legyen szíves

1. Usage and Meaning
Legyen szíves is a phrase consisting of legyen (the 3rd person singular imperative of 'to be') and the adjective szíves ('kind'). Because the formal 'you' (Ön or Maga) in Hungarian grammatically requires 3rd person conjugation, this 3rd person form is used to address the listener. While it translates to 'please,' it functions more like 'be so kind as to...' While kérem is a formal word for 'please', legyen szíves is the standard polite choice for requesting actions in formal social situations. For informal situations, légy szíves is the direct equivalent, though kérlek is also commonly used.

2. Grammatical Structures
There are three primary ways to use this in a sentence:

• With an Infinitive: Legyen szíves + [Verb ending in -ni]. This construction is considered more formal and distanced because it avoids using a direct command form. Crucially, a comma is normally not used in this structure, as it forms a single clause. Example: Legyen szíves segíteni. (Be so kind as to help.)
• With an Imperative: Legyen szíves, [3rd person singular imperative verb]. This is slightly more direct and common in standard polite requests. Note that a comma is usually used in writing to separate the clauses. Additionally, word order is flexible: legyen szíves can easily be placed at the end of the request. Examples: Legyen szíves, segítsen. or Segítsen, legyen szíves. (Please, help.)
• With an Accusative Noun: You can simply state what you want in the accusative case followed by legyen szíves. This is extremely common in shops or restaurants. Example: Egy kávét, legyen szíves. (A coffee, please.)

3. Verbal Prefixes
When using a verb with a verbal prefix, the word order changes depending on the structure:

• With an Imperative: As is the standard rule for positive commands in Hungarian, the prefix splits and moves behind the verb. Example: Legyen szíves, hívjon fel. (Please call me.)
• With an Infinitive: The prefix stays attached to the front of the verb. Example: Legyen szíves felhívni. (Be so kind as to call me.)

4. Plural Agreement
If you are addressing more than one person formally, you must use the plural form. The adjective szíves takes the plural suffix -ek. Crucially, when using the imperative structure, the main verb must also be conjugated in the plural:

• Formal Plural: Legyenek szívesek (Addressing multiple people formally). Example: Legyenek szívesek, üljenek le. (Please sit down.)
• Informal Plural: Legyetek szívesek (Addressing multiple friends or family members). Example: Legyetek szívesek, segítsetek. (Please help.) However, in modern spoken Hungarian, native speakers frequently use the singular légy szíves to address multiple people due to its brevity, even though it is technically incorrect (e.g., Légy szíves, gyertek ide!). The slang abbreviation légyszi does not change form, so it works for one person or several.

5. Register Nuances
While legyen szíves is very polite, if you want to be even more refined, you can use the conditional form Lenne szíves...? ('Would you be so kind...?'). Note that this forms a question and requires a question mark at the end. Conversely, for a single friend or family member, you can use the informal singular Légy szíves, though kérlek is also highly common. Due to Hungarian consonant assimilation rules, légy szíves is pronounced as [lécci] or [lécsíves]. In spoken Hungarian and text messaging, the highly common slang/shortened form légyszi (or lécci) is widely used for informal requests.

6. Negative Requests
To form a negative request ('Please don't...'), use the negative word ne before the imperative verb. Example: Legyen szíves, ne csinálja ezt. (Please don't do this.) When using the infinitive structure, use the negative word nem instead. Example: Legyen szíves nem dohányozni. (Please do not smoke.)