B1 Gerunds & Infinitives 1 min read Mittel

Personal Infinitives (mennem, menned)

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Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds

Personal infinitives allow you to attach a person suffix to an infinitive to show who must perform the action.

  • Add possessive suffixes to the -ni infinitive: mennem (I must go).
  • Use these forms primarily with 'kell' (must) or 'szükséges' (necessary).
  • The subject is implied by the suffix, so you rarely need a pronoun.
Verb-ni + Suffix (m/d/a/unk/tok/uk) = Personal Infinitive

Personal Infinitive Suffixes

Person Suffix Example (menni)
I
-m
mennem
You (sg)
-d
menned
He/She/It
-i
mennie
We
-ünk
mennünk
You (pl)
-etek/otok/atok
mennetek
They
-iük/uk
menniük

Meanings

Personal infinitives are a unique Hungarian structure where the infinitive verb is conjugated to indicate the subject, usually following the modal 'kell'.

1

Obligation

Expressing necessity for a specific person.

“Mennem kell.”

“Neked maradnod kell.”

2

Future Intention

Expressing a planned necessity.

“Holnap dolgoznom kell.”

“Este tanulnod kell.”

Reference Table

Reference table for Personal Infinitives (mennem, menned)
Form Structure Example
Affirmative
Verb-ni + Suffix + kell
Mennem kell.
Negative
Nem + Verb-ni + Suffix + kell
Nem kell mennem.
Question
Kell + Verb-ni + Suffix?
Kell menned?
Past
Verb-ni + Suffix + kellett
Mennem kellett.
Conditional
Verb-ni + Suffix + kellene
Mennem kellene.
Plural
Verb-ni + Suffix + kell
Nekünk mennünk kell.

Formalitätsspektrum

Formell
Távoznom kell.

Távoznom kell. (Leaving a meeting vs. leaving a party.)

Neutral
Mennem kell.

Mennem kell. (Leaving a meeting vs. leaving a party.)

Informell
Lépek.

Lépek. (Leaving a meeting vs. leaving a party.)

Umgangssprache
Húzok.

Húzok. (Leaving a meeting vs. leaving a party.)

Personal Infinitive Map

Menni (To go)

Suffixes

  • -m I
  • -d You
  • -i He/She

Modal

  • kell must
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Beispiele nach Niveau

1

Mennem kell.

I have to go.

2

Aludnom kell.

I have to sleep.

3

Ennem kell.

I have to eat.

4

Dolgoznom kell.

I have to work.

1

Neked tanulnod kell.

You have to study.

2

Nem kell sietnünk.

We don't have to hurry.

3

Kell vinned a táskát?

Do you have to take the bag?

4

Neki írnia kell.

He/she has to write.

1

Sajnos korán kell kelnem.

Unfortunately, I have to wake up early.

2

Nem kellene ennyit innod.

You shouldn't drink this much.

3

Nekik el kell dönteniük.

They have to decide.

4

Mikor kell nektek indulnotok?

When do you (plural) have to leave?

1

Bár mennem kellene, maradok.

Although I should go, I will stay.

2

Nem volt könnyű megtennem.

It wasn't easy for me to do it.

3

Mindenkinek be kell mutatkoznia.

Everyone has to introduce themselves.

4

Nem kellett volna megmondanod.

You shouldn't have told him.

1

A döntést nekem kell meghoznom.

I am the one who has to make the decision.

2

Szükséges, hogy el kelljen mennem?

Is it necessary that I must go?

3

Nem volt más választásom, mennem kellett.

I had no other choice, I had to go.

4

A feladatot nekik kell elvégezniük.

They are the ones who must complete the task.

1

Mennem kellene, mégis itt maradok.

I ought to go, yet I stay here.

2

Nem volt elkerülhető, meg kellett tennem.

It was unavoidable, I had to do it.

3

A felelősséget nekünk kell vállalnunk.

We must take responsibility.

4

Nem várhatod el, hogy megtegyem.

You cannot expect me to do it.

Leicht verwechselbar

Personal Infinitives (mennem, menned) vs. Subjunctive (hogy menjek)

Both can express obligation.

