Indefinite Conditional

The Present Indefinite Conditional (jelen idejű feltételes mód, alanyi ragozás) is essential for polite and hypothetical communication. The formation rules below apply exclusively to the present conditional.

1. Formation
The marker -n- is attached to the verb stem, followed by personal endings. Note that the 1st person singular -nék is an exception to vowel harmony—it is used for both back and front vowel verbs. However, if a link vowel is required before the marker, the link vowel DOES follow vowel harmony (e.g., mondanék vs. festenék). Additionally, the 1st and 2nd person plural endings (-nánk / -nénk and -nátok / -nétek) are identical in both the indefinite and definite conjugations, saving learners from trying to memorize separate forms.

• 1st Sing: -nék / -anék / -enék (e.g., várnék, kérnék, mondanék)
• 2nd Sing: -nál / -nél (e.g., várnál, kérnél)
• 3rd Sing: -na / -ne (e.g., várna, kérne)
• 1st Plur: -nánk / -nénk (e.g., várnánk, kérnénk)
• 2nd Plur: -nátok / -nétek (e.g., várnátok, kérnétek)
• 3rd Plur: -nának / -nének (e.g., várnának, kérnének)

2. Link Vowels and -ik Verbs
A link vowel (-a- or -e-) is mandatory before the -n- marker if the verb stem ends in two consonants (e.g., festene, mondana) or in a long vowel + -t (including the causative/factitive suffix -ít, e.g., tanítana, fűtene), with the exception of lát (látna). This link vowel prevents difficult consonant clusters. However, stems ending in double identical consonants (geminates) like áll, varr, száll, and forr are exceptions that do not take a link vowel (e.g., állna). For -ik verbs, the -ik ending is dropped before adding the conditional marker (e.g., lakik → lakna). Note: In highly formal or literary Hungarian, -ik verbs can take -nék in the 3rd person singular indefinite (e.g., ő utaznék). Modern Hungarian heavily prefers the regular -na / -ne for the 3rd person singular specifically to avoid ambiguity with the 1st person singular (én utaznék vs. ő utaznék).

3. Irregular Stems
Several common verbs use irregular stems in the conditional. You should become proficient in these forms:

• van → lenne (see volna)
• megy → menne, jön → jönne
• eszik → enne, iszik → inna, alszik → aludna
• v-stem verbs: tesz → tenne, vesz → venne, visz → vinne, hisz → hinne

4. Usage, Polite Requests, and Ambiguity
Hungarian uses the conditional in both the 'if' clause and the result clause (see ha + conditional). It is also the standard way to express 'would like' using szeretne.

Polite Requests: The 1st person singular indefinite is frequently used to order food or make polite requests. For example, Kérnék egy kávét ("I would like a coffee").

Past Conditional: To form the past conditional, simply use the past tense of the verb followed by the invariant word volna (e.g., vártam volna - "I would have waited"). See past conditional.

Note: For front-vowel verbs, the 1st person singular indefinite ending (én kérnék) is identical to the 3rd person plural definite ending (ők kérnék). For back-vowel verbs, they are distinct (én várnék vs. ők várnák). Use context or subject pronouns to clarify who is performing the action when they overlap.