-nak

Hungarian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Etymology 1

Case suffix.

Suffix

-nak/-nek (dative case suffix)

2. to, for

   húg (“younger sister”) → Adtam egy könyvet a húgomnak. ― I gave a book to my little sister.

3. 's, of (forms the possessive from the noun of the possessor, along with the ending -a/-e/-ja/-je added to the possession. Often omitted if the act of possession is not the predicate of the sentence.)

   szomszéd (“neighbor”) → A szomszédom(nak a) kertjében áll egy tölgyfa. ― There is an oak in my neighbor’s garden.

   múzeum (“museum”) → A múzeumnak két bejárata van. ― The museum has two entrances.

4. Indicates the second, predicative complement of several verbs, e.g. those with a sense like call, name, find, deem, judge (appellation or appraisal)
5. as, for (in the function or role specified)

   Ne dobd ki az újságot, jól jöhet még csomagolópapírnak. ― Don't throw out the newspaper, it could come in handy as wrapping paper.

6. Forms the concessive sense: used to devalue the predicate of the sentence when repeated and followed by a clause that contrasts with or contradicts it. See also -ni.

   Olcsónak olcsó, de ráférne egy felújítás. ― Cheap as it may be, but it could do with some renovation.

Usage notes

• (dative case suffix) Variants:

  -nak is added to back-vowel words. Final -a changes to -á-.

  házigazda (“host”) → Ajándékot hoztunk a házigazdának. ― We brought gifts for the host.

  -nek is added to front-vowel words. Final -e changes to -é-.

  gyerek (“child”) → Vettem egy játékot a gyereknek. ― I bought a toy for the child.

  körte (“pear”) → A körtének jó íze van. ― The pear tastes good. (literally, “to the pear there is a good flavor”)

  Szépnek szép, de nem valami hasznos. ― Pretty as it may be, but there's not much use of it.

See also

• neki

Etymology 2

Personal suffix.

Suffix

-nak

2. (personal suffix) Forms the third-person plural and formal second-person plural present tense (indicative mood, indefinite conjugation).

   ‎olvas (“read”) + ‎-nak → ‎olvasnak (“they read, they are reading; (formal) you read, you are reading”)

Usage notes

• (personal suffix) Variants:

  -nak is added to back-vowel verbs

  tanul (“study”) → A gyerekek nem tanulnak eleget. ― The children are not studying enough.

  -nek is added to front-vowel verbs

  énekel (“sing”) → A madarak énekelnek. ― The birds are singing.

  -anak is added to front-vowel verbs ending in two consonants or -ít

  tanít (“teach”) → Mire tanítanak minket az állatok? ― What do animals teach us?

  -enek is added to front-vowel verbs ending in two consonants or -ít

  fest (“paint”) → A gyerekek festenek. ― The children are painting.

See also

• Category:Hungarian terms taking -nak/-nek
• Appendix:Hungarian suffixes

Ilocano

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nak/

Pronoun

{head|ilo|pronoun}}

1. Fused enclitic with second-person singular agent and first-person singular patient; fuses -mo (“you, your”) and -ak (“I, me”)

   Ay-ayatennak? ― Do you love me?

2. Fused enclitic with third-person singular agent and first-person singular patient; fuses -na (“he, she, it, his, her, its”) and -ak (“I, me”)

   Imbatinak itattay. ― He/she left me a while ago.

Usage notes

• The pronoun is often conflated with -ak in colloquial speech.

See also