Passive-like Constructions in Hungarian

In Brief

Modern Hungarian usually expresses an English passive without a passive verb form. It may use an unspoken third-person-plural agent (Megépítették a házat “The house was built”), present the event as a change (A feladat megoldódott “The problem got resolved”), express possibility with -ható/-hető (olvasható “readable”), or describe a resulting state with -va/-ve van (Az ajtó be van zárva “The door is closed”). The best choice depends on whether you want to emphasize an action, a process, a possibility, or a state.

Overview

In an English passive such as “The letter was sent,” the receiver of the action becomes the subject (the person or thing that the sentence presents as acting or being in a state), while the agent—the person who sent it—can remain unnamed. Hungarian can convey the same message, but it normally reorganizes it in another way rather than using a general equivalent of English be + past participle.

This is an important B2 skill because translating English passives word for word often produces unnatural Hungarian. You already need control of tense and of the definite and indefinite conjugations. A direct object (the person or thing directly affected by an action) still takes the accusative -t when Hungarian uses an active third-person-plural sentence: a háza-t, a levele-t.

There is no single replacement that works in every context. Hungarian asks you to choose the intended viewpoint. Did unnamed people perform an action? Did something happen without a stated cause? Is something possible? Or are you describing the state left after an action? Once that distinction is clear, the Hungarian construction is usually straightforward.

How It Works

1. An unnamed agent: third-person plural

The most direct everyday substitute for many English passives is an active verb in the third person plural with no stated subject:

(unnamed people) + plural verb + object in the accusative

• Megépítették a házat. — “The house was built.” Literally, “They built the house.”
• Itt beszélik a magyart. — “Hungarian is spoken here.”
• Holnap kézbesítik a csomagot. — “The parcel will be delivered tomorrow.”

The omitted “they” does not point to a known group. It means something like “someone,” “people,” or “the relevant authorities.” English changes the receiver into the subject; Hungarian leaves it as an object, so the accusative ending remains.

The ordinary conjugation rules still apply:

Object	Typical plural ending	Example
Definite or specifically identified	definite conjugation, often -ják/-ik in the present and -ták/-ték in the past	A levelet elküldték. “The letter was sent.”
Indefinite or no object	indefinite conjugation, often -nak/-nek in the present	Itt új házakat építenek. “New houses are being built here.”

The exact ending depends on the verb and tense, not just on this passive-like use. The important point is that these are normal active plural forms.

This strategy works best when a human or institutional agent is easy to imagine: officials issue a document, workers repair a road, staff serve food, or people speak a language. It is less suitable when the sentence presents a spontaneous event with no implied human doer.

2. Events and changes: middle or inchoative verbs

Hungarian often uses an intransitive verb—a verb with no direct object—to present what happens to a thing:

• Az ajtó kinyílt. — “The door opened.”
• A feladat megoldódott. — “The problem got resolved.”
• A ház megépült. — “The house was built / got built.”

Here az ajtó, a feladat, and a ház are subjects, so they have no accusative -t. The sentence does not name an agent. It views the event as a change affecting the subject.

Some such verbs contain -ódik/-ődik, selected according to vowel harmony:

Form	Broad meaning	Example
-ódik	event/process with back-vowel harmony	megoldódik “gets resolved”
-ődik	event/process with front-vowel harmony	fejlődik “develops”

However, -ódik/-ődik is not a freely attachable passive ending. Forms must be learned as real verbs, and their meanings may be lexicalized. Hungarian also uses many other change-of-state verbs, such as kinyílik “opens,” bezárul “closes,” elkészül “is completed,” and megépül “gets built.” A dictionary is safer than inventing a new -ódik/-ődik form.

Compare the viewpoints:

Hungarian	Viewpoint	Natural English rendering
Megoldották a problémát.	unnamed people solved it	“The problem was solved.”
A probléma megoldódott.	the problem reached a solution	“The problem got resolved.”
Megépítették a házat.	builders performed the action	“The house was built.”
A ház megépült.	the building reached completion	“The house got built / was completed.”

3. Possibility and suitability: -ható/-hető

Attach -ható or -hető to many verb stems to make a deverbal adjective—an adjective built from a verb—meaning “able to be done,” “possible to do,” or sometimes “suitable for doing.” Vowel harmony determines the variant.

