hogy vagy?
[ˈhoɟ ˈvɒɟ]word by word
How are you? in Hungarian is hogy vagy?
This phrase is a common greeting used to ask someone about their current health or general well-being.
What does it mean word for word?
The word vagy means "you are" and is the second-person singular conjugation of the verb "to be".
Which one should you use?
In English, "how are you?" is often used as a standard greeting, but in Hungarian, if you use hogy vagy?, the person may feel more inclined to give a genuine answer about their well-being.
How does it change in a sentence?
The form hogy vagy? is used when addressing one person informally. If you are addressing a group of people informally, use hogy vagytok? instead.
When do people say it?
A common response to hogy vagy? is Jól, köszönöm, which means "Well, thank you." You can also say Hogy vagy, barátom? to mean "How are you, my friend?"
Did you know?
- The word vagy can also mean 'or' in Hungarian. Depending on the sentence structure, the same word can either ask about your state of being or offer a choice between two things.
- The verb vagy is part of a family of words that includes vagyon, which in modern Hungarian can also mean 'wealth' or 'property'.
- Hungarian belongs to the Uralic language family, meaning the roots of hogy are more closely related to Finnish than to almost any other European language.
Examples in context
- Szia, hogy vagy?Hi, how are you?
Example conversation
Tamás and Anna meet at a cafe.
- TamásSzia, Anna! Hogy vagy?Hi, Anna! How are you?
- AnnaJól vagyok, köszönöm. És te?I am well, thank you. And you?
- TamásÉn is jól vagyok.I am doing well too.
- AnnaÖrülök neki!I am glad to hear that!
