Learn about negation and double negatives
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Simone: Hi everyone and welcome to HungarianPod101.com. This is Lower Beginner, season 2, lesson 21, Make Sure You Carry a Towel if You’re in Hungary at Easter! I’m Simone. |
| Csaba: And I’m Csaba. |
| Simone: In this lesson you're going to learn negation, and what to say at Easter. |
| Csaba: The conversation takes place in Anne’s apartment. |
| Simone: Between Anne and Balázs. |
| Csaba: They use informal language. |
| Simone: Let’s listen to the conversation. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Simone: So Czaba, what's the Easter holiday like in Hungary? |
| Csaba: Nowadays unfortunately a lot of people try to get out of it. But traditionally you basically walk up to a girl, say one of the Easter limericks and then spray cologne on them. For this, you get a chocolate egg or rabbit. |
| Simone: That's an interesting tradition. |
| Csaba: In the olden days, it was a lot more fun. Guys would splash buckets of cold water on girls, and there would be hand-painted eggs. |
| Simone: Well, that's definitely more fun for the guys than us girls. |
| Csaba: Ah, yes. But it also had more sense of tradition. After this whole ceremony, you eat a lot of sweets and cakes and probably drink a lot as well. |
| Simone: Well, when is that not part of a celebration? All right, let's go to the vocab. |
| The first word we shall see is? |
| Locsol. |
| Sprinkle. |
| Locsol. |
| Locsol. |
| Next? |
| Locsolóvers. |
| Easter limerick. |
| Locsolóvers. |
| Locsolóvers. |
| Next? |
| Húsvét. |
| Easter. |
| Húsvét. |
| Húsvét. |
| Next? |
| Csoki. |
| Chocolate. |
| Csoki. |
| Csoki. |
| Next? |
| Tojás. |
| Egg. |
| Tojás. |
| Tojás. |
| Next? |
| Nyúl. |
| Rabbit. |
| Nyúl. |
| Next? |
| Sem. |
| Neither. |
| Sem. |
| Sem. |
| Next? |
| Kellemes. |
| Nice. |
| Kellemes. |
| Kellemes. |
| Last? |
| Hideg. |
| Cold. |
| Hideg. |
| Hideg. |
| KEY VOCAB AND PHRASES |
| Simone: Let's have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Csaba: The first phrase is, Szabad locsolni? |
| Simone: And what does this mean? |
| Csaba: It means, “May I sprinkle water on you?” It is only used on Easter, although you can always try. |
| Simone: So the second word, locsolni, is? |
| Csaba: To sprinkle. And it also means to water. |
| Simone: All right, a bit of traditional Hungarian culture and language for you. |
| Csaba: Even better if you say: Szabad e locsolni? |
| Simone: One more time. |
| Csaba: Szabad e locsolni? The "e" sound doesn't really add to the meaning, and a grammar explanation is not necessary here, but it sounds a lot more authentic and traditional, old Hungarian. Szabad-e locsolni? |
| Simone: All right, this will make you sound like a local on Easter. |
| Csaba: Also, you have to know that if you're a guy, on Easter you are called the locsoló. |
| Simone: Repeat please. |
| Csaba: Locsoló. This word means "the person who does the sprinkling." |
| Simone: That's right. So why not use it in a typical Easter-related sentence for us? |
| Csaba: Én vagyok a locsoló. |
| Simone: "I am the sprinkler!" You have to state this before you launch the bucket of water or cologne. |
| Csaba: And the limerick? |
| Simone: That comes before "Én vagyok a locsoló." |
| Csaba: Easter limerick is locsolóvers. |
| Simone: We know locsoló. What is vers? |
| Csaba: Vers means poem. |
| Simone: Use it in a sentence, please. |
| Csaba: Mondok egy locsolóverset. |
| Simone: "I'll say a limerick!" |
| Simone: All right, we've got you all prepared for Easter now, listeners. |
| Csaba: Yes, and the rest is your job. A huge meal will help you stay sober. |
| Simone: Good advice. Ok, let’s go to grammar. |
| GRAMMAR POINT |
| Simone: In this lesson you're going to learn more about negation. |
| Csaba: We've had tons of sentences with the negation, but it is worth exploring in a more systematic way. The most straightforward way of using the negative nem is putting it in front of a conjugated verb. |
