Hungarian to English examples

Gyorsan szeretném megtanulni az angolt.

→ I want to learn English quickly.

Hungarian flexible word order means 'quickly' can move around the sentence. English puts adverbs in fixed positions — usually after the verb phrase.

Három éve tanulom az angolt.

→ I have been learning English for three years.

Hungarian uses the present tense with the time phrase 'három éve' (three years ago/for three years). English uses the present perfect continuous — a tense distinction Hungarian does not make.

Kérem, beszéljen lassabban.

→ Please speak more slowly.

Hungarian uses the formal imperative form of the verb for polite requests. English uses 'please' as a separate politeness marker with the base form of the verb.

Ha többet tanultam volna, megírtam volna a vizsgát.

→ If I had studied more, I would have passed the exam.

Hungarian uses 'volna' as a conditional particle with past tense. English uses past perfect in the condition and 'would have' in the result — the logic is similar.

Az angol egy nagyon fontos nyelv.

→ English is a very important language.

Hungarian 'egy' here acts as the indefinite article — similar to English 'a'. Note that English puts 'is' in the middle — Hungarian can sometimes imply 'is' without stating it.