A törölköző már száraz, de a zokni még nedves.

In Hungarian, the verb van (to be) is usually left out in the present tense, third person when the predicate is a noun, adjective, or adverb.

So:

• A törölköző száraz. = The towel is dry.
• A zokni nedves. = The sock is wet.

Hungarian does not normally say A törölköző van száraz.

But van does appear in other situations, for example:

• A törölköző száraz volt. = The towel was dry.
• A törölköző száraz lesz. = The towel will be dry.
• Én száraz vagyok. = I am dry.

So the missing is is completely normal here.

Here:

• már = already
• még = still / yet

So the sentence contrasts two states:

• A törölköző már száraz = The towel is already dry
• de a zokni még nedves = but the sock is still wet

This már ... még ... pairing is very common in Hungarian when comparing progress or timing:

• one thing has already reached a state
• the other has not reached it yet / is still in another state

For example:

• Én már kész vagyok, de ő még dolgozik.
  = I’m already ready, but he’s still working.

A is the Hungarian definite article, meaning the.

So:

• a törölköző = the towel
• a zokni = the sock

Hungarian uses definite articles very regularly. If you mean specific items, a/az is natural.

A quick note:

• a is used before words beginning with a consonant
• az is used before words beginning with a vowel

Examples:

• a zokni = the sock
• az alma = the apple

Because törölköző and zokni both begin with a consonant sound.

Hungarian definite article:

• a before consonants
• az before vowels

So:

• a törölköző
• a zokni

but:

• az ing = the shirt
• az eső = the rain

It works a bit like choosing a vs an in English, but for the definite article.

De means but.

It connects two contrasting ideas:

• A törölköző már száraz
• de a zokni még nedves

= The towel is already dry, but the sock is still wet.

It is the normal everyday word for but in Hungarian.

In this sentence, száraz and nedves are not directly modifying the nouns inside a noun phrase. They are the predicate of the sentence:

• A törölköző ... száraz.
• A zokni ... nedves.

So structurally this is like:

• The towel is dry
• The sock is wet

In Hungarian, predicate adjectives come after the subject.

Compare:

• a száraz törölköző = the dry towel
  here száraz directly describes the noun inside the noun phrase

• A törölköző száraz. = The towel is dry.
  here száraz is the predicate

Same adjective, different structure.

No. Hungarian adjectives do not agree with nouns in gender, and Hungarian nouns do not have grammatical gender like he/she nouns in many European languages.

So:

• száraz can mean dry with a singular or plural noun
• nedves can mean wet/damp with a singular or plural noun

Examples:

• A törölköző száraz. = The towel is dry.
• A törölközők szárazak. = The towels are dry.

Notice something important in the plural sentence: when the adjective is used as the predicate, it often takes a plural ending too:

• száraz → szárazak
• nedves → nedvesek

But there is still no gender agreement.

Yes, both are singular here:

• törölköző = towel
• zokni = sock

Their plurals are:

• törölközők = towels
• zoknik = socks

So a plural version might be:

• A törölközők már szárazak, de a zoknik még nedvesek.
  = The towels are already dry, but the socks are still wet.

This is useful because in Hungarian both the noun and the predicate adjective can show plurality in this kind of sentence.

Yes, Hungarian word order is flexible, but the version here is the most neutral and natural.

• A törölköző már száraz, de a zokni még nedves.

This gives a simple contrast:

• the towel is already dry
• the sock is still wet

You can move words around for emphasis, but that changes the feel.

For example:

• Már száraz a törölköző
  puts more attention on the fact that it is already dry

• Még nedves a zokni
  emphasizes that it is still wet

So the sentence you were given is a very standard, learner-friendly order.

Not completely fixed, but it is a very common pairing.

Hungarian often uses them together to show contrast in time or progress:

• már = one thing has already happened / reached a state
• még = another thing has still not changed / is still in that state

Examples:

• A leves már meleg, de a hús még hideg.
  = The soup is already warm, but the meat is still cold.

• Ő már itt van, de én még otthon vagyok.
  = He is already here, but I’m still at home.

So yes, this pairing is extremely natural.

Usually it means wet or damp, depending on context.

For clothing like socks, nedves often feels like damp/wet rather than soaking. In many everyday situations, English could translate it either way.

So:

• a zokni még nedves
  could be understood as
  the sock is still wet
  or
  the sock is still damp

The exact nuance depends on context, but wet is a perfectly normal translation.

A rough pronunciation guide:

• törölköző ≈ tuh-rul-kuh-zuh with rounded vowels

A few important spelling facts:

• ö and ő are rounded front vowels, somewhat like German ö
• sz is pronounced like English s
• plain s in Hungarian is pronounced like English sh
• zs is like the s in measure

Also, Hungarian stress is almost always on the first syllable:

• TÖ-röl-kö-ző

Even if your pronunciation is not perfect yet, getting the first-syllable stress and the sz = s rule right helps a lot.

Good question. They are related, but they are different parts of speech:

• száraz = dry (adjective)
• szárad = to dry / to become dry (verb, intransitive)

So:

• A törölköző száraz. = The towel is dry.
• A törölköző szárad. = The towel is drying.

That distinction is useful:

• száraz describes a state
• szárad describes a process

In normal Hungarian, you would usually keep it:

• A törölköző már száraz, de a zokni még nedves.

Repeating a before zokni sounds natural and complete. Hungarian often repeats the article where English might also repeat the.

Leaving it out would sound unusual in a basic sentence like this.

Yes, completely natural.

It is a simple, everyday sentence using:

• common household vocabulary
• normal contrast with de
• very common time/state markers már and még
• standard omission of is in the present tense

So it is a very good example sentence for learners.