Present Continuous Tense:

Introduction The Present Continuous Tense is used to talk about ongoing actions happening at the present moment. In Hungarian, this tense is called "jelen idő" or "jelen folyamatos". It helps us describe what is happening right now or what is currently in progress.

Formation To form the present continuous tense in Hungarian, we need two elements:

1. The present tense form of the verb "van" (to be): vagyok, vagy, van, vagyunk, vagyatok, vannak.

2. The present participle form of the main verb. To form the present participle in Hungarian, we add "-ó" or "-ő" to the verb stem. For example:

   • Infinitive verb: olvas (to read)
   • Present participle: olvasok (reading)

Usage

1. Ongoing Actions: Use the present continuous tense to talk about actions happening right now or ongoing actions. For example:

   • English: "I am reading a book." Hungarian: "Olvasok egy könyvet."

   • English: "They are watching a movie." Hungarian: "Nézik a filmet."

2. Temporary Situations: We can also use the present continuous tense to describe temporary situations or actions that are happening for a limited period of time. For example:

   • English: "She is staying with her friend for a week." Hungarian: "Egy hétig marad a barátjánál."

   • English: "We are working on a project this month." Hungarian: "Ezen a hónapon dolgozunk egy projekten."

3. Future Plans: In Hungarian, we can use the present continuous tense to talk about future plans or arrangements that have been made. For example:

   • English: "I am meeting my friend tomorrow." Hungarian: "Holnap találkozom a barátommal."

   • English: "They are traveling to Budapest next week." Hungarian: "Jövő héten utaznak Budapestre."

Note: The present continuous tense is not commonly used in Hungarian for expressing future actions. The simple present tense is more commonly used for future plans and arrangements.

Negation To make the negation of the present continuous tense, we use the negation word "nem" before the verb "van". For example:

• English: "I am not working today." Hungarian: "Ma nem dolgozom."

• English: "They are not studying for the exam." Hungarian: "Nem tanulnak a vizsgára."

Question Formation To form a question in the present continuous tense, we simply invert the subject and the verb "van". For example:

• English: "Are you coming to the party?" Hungarian: "Eljössz a buliba?"

• English: "Is she watching a movie?" Hungarian: "Filmet néz?"

Summary The Present Continuous Tense, or "jelen folyamatos" in Hungarian, is used to talk about ongoing actions, temporary situations, and future plans. It is formed by using the present tense form of the verb "van" and the present participle form of the main verb. Use negation and question formation to express negative statements and ask questions.