Past Indefinite Conjugation

In Hungarian, the past tense requires you to choose between the indefinite and definite conjugations. The indefinite is the 'default' form.

When to use it:

• Intransitive verbs: Verbs that don't take an object (e.g., 'I went', 'He slept').
• Indefinite objects: When the object is preceded by egy (a/an), a number, or a quantifier like 'sok' (many).
• Indefinite pronouns: With words like 'valami' (something), 'semmi' (nothing), minden (everything), or 'mindenki' (everyone). Note: Pronouns ending in '-ik' like 'melyik' (which) and 'mindegyik' (each/every one) are definite and trigger the definite conjugation.
• 1st/2nd person objects: If the object is a 1st or 2nd person pronoun ('me', 'us', informal 'you'), you use the indefinite conjugation. Note that formal 'you' (Ön/maga) as an object triggers the definite conjugation. The 'I-you' relationship uses the unique -lak/-lek suffix.

Stem Groups:
The choice of suffix depends on vowel harmony.

1. Group 1 (-t): Stems ending in j, l, ly, n, ny, r, or intransitive verbs ending in -ad/-ed (like szalad, ébred). (Note: Transitive verbs ending in -ad/-ed, like fogad or enged, and stems ending in 'm', like nyom or terem, fall into Group 3.) Examples: vár → várt, szalad → szaladt.
2. Group 2 (-ott/-ett/-ött): Stems ending in two consonants (except those ending in a consonant + d), -ít, monosyllabic stems ending in a short vowel followed by -t (like fut or süt), or a long vowel followed by -t (like fűt, hűt, tát, vét). Examples: tanít → tanított, süt → sütött, fűt → fűtött. Exception: 'lát' (to see) follows Group 3 rules.
3. Group 3 (Mixed): This is the catch-all group for stems ending in a vowel + -d (like tud, and transitive -ad/-ed verbs like fogad), polysyllabic verbs ending in a short vowel + -t (like szeret, mutat), two consonants ending in -d (like mond), sibilants (s, sz, z), and all other single consonants (b, c, cs, f, g, gy, k, m, p, ty, v). They use -t for most forms, but require the link vowel -ott/-ett/-ött in the 3rd person singular indefinite conjugation only (the definite conjugation uses the short -t, e.g., tudta). Examples: tud → tudott, szeret → szeretett, kap → kapott, vág → vágott.

Vowel-ending stems: Verbs ending in a vowel (like lő, nő, ró) take a long -tt (e.g., lőtt, nőtt).

Personal Endings:
Once you have the past tense stem, add the following personal endings for the indefinite conjugation:

• én: -am / -em
• te: -ál / -él
• ő / Ön: -∅ (no ending, just the past stem)
• mi: -unk / -ünk
• ti: -atok / -etek
• ők / Önök: -ak / -ek

Irregular and -ik Verbs:
For -ik verbs, drop the -ik suffix and conjugate according to the final stem consonant (e.g., dolgozik → dolgoz- → dolgozott). Some common verbs have irregular past stems, such as van (volt), megy (ment), jön (jött), eszik (evett), and iszik (ivott). Additionally, irregular -d stems like alszik (alud-) and fekszik (feküd-) take -t in the 3rd person singular (aludt, feküdt).

Two Details to Keep Separate
The three stem groups are a learning guide; learn the actual past forms of irregular verbs rather than applying consonant counts mechanically. For example, áll has álltam, állt in ordinary modern usage despite its double consonant. The special “I → you” pattern combines past marking with its own ending: Láttalak. means “I saw you,” and Kértelek. means “I asked you.” These are past forms, not the present forms látlak, kérlek.