Tourist dictionary

(English-Hungarian)

 

The pronunciatiuon of some Hungarian vowels is different from their English counterparts:
a - say it like the a at the end of 'Amerika' - somewhere between the vowel sounds in cut and cot
á - starts like the middle sound of 'cat' but is quite a bit longer
e - say it like the start of 'enter'
é - is a bit wider sound, such as the middle sound in 'way' or the one after 'w' in 'whale'
ö, ő - sound like the one after 'w' in 'whirl' or the 'u' in 'church'
u, ú - sound like 'ou' in 'you' or the end of 'do'
ü, ű - say it like the one starts 'urgent'
o, ó, i, í - sounds the same as in english, except that the ones with the ascent are longer, and i is always sounds like 'ee' in 'see' never 'ay' like in the word 'icon'

Consonents (Only those that differ from English are listed here)

c   - always a soft sound,  like tz in Tzar
cs  - like ch in church
dz  - like the consonent in adze
dzs -  like J in Jungle
gy - nearly the same as the j in judge, but slightly softer - a cross between d and y
ly - like y in year
ny - like the first sound in new
s  - like sh in sheep
sz - like a standard s, for example, in sound
ty - sounds like the t in top and the ch in chop combined quickly.
w - not really used in Hungarian - only in foreign words, and pronounced exactlz like the letter v
zs - a soft sound like in Dr Zhivago

A list of helpful words
(easy pronuciation tip - enter any hungarian word in Google translate and press the loudspeaker symbol to hear it - the intonation will not be always be correct though - stress is always on the first syllable. )

English - angol [ɒn-gol]
Hungarian - magyar [mɒɟɒr]
Hungary - Magyarország [mɒɟɒr-or-sa:g]
Good - [jo:]
Bad - Rossz [ros:]
Subway - Metro [mɛt-ro:]
Train - Vonat [vo-nɒt]
Bus - Busz [bus]
Taxi / cab - Taxi [tɒk-si]
Airport - Repülőtér [rɛ-py-lø-te:r]
Fire - Tűz [ty:z]
Water - Víz [vi:z]
Cold - Hideg [hi-dɛg]
Warm - Meleg [mɛlɛg]
Hotel - Hotel / Szálloda [sa:l:-odɒ]
Room - Szoba [sobɒ]
Left - Bal [bɒl]
Right - Jobb [job:]
Man - Férfi [fe:r-fi]
Woman - [nø:]
Child - Gyermek [ɟɛr-mɛk]
Cell phone - Mobil [mobil]
Gas station - benzinkút [bɛn-zin ku:t]
Non-stop, 24/7 shop - Non-stop / éjjel-nappali [e:-jɛl nɒp:-ɒli]

Greetings, basic communication:
Hi / hello / so long / bye-bye / see you later - Szia [siɒ]
Yes - Igen [igɛn]
No - Nem [nɛm]
Don't! - Ne! [nɛ]
OK / good / fine - oké [oke:] / [jo:] / rendben [rɛnd-bɛn]
Thank you! - Köszönöm. [køsø-nøm]
Thank you very much! - Köszönöm szépen. [køsø-nøm se:pɛn]
You are welcome! - Szívesen! [si:-vɛ-ʃɛn]
Goodbye! - Viszlát! [vis-la:t] (Hungarians also understand bye-bye as an expression to say goodbye.)
Good morning! - Jó reggelt! [jo: rɛg:-ɛlt]
Good afternoon! - Jó napot! [jo: nɒpot] (literally means: Good day!)
Good evening! - Jó estét! [jo: ɛʃ-te:t]
Good night! - Jó éjt! [jo: e:jt]
Have a nice day! - Szép napot! [se:p nɒpot]
My name is… - Az én nevem… [ɒz e:n nɛvɛm]
I am... - ...vagyok. [vɒ-ɟok]
What's your name? - Hogy hívnak? [hoɟ hi:vnɒk]
Nice to meet you. - Örvendek. [ør-vɛn-dɛk]
Please - Kérem [ke:rɛm]
I'm from … - Én jöttem … [e:n jøt:ɛm]
That's very nice. - Nagyon kedves. [nɒɟon kɛdɛv∫]
Excuse me - Elnézést [ɛl-ne:-ze: ∫t]
Sorry - Bocsánat [bo-t∫a:-nɒt]
I don't know - Nem tudom [nɛm tudom]
I don't understand - Nem értem [nɛm e:r-tɛm]
How are you? - Hogy vagy? [hoɟ vɒɟ]
I'm good. / I'm fine. - Jól vagyok. [jo:l vɒ-ɟok]
Let's go! - Gyerünk! [ɟɛ-rynk]
I like it! - Tetszik. [tɛt-sik]
I love it! - Szeretem. [sɛ-rɛ-tɛm]
Come here! - Gyere ide! [ɟɛrɛ idɛ]
Go away! - Menj el! [mɛɲ ɛl]