Personal Infinitives (mennem, menned) vs. Infinitive (menni)

Learners forget the personal suffix.

Personal Infinitives (mennem, menned) vs. Conditional (kellene)

Mixing up present and conditional.

Häufige Fehler

✗

Menni kell nekem

✓

Nekem mennem kell

The personal infinitive already contains the person.
✗

Mennem kellok

✓

Mennem kell

Kell does not conjugate.
✗

Mennik kell

✓

Mennem kell

Wrong suffix.
✗

Kell menni

✓

Mennem kell

Missing the personal suffix.
✗

Neked mennem kell

✓

Neked menned kell

Suffix must match the subject.
✗

Mennünk kellok

✓

Mennünk kell

Kell is invariable.
✗

Menned kell

✓

Menned kell

This is correct, but often confused with 'menni kell'.
✗

Mennem kellene

✓

Mennem kell

Kellene is conditional, not present.
✗

Mennem kellett

✓

Mennem kellett

This is correct, but learners often use present tense for past.
✗

Mennem kell hogy

✓

Mennem kell

Hogy is redundant.
✗

Mennem kellene volt

✓

Mennem kellett volna

Wrong conditional past structure.
✗

Mennem kellene

✓

Mennem kellene

Correct, but often used in wrong context.
✗

Mennem kellene

✓

Mennem kellene

Correct, but often used in wrong context.
✗

Mennem kellene

✓

Mennem kellene

Correct, but often used in wrong context.

Satzmuster

___ kell ___.

Nem kell ___.

Kell-e ___?

___ kellene ___.

Real World Usage

Texting constant

Mennem kell, bocs!

Job Interview common

Sokat kell tanulnom.

Travel very common

Mikor kell indulnunk?

Food Delivery occasional

Neked kell fizetned.

Social Media common

Mennem kell, sziasztok!

Work Email common

A jelentést el kell küldenem.

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💡

Focus on the suffix

Don't try to memorize the whole word. Just learn the suffixes -m, -d, -i, -ünk, -etek, -iük.
⚠️

Kell is invariable

Never conjugate 'kell'. It is always 'kell', regardless of the person.
🎯

Use it for 'I have to'

This is the most natural way to say 'I have to' in Hungarian.
💬

Keep it short

In casual speech, you can drop the 'kell' if the context is obvious.

Smart Tips

Don't use 'hogy'. Just use the personal infinitive.

Kell, hogy menjek. → Mennem kell.

Think of the possessive 'my' (enyém -> -m).

Menni kell. → Mennem kell.

Change 'kell' to 'kellett'.

Mennem kell volt. → Mennem kellett.

Use 'kellene' instead of 'kell'.

Mennem kell. → Mennem kellene.

Aussprache

MEN-nem

Suffix stress

The stress remains on the first syllable of the verb, not the suffix.

Statement

Mennem kell. ↘

Falling intonation for facts.

Question

Kell menned? ↗

Rising intonation for questions.

Einprägen

Eselsbrücke

Think of the suffix as a 'tag' that labels who is doing the 'must'.

Visuelle Assoziation

Imagine a backpack with your name on it. The 'm' is your backpack, the 'd' is your friend's. You have to carry your own 'must' (kell) backpack.

Rhyme

Mennem, menned, mennie, mindenkinek mennie!

Story

I wake up and say 'Mennem kell' (I must go). My friend asks 'Neked menned kell?' (Do you have to go?). We both agree 'Nekünk mennünk kell' (We must go).

Word Web

mennemmennedmenniemennünkmennetekmenniük

Herausforderung

Write 5 sentences about things you have to do today using the personal infinitive.

Kulturelle Hinweise

In the capital, people often shorten 'mennem kell' to just 'mennem' if the context is clear.

In some rural areas, you might hear more traditional full forms.

Young people often use English loanwords with Hungarian suffixes.

The personal infinitive evolved from the possessive construction of the infinitive, where the infinitive was treated as a noun.

Gesprächseinstiege

“

Mit kell ma csinálnod?

“

Kell-e holnap dolgoznod?

