A gyerek a szülője mellett ül.

The child is sitting next to his or her parent.

Breakdown of A gyerek a szülője mellett ül.

• ülni: to sit
• mellett: next to
• gyerek: the child
• szülő: the parent
• -je: his

Questions & Answers about A gyerek a szülője mellett ül.

Why is there a before both gyerek and szülője?

A is the Hungarian definite article, meaning the.

So:

• a gyerek = the child
• a szülője = his/her parent or the parent in question

Hungarian uses a before consonant sounds and az before vowel sounds. Since gyerek and szülője both start with consonant sounds, the article is a.

Why is it szülője and not just szülő?

Because szülője includes a possessive ending.

• szülő = parent
• szülője = his/her parent

The ending -je is a 3rd person singular possessive suffix here. In this sentence, it shows that the parent belongs to someone: the child's parent.

Does szülője mean his parent or her parent?

It can mean either one.

Hungarian does not usually mark gender in 3rd person singular possessives:

• szülője = his parent / her parent

You understand which one is meant from context. The language does not force you to choose between his and her the way English often does.

Does szülő mean mother or father?

Neither specifically. Szülő is a gender-neutral word meaning parent.

If you want to be specific:

• anya / édesanya = mother
• apa / édesapa = father

So szülője simply means his/her parent, without saying which one.

Why is there still an article in a szülője if the noun already has a possessive ending?

Because in Hungarian, possessed nouns can still take the definite article.

So a szülője is perfectly normal and very common. Hungarian does not treat possessive endings as a replacement for the article.

Compare:

• szülő = a parent / parent
• a szülője = his/her parent

In this sentence, the possessed noun is definite, so the article is natural.

Why is mellett after the noun instead of before it?

Because mellett is a postposition, not a preposition.

English says:

• next to the parent
• beside the parent

Hungarian says the equivalent in the opposite order:

• a szülője mellett

So the pattern is:

• noun phrase + postposition

This is very common in Hungarian.

Does mellett need a case ending on the noun before it?

No. In this sentence, mellett directly follows the noun phrase:

• a szülője mellett

So you do not add another case ending to szülője here.

A good way to learn it is as a fixed pattern:

• valaki/valami mellett = next to someone/something

Why is the verb ül at the end? Can the word order change?

Yes, the word order can change.

Hungarian word order is much more flexible than English word order, and it often reflects emphasis and information structure, not just grammar.

This sentence:

• A gyerek a szülője mellett ül.

is a natural neutral way to say it.

You may also hear:

• A gyerek ül a szülője mellett.

That is also grammatical, but the rhythm or emphasis may feel a little different depending on context. Hungarian often moves parts of the sentence around to highlight what is important.

Does ül mean sits or is sitting?

It can mean either, depending on context.

• ül = sits
• ül = is sitting

Hungarian does not usually need a separate verb form for the English progressive is sitting. The plain present tense often covers both meanings.

So this sentence could describe:

• a general fact: The child sits next to his/her parent
• something happening now: The child is sitting next to his/her parent

Context tells you which is meant.

How do I pronounce the unusual letters in this sentence, especially gy, sz, ü, and ő?

A few important ones:

• gy in gyerek: a soft consonant, roughly like dy in during for some English speakers, though the exact Hungarian sound is a bit different.
• sz in szülője: pronounced like English s in see.
• ü in szülője and ül: a front rounded vowel, like German ü or French u. English does not have this exact sound.
• ő in szülője: a long version of a rounded vowel similar to German ö.

A rough learner-friendly approximation:

• gyerek ≈ DYEH-rek
• szülője ≈ SYOO-loe-yeh (very approximate)
• mellett ≈ MEH-lett
• ül ≈ a rounded eel-like sound

Also, Hungarian stress is usually on the first syllable of each word:

• GYErek
• SZÜlője
• MEllett

Is gyerek the normal word for child? What about gyermek?

Yes, gyerek is a very common everyday word for child.

You will also see gyermek, which means the same thing but often sounds:

• more formal
• more literary
• more official

So in ordinary speech, gyerek is extremely natural. In this sentence, it sounds completely normal.