the map.
a tó mellé megy, és viszi a térképet
- viszi a térképet (“she carries/takes the map”) focuses on the action of carrying the map.

The original sentence simply describes her preferred way of going somewhere: she goes (there) with a map.

What tense are utazik and megy, and how do we know the sentence is in the present?

Both verbs are in the present tense, 3rd person singular, indefinite:

utazik – he/she travels
megy – he/she goes

Hungarian present tense is marked mainly by the verb endings:

-ik (as in utazik) is a common 3rd person singular ending for certain verbs.
megy is an irregular verb, but in this form it’s also 3rd person singular present.

There is no separate word for “is/does/will” here; context and the endings tell you it’s present time.

Why is hegyek plural, but tó is singular?

This reflects normal usage:

a hegyek = the mountains → a mountainous region is usually spoken about in the plural.
a tó = the lake → refers to one specific lake (which speaker and listener presumably know).

So:

a hegyekhez – to the mountains (as an area)
a tó mellé – to the side of the lake (a particular one)

Hungarian often uses plural for regions or ranges (mountains, woods, etc.), while a single object like a lake remains singular.