Giving directions in Hungarian isn’t difficult. However, it is a must if you’d like to master the language. Basic directions in the Hungarian language aren’t too complicated, and we’ve created a short summary to make it even easier for you.
Learning a new language requires us to prepare for many things, and knowing how to ask for directions is perhaps the most important of them all. Imagine yourself walking down the street and getting lost in your favorite country: how do you ask for help?
Asking for directions in Hungarian on the street is a common thing, and the Hungarian culture is quite open and friendly. We at the HungarianPod101.com family believe you should start your learning journey by learning about directions. Read this article and learn how to ask and give directions in Hungarian!
Table of Contents
- On the Map
- On the Road
- Landmarks
- In a Building
- Must-know Phrases for Asking for Directions
- Must-know Phrases for Giving Directions
- Putting it all Together: Talking About Directions
- Conclusion: How HungarianPod101.com Helps You Master Hungarian
1. On the Map
Understanding the map is a complicated task in itself, even more so when you don’t even know the words on it. Directions in Hungarian aren’t difficult to master. Interested to know the cardinal directions in Hungarian? If yes, then continue reading!
“North” – észak
Basic Sentence:
“Esztergom is in the North.”
Esztergom északon van.
Advanced Sentence:
“Esztergom is in the northern part of Hungary.”
Esztergom Magyarország északi részén található.
In the first sentence, “is” translates to van and “in the north” is északon. In the advanced sentence, “in the northern part of Hungary” translates to Magyarország északi részén and “is” means található (literally: can be found).
Esztergom is a small, beautiful city in Hungary, with such monuments as the famous Bazilika Church, the Christian Museum, as well as wonderful places in nature like the Danube River and the Saint Thomas Hill.
“South” – dél
Basic Sentence:
“It’s in the South.”
Délen van.
Advanced Sentence:
“My grandma lives in the southern part of Hungary.”
A nagymamám Magyarország déli részén él.
“West” – nyugat
Basic Sentence:
“That’s the western part of Budapest.”
Az Budapest nyugati része.
Advanced Sentence:
“I’m living in the western part of Budapest.”
Budapest nyugati részén élek.
By looking at the examples above, you can see that by adding -i (adjectival suffix) to a direction in Hungarian, you can use that word as an adjective in the sentence: észak+i, dél+i, nyugat+i, etc.
“East” – kelet
Basic Sentence:
“The East is that way.”
Kelet arra van.
Advanced Sentence:
“The eastern part of Hungary has beautiful forests.”
Magyarország keleti részén gyönyörű erdők találhatóak.
“Northwest” – északnyugat
“It’s in the Northwest.”
Északnyugaton van.
“Northeast” – északkelet
“Salgótarján is in the Northeast.”
Salgótarján északkeleten van.
Salgótarján is a small city in Hungary, located in the Cserhát hills. It has a country-wide popular football club called Salgótarján BTC. To read more about it, check this website.
“Southeast” – délkelet
“I love watching TV.”
Szeretek tévét nézni.
“Southwest” – délnyugat
“The Southwest part of Hungary is beautiful.”
Magyarország délnyugati része szép.
If you’re struggling a bit with grammar here, don’t worry! We wrote an article to help you with basic Hungarian grammar.
2. On the Road
When you’re on the road, you need to know the most common Hungarian directions to succeed. In this section, we’re going to give you some useful vocabulary and some examples of how to ask and give directions in Hungarian. Asking for directions in Hungarian on the street is something you’ll definitely need to be good at when visiting the country. After reading this, saying common expressions like “turn left” in Hungarian won’t be an issue anymore.
“Front” – előtt
Basic Sentence:
“I’m in front of the shop.”
A bolt előtt vagyok.
In this sentence, “I’m” is vagyok, “in front of” translates to előtt, and “the shop” means a bolt.
“Behind” – mögött
Basic Sentence:
“She’s behind the car.”
Az autó mögött van.
“Left” – bal
Basic Sentence:
“Turn left!”
Fordulj balra! / Nézz balra!
Did you know that “turn” in Hungarian translates to two different things? It can either mean fordulj as “turn” in English or nézz as “look” in English.
“Right” – jobb
“Turn right!”
Fordulj jobbra! / Nézz jobbra!
“Far” – messze
“I’m living far away.”
Messze lakom.
“Close” – közel
“It’s close to my workplace.”
Közel van a munkahelyemhez.
3. Landmarks
As you can see, giving directions in Hungarian is easy. However, to really master it, it’s important to know some important landmarks, too.
“Airport” – repülőtér
“The airport is closed.”
A repülőtér zárva van.
In this sentence, “the airport” translates to a repülőtér and “is closed” means zárva van. In an informal environment, you can also use reptér instead of repülőtér.
“Bus stop” – buszmegálló
“The bus stop is close to my house.”
A buszmegálló közel van a házamhoz.
In this sentence, közel van means “close.”
For phrases you might need at the bus or train station in Hungary, check out this vocabulary list.
“Train station” – vonatállomás
“The train station is huge.”
A vonatállomás hatalmas.
“Bank” – bank
“The bank is open.”
A bank nyitva van.
“City center” – városközpont
“I’m at the city center.”
A városközpontban vagyok.
“Park” – park
“Let’s meet at the park!”
