A lány a fiókban talál egy régi jegyet, de a kabátot a szekrényben keresi.

a is the definite article, like English the. egy is the indefinite article, like English a/an, and it can also mean one.

• a lány = the girl
• a fiókban = in the drawer
• egy régi jegyet = an old note/ticket
• a kabátot = the coat
• a szekrényben = in the wardrobe/closet

In Hungarian, this definite vs. indefinite difference is especially important because it also affects the verb form.

The ending -ban/-ben means in.

• fiókban = in the drawer
• szekrényben = in the wardrobe/closet

This is a case ending, not a separate word. Hungarian often expresses meanings like in, on, to, from with suffixes instead of prepositions.

The choice between -ban and -ben follows vowel harmony:

• fiók has a back vowel pattern, so it takes -ban
• szekrény has front vowels, so it takes -ben

Because -ban/-ben means in, while -ba/-be means into.

So:

• a fiókban = in the drawer
• a fiókba = into the drawer
• a szekrényben = in the wardrobe
• a szekrénybe = into the wardrobe

This sentence describes location, not movement. The girl finds something in the drawer and searches in the wardrobe.

They are in the accusative case, which marks the direct object.

• jegy → jegyet
• kabát → kabátot

The accusative ending is basically -t, but Hungarian often adds a linking vowel before it, such as -e- or -o-, depending on the word.

So here:

• egy régi jegyet = an old note/ticket as the thing found
• a kabátot = the coat as the thing being looked for

English usually shows the direct object mainly by word order. Hungarian often marks it directly on the noun.

In a normal adjective + noun phrase, Hungarian puts the case ending on the noun, not on the adjective.

So:

• egy régi jegy = an old note/ticket
• egy régi jegyet = an old note/ticket in the accusative

Notice that régi stays the same.

This is very normal in Hungarian. The article and adjective usually stay unchanged, while the noun carries the case ending.

A useful contrast:

• a régi jegyet = the old note/ticket
• a régit = the old one

In the second example, the adjective stands alone, so it can take the ending.

This is one of the most important features of Hungarian: verbs can use indefinite or definite conjugation.

• talál is the indefinite form
• keresi is the definite form

Why?

Because the first object is indefinite:

• egy régi jegyet = an old note/ticket

So Hungarian uses the indefinite verb form:

• talál = finds

But the second object is definite:

• a kabátot = the coat

So Hungarian uses the definite verb form:

• keresi = is looking for it / the coat

Compare:

• Keres egy kabátot. = She is looking for a coat.
• Keresi a kabátot. = She is looking for the coat.

Hungarian does not have a separate tense form exactly like the English continuous is looking.

A plain present-tense verb like keresi can mean:

• looks for
• is looking for

The exact English translation depends on context.

In this sentence, the natural English meaning is ongoing, so is looking for sounds best.

The same idea applies to many Hungarian present-tense verbs: context tells you whether the action is habitual, general, or happening right now.

Because Hungarian often leaves out a repeated subject when it is already clear.

The first clause says:

• A lány ... = The girl ...

In the second clause, Hungarian does not need to repeat a lány or add a separate word for she, because the meaning is obvious from context and from the verb form.

So:

• de a kabátot a szekrényben keresi
  naturally means
  but she is looking for the coat in the wardrobe

This kind of omission is very common in Hungarian.

Hungarian word order is much more flexible than English word order. It is strongly connected to topic and emphasis, not just grammar.

In this clause:

• a kabátot is presented as the topic: as for the coat...
• a szekrényben, which stands right before the verb, is especially prominent

So the sentence feels a bit like:

• but as for the coat, she is looking for it in the wardrobe

The order is not random. It helps organize what is already being discussed and what is being highlighted.

English relies much more on a fixed order. Hungarian uses order more actively to shape emphasis.

keres means look for, search for, or seek, depending on context.

Grammatically, the thing being sought is a direct object:

• keresi a kabátot = she is looking for the coat

The place where the search happens is added separately:

• a szekrényben = in the wardrobe

So the structure is:

• [thing sought] + [place of searching] + keres

This is why a kabátot has the accusative ending, while a szekrényben has the in ending.

de means but.

The comma is standard because de connects two clauses:

• A lány a fiókban talál egy régi jegyet, de a kabátot a szekrényben keresi.

This is similar to English punctuation, where a comma often appears before but when it joins two full clauses.

No. jegy can mean different things depending on context, for example:

• ticket
• note
• mark/grade
• sometimes other related meanings

So egy régi jegyet could mean an old ticket or an old note, depending on the situation.

That is a vocabulary issue rather than a grammar issue, but it is very common for learners to notice because the Hungarian form itself does not tell you which English word is best.