Verb	Derived form	Meaning
olvas “read”	olvasható	readable; can be read
megold “solve”	megoldható	solvable; can be solved
fizet “pay”	fizethető	payable; affordable, depending on context
elér “reach”	elérhető	reachable; available
használ “use”	használható	usable; can be used

These forms describe possibility, not a completed event. A könyv olvasható means that the book can be read or is readable; it does not mean that somebody has read it. With nem, they express impossibility: A fájl nem nyitható meg “The file cannot be opened.” Notice that a verbal prefix such as meg- may stand after the adjective when the form is negated, just as prefixes often separate from finite verbs under negation.

Because these are adjectives, they can be predicates (descriptions linked to the subject): A szöveg érthető “The text is understandable.” They can also modify a noun: olvasható szöveg “readable text.” An attributive adjective normally remains singular before a plural noun (olvasható könyvek “readable books”), while a predicate adjective agrees in number (A könyvek olvashatók “The books are readable”).

4. A resulting state: -va/-ve + van

Hungarian can use a verbal adverb in -va/-ve (a verb form describing the manner or state accompanying another verb) with van “is” to describe a state resulting from an earlier action:

• Az ajtó be van zárva. — “The door is closed.”
• A jelentés meg van írva. — “The report is written / has been written.”
• Az asztal szépen meg van terítve. — “The table is nicely set.”

This construction focuses primarily on the current result, not on the action itself. The finite verb van carries tense and mood:

Time or mood	Example	Meaning
present	Az ajtó be van zárva.	The door is closed.
past	Az ajtó be volt zárva.	The door was closed.
future	Az ajtó be lesz zárva.	The door will be closed.
conditional	Az ajtó be lenne zárva.	The door would be closed.

Do not treat this as a mechanical passive for every verb. It sounds most natural when a meaningful resulting state exists. An action sentence such as “The guests were greeted at six” normally calls for Hatkor üdvözölték a vendégeket, not a -va/-ve van state.

Choosing the construction

Intended message	Preferred strategy	Model
Unnamed people perform an action	third-person plural	Javítják az utat.
Something changes or reaches completion	middle/change-of-state verb	Az ügy rendeződött.
Something is possible or suitable	-ható/-hető	Az út járható.
A completed action has left a state	-va/-ve + van	Az út le van zárva.

Examples in Context

Hungarian	English	Note
Megépítették a házat két év alatt.	The house was built in two years.	Unnamed human agents; definite past conjugation.
Itt több nyelvet beszélnek.	Several languages are spoken here.	Indefinite objects, so the indefinite conjugation is used.
A kérelmeket online dolgozzák fel.	The applications are processed online.	Institutional agent left unnamed.
Holnap lezárják ezt az utcát.	This street will be closed tomorrow.	Hungarian present tense can refer to a scheduled future event.
Az ajtó lassan kinyílt.	The door slowly opened.	Change of state; no agent is presented.
A feladat végül megoldódott.	The problem was finally resolved.	The result is presented as a development.
Az új híd tavaly épült meg.	The new bridge was completed last year.	megépül presents completion rather than the builders’ action.
Ez a könyv könnyen olvasható.	This book is easy to read.	-ható expresses readability.
A hiba egyszerűen kijavítható.	The error can be corrected easily.	Possibility, not a completed correction.
Ez az oldal telefonról is elérhető.	This page is also accessible from a phone.	A common lexicalized -hető adjective.
A dokumentum nem nyitható meg.	The document cannot be opened.	Negation separates the prefix meg-.
Az ajtó már be van zárva.	The door is already closed.	Present result state.
Mire megérkeztünk, minden elő volt készítve.	By the time we arrived, everything had been prepared.	Past result state.
A vacsora hétre el lesz készítve.	Dinner will be prepared by seven.	Future result state.

Common Mistakes

Copying English be + past participle word for word

• Wrong: A ház volt épített 1990-ben.
• Right: A házat 1990-ben építették. / A ház 1990-ben épült.
• Why: Hungarian does not normally build an event passive by combining volt with an adjective-like participle in the English order. Choose an unnamed agent or a change-of-state verb.

Forgetting that the receiver remains an object

• Wrong: Megépítették a ház.
• Right: Megépítették a házat.
• Why: In the active plural construction, a házat is still the direct object and therefore takes accusative -t.