| Simone: Right, and by doing that, you negate the entire sentence. Give us an example for that, please, Csaba. |
| Csaba: Nem megyek iskolába. |
| Simone: "I'm not going to school." |
| Csaba: Nem megyek iskolába. "Megyek" is the conjugated verb, before which "nem" came. |
| Simone: All right, and one more like this. |
| Csaba: Tamás nem kér kávét. |
| Simone: "Thomas doesn't want coffee." |
| Csaba: Tamás nem kér kávét. Similar structure. |
| Simone: Okay, and what's next? |
| Csaba: You don't necessarily want to negate the entire sentence, just a part of it. Listen to this one: Tamás nem kávét kér. |
| Simone: "It is not coffee that Thomas wants." |
| Csaba: Tamás nem kávét kér. |
| Simone: So basically, whatever you put "nem" before, that part gets negated. We know Thomas wants something, but it's not coffee. Now let's see this one: Nem Tamás kér kávét. |
| Simone: Again, please. |
| Csaba: Nem Tamás kér kávét. |
| Simone: "It is not Thomas who wants coffee." |
| Csaba: Exactly. Now often when you negate one part of the sentence, another clause might follow, one starting with "but." In Hungarian, "hanem." |
| Simone: All right, let's see. |
| Csaba: Nem Tamás kér kávét, hanem Péter. |
| Simone: "It is not Thomas who wants coffee, but Péter." |
| Csaba: Nem Tamás kér kávét, hanem Péter. |
| Simone: "Hanem" means "but," then? |
| Csaba: I would say that it leads in the second clause in these cases. |
| Simone: Let's hear another example. |
| Csaba: We change direction and learn "neither." The Hungarian word for that is "sem." |
| Simone: "I'm not going either." |
| Csaba: Én sem megyek. Compare with: Én nem megyek. |
| Simone: "I'm not going." So, "sem" means "neither." |
| Csaba: Right. I think we can put this grammar part to bed, but the lesson notes, as usual, will contain more examples and sentences. |
Outro |
|---|
| Simone: Okay, that's it for this lesson. Thanks everyone. We'll see you next time. |
| Csaba: Sziasztok. |
Comments
HideDo people celebrate "húsvét" (Easter) in your country? If yes, are there any special traditions?
Szia Zuzanna!
Nocsak, how similar those traditions are! And I wonder if that's the reason why waterproof smart phones have been invented though.😄
Szép napot!🌞
Erika
Team HungarianPod101.com
Sprinkling water on Easter Monday is a nice tradition practiced among family and friends, which is still alive in Poland. When I was a child, gangs of teenagers would throw buckets of water at random people going to church or riding the bus. I almost fell off my bike once when someone threw water on my face. Nowadays, teenagers prefer to keep their smartphones dry and stay at home on Easter Monday.
Szia Denis,
Köszönöm szépen for your comment! 😄 Yeeees, I know this! It's a super popular one for Easter sprinkling. There might be dozens of varieties but the most well-known one is as follows:
Zöld erdőben jártam, (I was walking in a green forest,)
Kék ibolyát láttam, (I saw a blue violet,)
El akart hervadni, (it was about to start to wilt,)
Szabad-e locsolni? (may I sprinkle it?)
I hope you enjoy our lessons. Sok szerencsét! Good luck! 😇
Kind regards,
Levente
Team HungarianPod101.com
I was asked to pray par-fume on the girl and resit poam
somethig like
a erdo latom
2 iboya latom
forgot the rest
Hi Amy,
The very first hit on google will get you to a site which has a great collection of these, yet some of them are longer and quite advanced for a language learner. If you want to, look up a shorter one, maybe one where you recognize some of the words and copy it here - I'll help you translate the rest and explain the grammar. How does that sound? :)
Csaba
Team HungarianPod101.com
Could you tell us where to find some examples of a Locsolóvers?
Hi Lisa,
Make sure you ask someone to get you a bucket of cold water next time you're in Hungary. (Around Easter, preferably.) :)
Csaba
Team HungarianPod101.com
én már elfelejtettem a "locsolni" szertartás. ez olyan aranyos leckét. hozta vissza a gyermekkori emléket.