Találkozzunk a parkban!
In this sentence, találkozzunk means “let’s meet.”
“Hotel” – hotel
“This hotel is too expensive.”
Ez a hotel túlságosan drága.
In this sentence, ez a hotel means “this hotel,” “too” translates to túlságosan (or formally túl), and “expensive” means drága.
“Hospital” – kórház
“This hospital has been fully renovated.”
Ezt a kórházat teljeskörűen felújították.
In this sentence, ezt a kórházat means “this hospital,” “fully” translates to teljeskörűen (or teljesen informally), and “has been renovated” translates to felújították.
“Intersection” – kereszteződés
To draw someone’s attention to something dangerous on the road, use vigyázz in Hungarian. This translates to “watch out.”
“Watch out in the intersection!”
Vigyázz a kereszteződésben!
“Crosswalk” – zebra
“Watch out on the crosswalk!”
Vigyázz a zebrán!
“Traffic sign” – közúti jelzőtábla
“I don’t understand this traffic sign.”
Nem értem ezt a közútí jelzőtáblát.
In this sentence, “I don’t understand” means nem értem and “this traffic sign” means ezt a közúti jelzőtáblát.
4. In a Building
When in a building, you may need to know where the restroom, entrance, and exit are. Here are some words and example sentences you can use to ask.
“Restroom” – mosdó
“Where is the restroom?”
Hol van a mosdó?
“Entrance” – bejárat
“That’s the entrance.”
Az a bejárat.
“Exit” – kijárat
“I can’t find the exit.”
Nem találom a kijáratot.
If you think you could make use of knowing more core words, check out our list of 100 core words in Hungarian.
“Stairs” – lépcső
“Come up the stairs!”
Gyere fel a lépcsőn!
“Elevator” – lift
“I’m coming with the elevator.”
Lifttel jövök.
“Floor” – emelet
“The first floor.”
Az első emelet.
5. Must-know Phrases for Asking for Directions
There are some phrases you have to know by heart if you want to master asking basic directions in the Hungarian language. These include polite phrases to start the question and courtesy phrases to thank people for their help. Let’s see some examples!
1- “Excuse me…” – Elnézést…
“Excuse me, where is the entrance?”
Elnézést, hol van a bejárat?
In this sentence, “where is” translates to hol van and a bejárat means “the entrance.”
2- “May I ask…” – Megkérdezhetem…
“May I ask where the exit is?”
Megkérdezhetem, hogy hol van a kijárat?
3- “Where is the…?” – Hol van a/ az…?
“Where is the restroom?”
Hol van a mosdó?
4- “I can’t find the…” – Nem találom a/ az…
“I can’t find the parking lot.”
Nem találom a parkolót.
5- “Thank you.” – Köszönöm.
“Thank you for the flowers.”
Köszönöm a virágokat.
6- “I don’t understand.” – Nem értem.
“I don’t understand you.”
Nem értelek.
For more key phrases in Hungarian, check out our vocabulary list.
6. Must-know Phrases for Giving Directions
What if you want to master giving directions? It’s easy!
In one of our articles about Hungarian introductions, we already mentioned how important it is to differentiate between the formal and informal ways of talking to people. When meeting strangers on the street, you shouldn’t start talking to them in an informal way. Thus, when giving or asking for directions, always aim to use formal forms, just like we will in the examples below.
1- “Go straight” – Menjen egyenesen
“Go straight on this street.”
Menjen egyenesen ezen az utcán.
In this sentence, ezen az utcán means “on this street.”
2- “Go back” – Menjen visszafelé
“Go back on this street.”
Menjen visszafelé ezen az utcán.
3- “Turn left” – Forduljon balra
“Then, turn left at the corner.”
Majd forduljon balra a sarkon.
In this sentence, “then” means majd and “at the corner” translates to a sarkon.
4- “Turn right” – Forduljon jobbra
“Turn right at the bus stop.”
Forduljon jobbra a buszmegállónál.
5- “On … floor” – A … emeleten
“It’s on the second floor.”
A második emeleten van.
For more numbers in Hungarian, please check out our vocabulary list.
6- “Stop” – Álljon meg
“Stop at the red house.”
Álljon meg a piros háznál.
7. Putting it all Together: Talking About Directions
Now you know all the most important words and expressions related to directions. Let’s see a short conversation to put it all together.
A: “Sorry, where can I find the elevator?” (Elnézést, hol találom a liftet?)
B: “Go straight and you’ll find it next to the shop.” (Menjen egyenesen és a bolt mellett lesz.)
A: “Thank you. Is the exit also nearby?” (Köszönöm. A kijárat is a közelben van?)
B: “No. It’s at the other side of the building.” (Nem, az az épület másik oldalán van.)
8. Conclusion: How HungarianPod101.com Helps You Master Hungarian
As you can see by now, basic directions in the Hungarian language aren’t difficult to master at all. If you want to master this beautiful language, it’s essential to go through these expressions and learn them all. After that, you’ll know how to ask and give directions in Hungarian and will never get lost on the streets for long.
Learning about directions in Hungarian is fun. If you think you need more help, join the HungarianPod101 family and we’ll support you the whole way!
After reading all this, how do you say “The airport is in front of the bus stop” in Hungarian? Let us know! 🙂