Drinking and eating
Cheers! - Egészségedre! [ɛge:s-ʃe:gɛd-rɛ] (literally means: to or for your health)
Bless you! - Egészségedre! [ɛge:s-ʃe:gɛd-rɛ]
Wine - Bor [bor]
Beer - Sör [ʃør]
mug - korsó [kor-ʃo:]
refresher drink - üdítő [ydi:tø:]
glass - pohár [po-ha:r]
bottle - üveg [yvɛg]
Drinking water - ivóvíz [ivo:-vi:z]
Restaurant - étterem [e:t-tɛ-rɛm]
Fast food restaurant - gyorsétterem [ɟor∫-e:t-tɛ-rɛm]
Café - kávézó [ka:-ve:-zo:]
Bar - bár [ba:r]
Open - Nyitva [ɲit-vɒ]
Closed - Zárva [za:r-vɒ]
Push - Tolni [tolni]
Pull - Húzni [hu:z-ni]
Entrance - Bejárat [bɛ-ja:rɒt]
Exit - Kijárat [ki-ja:rɒt]
Toilet - WC [ve:-tse:]
Toilet / Washroom - Mosdó [mo∫-do:]
Enjoy you meal - Jó étvágyat! [jo: e:t-va:-ɟɒt]
Do you have free table? - Van szabad asztaluk? [vɒn sɒbɒd ɒs-tɒ-luk]
Delicious - finom [fi-nom]
Small - kicsi [ki-t∫i]
Large / Big - nagy [nɒɟ]
I'm hungry. - Éhes vagyok! [e:-hɛ∫ vɒ-ɟok]

Questions
Do you speak English? - Beszélsz angolul? [bɛ-se:ls ɒngo-lul]
How much does it cost? - Mennyibe kerül? [mɛɲ:ibɛ kɛryl]
What's the time? - Mennyi az idő? [mɛɲ:i ɒz idø:]
Where can I find the...? - Hol találom a …? [hol tɒ-la:-lom]
Where can I buy tickets? - Hol tudok jegyet venni? [hol tudok jɛɟɛt vɛnni]
Is it far? - Messze van? [mɛs:ɛ vɒn]
Is it free? - Ez ingyenes? [ɛz inɟɛ-nɛ∫]
Are there any vacancies? - Van szabad szobájuk? [vɒn sɒ-bɒd soba:-juk]
How many stops? - Hány megálló? [ha:ɲ mɛg-a:lo:]

Help
First aid - elsősegély [ɛl-∫ø-∫ɛ-ge:j]
Help - Segítség [∫ɛgi:t-∫e:g]
Fire department - Tűzoltók [ty:z-ol-to:k]
Police - Rendőrség [rɛn-dø:r-∫e:g]
Ambulance - Mentők [mɛn-tø:k]
(Medical) Doctor - Orvos [or-vo∫] / doktor [dok-tor]
Forbidden - Tilos [ti:-lo∫]
Look out! / Watch out! - Vigyázz! [vi:-ɟa:z:]
Thief! - Tolvaj! [tol-vɒj]
Stop! - Stop! [∫top] / Állj! [a:lj]
Pharmacy - Gyógyszertár [ɟoɟ-sɛr-ta:r]

Numbers
One - Egy [ɛɟ]
Two - Kettő [kɛttø:]
Three - Három [ha:rom]
Four - Négy [ne:ɟ]
Five - Öt [øt]
Six - Hat [hɒt]
Seven - Hét [he:t]
Eight - Nyolc [ɲolts]
Nine - Kilenc [kilɛnts]
Ten - Tíz [ti:z]
Hundred - Száz [sa:z]
Thousand - Ezer [ɛzɛr]
Million - Millió [mil-lio:]
Billion - Milliárd [milli-a:rd]
Many / a lot - Sok [∫ok]
Few / a little - Kevés [kɛ-ve:∫]
 

Time
Today - Ma [mɒ]
Tomorrow - Holnap [hol-nɒp]
Yesterday - Tegnap [tɛg-nɒp]
Monday - Hétfő [he:t-fø:]
Tuesday - Kedd [kɛd:]
Wednesday - Szerda [sɛr-dɒ]
Thursday - Csütörtök [t∫y-tør-tøk]
Friday - Péntek [pe:n-tɛk]
Saturday - Szombat [som-bɒt]
Sunday - Vasárnap [vɒ-∫a:r-nɒp]
Now - most [mo∫t]
Never - soha [∫ohɒ]
Later - később [ke:-∫ø:b]

Online guide to pronouncing Hungarian words with examples and sound-a-likes here!

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