[This is taken from the Duolingo Hungarian Tips & Notes ]
The knights who say "Ni!" - The infinitive
Here, you will meet the infinitive form of a verb. The infinitive form always ends with -ni. For regular verbs, just take the singular third person form and attach a -ni.
| English | Hungarian | |
|---|---|---|
| S/3 | he/she studies | tanul |
| infinitive | to study | tanulni |
| S/3 | he/she runs | fut |
| infinitive | to run | futni |
| S/3 | he/she dances | táncol |
| infinitive | to dance | táncolni |
For verbs ending in -ik, remove the -ik and add the -ni.
| English | Hungarian | |
|---|---|---|
| S/3 | he/she plays tennis | teniszezik |
| infinitive | to play tennis | teniszezni |
| S/3 | he/she plays football | focizik |
| infinitive | to play football | focizni |
Sometimes you might find two consonants at the end of a verb, it can also happen when you “remove” the “-ik” ending. In this case, you will have to add an extra vowel to glue it to the “-ni”. For example:
| English | Hungarian | |
|---|---|---|
| S/3 | he/she says | mond |
| infinitive | to say | mondani |
| S/3 | he/she takes a bath | fürdik |
| infinitive | to take a bath | fürdeni |
Finally, of course, there are some irregular verbs. From this list you will meet in this skill “enni, inni, menni, venni, lenni”. But we wanted to show you all the irregular ones, as they are those verbs which usually behave differently.
| English | Hungarian | |
|---|---|---|
| S/3 | he/she goes | megy |
| infinitive | to go | menni |
| S/3 | he/she eats | eszik |
| inf | to eat | enni |
| S/3 | he/she drinks | iszik |
| inf | to drink | inni |
| S/3 | he/she buys | vesz |
| inf | to buy | venni |
| S/3 | he/she is | van |
| inf | to be | lenni |
| S/3 | he/she believes | hisz |
| inf | to believe | hinni |
| S/3 | he/she puts | tesz |
| inf | to put | tenni |
| S/3 | he/she brings | visz |
| inf | to bring | vinni |
Combining with other verbs
The infinitive form is usually used when there is another verb in the sentence, which can express:
I. a preference (to love, to hate, to like doing / to do something):
Szeretek táncolni. - I like to dance. /I like dancing.
Utálok táncolni. - I hate dancing.
II. a capacity or capability to do something:
Tudok táncolni. - I can dance. / I know how to dance
Nem tudok táncolni. - I can’t dance. / I don't know how to dance.
Depending on the context, "tud" can be translated as "can" or "know".
III. a desire, a wish (I would like to do something):
Szeretnék táncolni. - I would like to dance.
Nem szeretnék táncolni. - I wouldn’t like to dance.
IV. a possibility (It is allowed / It is possible):
Lehet táncolni. - It is allowed to dance.
Nem lehet táncolni. - It is not possible to dance. / It is not allowed to dance.
V. expresses a habit: It is like adding “usually” to the sentence. (Or you can imagine "I used to dance", but in the present tense.)
Szoktam táncolni. - I usually dance. / I dance.
Nem szoktam táncolni. - I don’t dance usually. / I don’t usually dance. / I don't dance.
| szokott | |
|---|---|
| (én) | szoktam |
| (te) | szoktál |
| (ő/Ön) | szokott |
| (mi) | szoktunk |
| (ti) | szoktatok |
| (ők/Önök) | szoktak |
Can it have an object?
Yes, you can say ‘I like eating cheese.’ or ‘I hate eating cheese.’ depending on your taste :). You have to change the word order, and put the object (with the accusative ending ‘-t’) before the infinitive.
Szeretek sajtot enni. = I like eating cheese.
Utálok sajtot enni. = I hate eating cheese.
other examples:
Szeretnék sört inni. = I would like to drink beer.
Szeretnék almát enni. = I would like to eat an apple.
Nem szeretnék tévét nézni. = I would not like to watch tv.
Itt lehet kenyeret venni. = It is possible to buy bread here.
In this case you expressed something in general. If you would like to express your desire to do something with a specific thing, it is also possible. For example, you can say “I would like to eat an apple.” or “I would like to drink a coffee.” As the article “a/an” appeared in the English sentence, it will also appear in the Hungarian, and then we will have the same word order as in English, and the object will come after the infinitive.
Szeretnék enni egy almát. = I would like to eat an apple.
Szeretnék inni egy kávét. = I would like to drink a coffee.
Szeretnék venni egy házat. = I would like to buy a house.
"would like to"
It looks similar, so be careful with "like" and "would like to". (The "would like to" version is the conditional of the verb "szeret".)
| like | would like to | |
|---|---|---|
| (én) | szeretek | szeretnék |
| (te) | szeretsz | szeretnél |
| (ő/Ön) | szeret | szeretne |
| (mi) | szeretünk | szeretnénk |
| (ti) | szerettek | szeretnétek |
| (ők/Önök) | szeretnek | szeretnének |
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