“

Mit kellene tenned, ha nyernél a lottón?

“

Milyen feladatokat kell elvégezned a munkádban?

Tagebuch-Impulse

Írj a mai napodról: mit kellett csinálnod?
Mit kell tenned, hogy elérd a céljaidat?
Ha a főnököd lennél, mit kellene tenned?
Reflektálj egy múltbeli döntésedre: mit kellett volna tenned?

Häufige Fehler

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

Incorrect

Richtig

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Test Yourself

Fill in the blank with the correct personal infinitive.

Nekem ___ (menni) kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: mennem
The subject is 'nekem' (I), so use -m.
Choose the correct form. Multiple Choice

Neked ___ (tanulni) kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: tanulnod
The subject is 'neked' (you), so use -d.
Correct the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Nekem menni kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Nekem mennem kell
Suffix must match the subject.
Transform to negative. Sentence Transformation

Mennem kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Nem kell mennem
Nem goes before kell.
Conjugate for 'we'. Conjugation Drill

Menni (we)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: mennünk
We = -ünk.
Match the subject to the suffix. Match Pairs

Match each item on the left with its pair on the right:

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: -m / -d / -ünk / -iük
Standard possessive suffixes.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

kell / mennem / ma

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ma mennem kell
Natural word order.
Is this true? True False Rule

Kell conjugates for person.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: False
Kell is always invariable.

Score: /8

Ubungsaufgaben

8 exercises
Fill in the blank with the correct personal infinitive.

Nekem ___ (menni) kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: mennem
The subject is 'nekem' (I), so use -m.
Choose the correct form. Multiple Choice

Neked ___ (tanulni) kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: tanulnod
The subject is 'neked' (you), so use -d.
Correct the sentence. Error Correction

Find and fix the mistake:

Nekem menni kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Nekem mennem kell
Suffix must match the subject.
Transform to negative. Sentence Transformation

Mennem kell.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Nem kell mennem
Nem goes before kell.
Conjugate for 'we'. Conjugation Drill

Menni (we)

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: mennünk
We = -ünk.
Match the subject to the suffix. Match Pairs

I / You / We / They

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: -m / -d / -ünk / -iük
Standard possessive suffixes.
Build a sentence. Sentence Building

kell / mennem / ma

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: Ma mennem kell
Natural word order.
Is this true? True False Rule

Kell conjugates for person.

✓ Correct! ✗ Not quite. Correct answer: False
Kell is always invariable.

Score: /8

FAQ (8)

Yes, 'Kell egy toll' (I need a pen). But for verbs, use the personal infinitive.

The final 'i' of the infinitive is dropped before adding the suffix.

Rarely, and it's usually considered clunky. Use the personal infinitive instead.

Use the -i suffix: 'Neki mennie kell'.

Yes, use 'kellett': 'Mennem kellett' (I had to go).

It is neutral and used in all registers.

Kell is for necessity (must), kellene is for advice (should).

No, it follows standard possessive suffix rules.

Scaffolded Practice

1

1

2

2

3

3

4

4

Mastery Progress

Needs Practice

Improving

Strong

Mastered

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In Other Languages

Spanish partial

Tener que + infinitive

Hungarian conjugates the infinitive, Spanish conjugates 'tener'.

French partial

Devoir + infinitive

French conjugates the modal, Hungarian conjugates the infinitive.

German partial

Müssen + infinitive

German conjugates the modal, Hungarian conjugates the infinitive.

Japanese low

Nakereba naranai

Japanese is a multi-word phrase, Hungarian is a single conjugated word.

Arabic low

Yajib an + verb

Arabic uses impersonal structures, Hungarian uses personal suffixes.

Chinese low

Bixu + verb

Chinese has no conjugation, Hungarian is highly agglutinative.

Learning Path

Prerequisites

Connected Grammar

Possessive Suffixes

Prerequisite

You need these to form the personal infinitive.

Subjunctive Mood

Contrast

Often confused with personal infinitives.

Modal Verbs

Builds On

Personal infinitives act like modal verbs.

Vowel Harmony

Prerequisite

Essential for choosing the right suffix.

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