Using the indefinite conjugation with a definite object

• Wrong: Építettek a házat.
• Right: Építették a házat.
• Why: The article a makes the object definite, so the verb needs the definite conjugation. Építettek egy házat is correct with the indefinite object “a house.”

Treating -ható/-hető as a completed passive

• Wrong meaning: A levelet elküldhető for “The letter was sent.”
• Right: A levelet elküldték.
• Why: elküldhető means “can be sent.” It expresses possibility. It also acts as a predicate with a nominative subject: A levél elküldhető.

Inventing -ódik/-ődik verbs

• Wrong: attaching -ódik to any verb whenever English has a passive.
• Right: learn established pairs such as megold–megoldódik and épít–épül.
• Why: The pattern is productive only to a limited extent, and many natural middle verbs use other endings.

Using a result-state form for a one-time action

• Awkward: A vendégek hatkor üdvözölve voltak.
• Natural: A vendégeket hatkor üdvözölték.
• Why: Greeting is being reported as an event here, not as a continuing state left by the action.

Usage Notes

Third-person plural is neutral and extremely common in conversation, news, instructions, and institutional contexts. It can translate English passives even when English never suggests literal “they.” Hungarian listeners infer an unspecified human group from context.

Change-of-state verbs shift responsibility into the background. That can be neutral when the cause is irrelevant, but it can also avoid assigning blame: Hiba történt “A mistake occurred” or Az ügy nem rendeződött “The matter was not resolved.” If responsibility matters, name the agent in an active sentence instead.

Forms in -ható/-hető are especially frequent in notices, product descriptions, instructions, and administrative writing: ingyenesen letölthető “downloadable free of charge,” bankkártyával fizethető “payable by card,” and nem dohányzó terület aside, not every sign uses this suffix. Some forms develop conventional meanings: élhető város is not merely a city that “can be lived”; it means a livable city.

The -va/-ve + van construction is normal modern Hungarian when it clearly describes a result. Older prescriptive advice sometimes discouraged it because of comparison with foreign passives, but avoiding every such sentence is unnecessary. Naturalness depends on meaning: use it for a state, not as an automatic substitute for every English passive event.

English often includes an agent phrase with “by”: “The novel was written by Márai.” Hungarian usually prefers an active sentence when the agent is important: Márai írta a regényt or A regényt Márai írta, depending on the context and focus. The word order and stress can highlight Márai; there is usually no reason to force a passive-like structure.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

Hungarian does have an old synthetic passive—a passive expressed by an ending within the verb—using forms associated with -atik/-etik and -tatik/-tetik. You may meet expressions such as közhírré tétetik “it is hereby made public.” In present-day language these forms are archaic, ceremonious, biblical, bureaucratic, or humorous. Recognize them, but do not use them as the default equivalent of an English passive.

The distinction among event, process, and result can be subtle:

• Bezárták az üzletet. — Someone closed the shop; the action is foregrounded.
• Az üzlet bezárt. — The shop closed; this may also mean it ceased operating.
• Az üzlet be van zárva. — The shop is closed now; the resulting state is foregrounded.

Prefix position adds another layer. In a neutral completed result, the prefix commonly stands before the -va/-ve form: meg van írva, be van zárva. With negation it normally moves: nincs megírva “it is not written,” nincs bezárva “it is not closed.” With -ható/-hető, infinitive-like prefix behavior is also visible: megoldható but nem oldható meg. Learn the whole positive–negative pair rather than memorizing the derived word alone.

Finally, passive translation is often a matter of information structure—how a sentence arranges known and important information. Hungarian’s flexible word order can keep the affected item prominent without making it a passive subject. In A kérelmet tegnap bírálták el, “the application” remains an accusative object, yet its initial position makes it the topic. This is one reason Hungarian needs the grammatical passive less often than English does.

Practice Tips

1. Take five English passive sentences and label each one action, change, possibility, or resulting state. Then translate with third-person plural, a middle verb, -ható/-hető, or -va/-ve van. Do not begin translating until you have chosen the viewpoint.
2. Build contrast sets from one idea: Megoldották a problémát → A probléma megoldódott → A probléma megoldható → A probléma meg van oldva. Say what changes in meaning each time.
3. When reading Hungarian news or notices, underline plural verbs with no explicit subject and collect useful -ható/-hető forms together with their negative versions, such as letölthető / nem tölthető le.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Past Tense — needed for forms such as megépítették, kinyílt, and megoldódott.