The 44 Letters of the Hungarian Alphabet
Grammar Rule in 30 Seconds
Hungarian uses 44 letters, including unique digraphs and trigraphs, which are treated as single letters in the alphabet.
- Digraphs like 'sz' or 'cs' are single units; don't split them when alphabetizing.
- Vowels have length: 'a' vs 'á' and 'o' vs 'ó' are completely different letters.
- The alphabet order is strictly phonetic; if you see it, you say it exactly that way.
Vowel Length Contrast
| Short Vowel | Example | Long Vowel | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
|
a
|
apa (dad)
|
á
|
ágy (bed)
|
|
e
|
egér (mouse)
|
é
|
ég (sky)
|
|
i
|
irig (envious)
|
í
|
ír (writes)
|
|
o
|
orvos (doctor)
|
ó
|
óra (clock)
|
|
ö
|
öröm (joy)
|
ő
|
őr (guard)
|
|
u
|
utca (street)
|
ú
|
út (road)
|
|
ü
|
üveg (glass)
|
ű
|
űz (chases)
|
Meanings
The Hungarian alphabet is a set of 44 graphemes used to represent the phonemes of the Hungarian language.
Phonetic Representation
Using the 44 letters to map sounds to written text.
“A macska alszik.”
“Az alma piros.”
Reference Table
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Affirmative
|
Standard Alphabet
|
A, B, C, Cs, D...
|
|
Digraph
|
Two letters, one sound
|
Cs, Sz, Ny
|
|
Trigraph
|
Three letters, one sound
|
Dzs
|
|
Vowel
|
Short
|
a, e, i, o, ö, u, ü
|
|
Vowel
|
Long
|
á, é, í, ó, ő, ú, ű
|
|
Question
|
Alphabetical order?
|
Az ábécé 44 betűs?
|
|
Negative
|
Not standard
|
Nem 26 betűs.
|
Spectre de formalité
A magyar ábécé negyvennégy betűből áll. (Describing the alphabet)
A magyar ábécé 44 betűs. (Describing the alphabet)
44 betű van a magyarban. (Describing the alphabet)
44 betű, tesó. (Describing the alphabet)
The 44 Letters
Vowels
- a, á, e, é... Short and Long
Consonants
- b, c, d, f... Standard
Digraphs
- cs, gy, ny... Combined
Exemples par niveau
Az alma piros.
The apple is red.
Ez egy ház.
This is a house.
A macska alszik.
The cat is sleeping.
Szia!
Hi!
A kór veszélyes.
The disease is dangerous.
A kor fontos.
Age is important.
Szeretem a teát.
I like tea.
Nyitva van az ajtó.
The door is open.
A gyümölcsök érettek.
The fruits are ripe.
Az ősz gyönyörű.
Autumn is beautiful.
Tudsz úszni?
Can you swim?
Ez egy különleges eset.
This is a special case.
A dzsungel mélyén.
In the depth of the jungle.
A tűz meleg.
The fire is warm.
A zene zsánere.
The genre of the music.
Lyukas a zokni.
The sock has a hole.
A szabályok világosak.
The rules are clear.
A gyönyörűség leírhatatlan.
The beauty is indescribable.
A közösség összefog.
The community unites.
A fény áthatol.
The light penetrates.
A magyar nyelv gazdagsága.
The richness of the Hungarian language.
A dzsúdó technikája.
The technique of judo.
A művészet örök.
Art is eternal.
A szív dobbanása.
The beating of the heart.
Facile à confondre
Learners think 'sz' is 's' + 'z'.
Erreurs courantes
csa
csá
sz-a
sza
o
ö
dzs
dzs
Structures de phrases
A ___ betű a magyar ábécében van.
Real World Usage
Szia! Hogy vagy?
Practice Daily
Smart Tips
Always check for diacritics.
Prononciation
Long Vowels
Hold the sound for twice as long as a short vowel.
Falling
A ház. ↓
Statement of fact
Mémorise-le
Moyen mnémotechnique
Remember that 'Hungarian is a musical language': every note (letter) has a specific, unchanging pitch (sound).
Association visuelle
Imagine a 44-key piano where every key is a different letter. You must press the right key to make the correct sound.
Rhyme
Forty-four letters in a row, learn them all and watch your Hungarian grow.
Story
A little boy named 'Csaba' (starts with 'Cs') went to the 'Ágy' (bed) to read his 'Könyv' (book). He learned all 44 letters before he fell asleep.
Word Web
Défi
Write out the alphabet from memory in 5 minutes.
Notes culturelles
The alphabet is a source of national pride and linguistic identity.
Derived from the Latin alphabet with additions for Uralic sounds.
Amorces de conversation
Hány betű van a magyar ábécében?
Sujets d'écriture
Erreurs courantes
Test Yourself
Which of these is a single letter in Hungarian?
Score: /1
Exercices pratiques
1 exercisesWhich of these is a single letter in Hungarian?
Score: /1
FAQ (1)
No, it is phonetic.
Scaffolded Practice
1
Mastery Progress
Needs Practice
Improving
Strong
Mastered
In Other Languages
Latin alphabet
Hungarian has 44 letters; Spanish has 27.
Latin alphabet
Hungarian diacritics create new letters.
Latin alphabet
Hungarian umlauts are distinct letters.
Kana
Completely different writing systems.
Abjad
Direction of writing and script type.
Hanzi
Logograms vs. phonemes.
