If you’ve just started learning Hungarian, you’ve probably heard the term “vowel harmony” whispered like it’s some kind of secret, complicated code.

I’m here to tell you that it’s not as scary as it sounds! In fact, it’s one of the things that makes Hungarian sound so beautiful and melodic.

So, what is vowel harmony?

Simply put, it’s a rule that says the vowels in a word, including its suffixes, have to get along. They need to come from the same “team”. Once you learn which vowels are on which team, choosing the right ending for a word becomes second nature.

This guide will break it all down for you, nice and easy.

The two teams of Hungarian vowels

The first step is to divide Hungarian vowels into two main groups, or “teams”: back vowels and front vowels. The names refer to where in your mouth you make the sound—at the back or at the front.

This is the most important concept to grasp. Everything else builds on this.

Here are the teams:

For some suffixes, we also need to split the front vowels into two smaller groups:

• Unrounded: e, é, i, í (your lips are relaxed or smiling)
• Rounded: ö, ő, ü, ű (your lips are rounded, like you’re about to whistle)

Don’t worry too much about this second grouping for now. Just keep it in the back of your mind.

Back, front, and mixed vowel words

Based on the vowels they contain, Hungarian words fall into three categories. This is how we know which suffix to use later.

1. Back Vowel Words (Mély hangrendű szavak) These words contain only back vowels.

• ház (house) - contains á
• autó (car) - contains a, u, ó
• város (city) - contains á, o

2. Front Vowel Words (Magas hangrendű szavak) These words contain only front vowels.

• kert (garden) - contains e
• öröm (joy) - contains ö, ö
• füzet (notebook) - contains ü, e

3. Mixed Vowel Words (Vegyes hangrendű szavak) You guessed it! These words contain both back and front vowels.

• virág (flower) - contains i (front) and á (back)
• papír (paper) - contains a (back) and í (front)
• sofőr (driver) - contains o (back) and ő (front)

We’ll talk about how to handle these mixed words in a moment.

How vowel harmony affects suffixes

This is where the magic happens. Hungarian suffixes often come in two or three different forms. You choose the correct form based on the word’s vowel team.

Two-form suffixes (e.g., -ban/-ben)

This is the most common type. One suffix form uses a back vowel (like a or o) and the other uses a front vowel (like e).

The rule is simple:

• Back vowel words take the back vowel suffix.
• Front vowel words take the front vowel suffix.

Let’s look at the suffix for “in”, which is -ban/-ben.

See the pattern? The vowels in the suffix ház**ba**n match the vowel in h**á**z. The vowels in k**e**rt**be**n match the vowel in k**e**rt. They harmonize!

Three-form suffixes (e.g., -hoz/-hez/-höz)

Some suffixes have three forms. This is where those rounded and unrounded front vowels come into play.

The rule is:

• Back vowel words take the back vowel suffix (with o).
• Front vowel words with unrounded vowels (e, é, i, í) take the e suffix.
• Front vowel words with rounded vowels (ö, ő, ü, ű) take the ö suffix.

Let’s use the suffix for “to/towards”, which is -hoz/-hez/-höz.

The deal with mixed vowel words

Okay, what about words like virág (flower) that have both types of vowels? Which team do they belong to?

The general rule is that most mixed vowel words behave like back vowel words. The presence of even one back vowel is usually enough to tip the scales.

Here, virág has a front vowel (i) and a back vowel (á). Because it has a back vowel, we use the back-vowel suffix -ban, not -ben.

Another example:

The word tanár (teacher) has a (back) and á (back), so it’s a back vowel word. What about papír? a (back) and í (front). We say papírtól, with the back vowel suffix.

This rule covers a lot of ground, but you’ll find exceptions, especially with words borrowed from other languages. For example, sofőr (driver) is a mixed word, but it takes a front vowel suffix: a sofőrrel (with the driver).

My advice for beginners: Follow the main rule (mixed words take back suffixes) and just learn the exceptions as you encounter them. Don’t try to memorize a long list!

A few common exceptions

Every language has rule-breakers, and Hungarian is no exception. Here are a couple of common patterns to watch for, but again, don’t stress about memorizing them.

1. Some single-syllable words: A few short words with front vowels like i, í, or é surprisingly take back vowel suffixes.

• híd (bridge) -> hídon (on the bridge), not híden
• cél (goal) -> célhoz (to the goal), not célhez

2. Foreign loanwords: Words borrowed from other languages often follow front vowel harmony, even if they contain back vowels.

• fotel (armchair) -> fotelben (in the armchair)
• hotel (hotel) -> hotelben (in the hotel)

Final thoughts

And that’s vowel harmony in a nutshell! It might feel a bit strange at first, but it’s a very consistent rule. Once it clicks, you’ll feel it more than you think about it. The words will just “sound right”.

Here’s a quick recap:

• Vowels come in two teams: back (a, á, o, ó, u, ú) and front (e, é, i, í, ö, ő, ü, ű).
• Words with only back vowels take back-vowel suffixes.
• Words with only front vowels take front-vowel suffixes.
• Words with a mix of vowels usually take back-vowel suffixes.

The more you listen to and speak Hungarian, the more your brain will absorb these patterns automatically.

Sok sikert! (Good luck!)