Strategies and word order of modal necessity (Hungarian)

DeonV: Necessity is expressed through the use of an independent word that appears (indirectly or directly) before the verb.

VDeon: Necessity is expressed through the use of an independent word that appears (indirectly or directly) after the verb.


(1) szilvi-nek még alud-ni-a kell.

Szilvi-dat still sleep-inf-3sg must.prs.3sg

‘Szilvi must still be sleeping.’


(2) itt muszáj tanulni.

here must/have_to learn-inf

‘One must/have to learn here.’


The kell ‘must/have to’ + infinitive construction (1) may express epistemic and situational modality depending on the context (Pelyvás 2013). The constructions created with the adverbs muszáj ‘necessary’, kötelező ‘compulsory’ together with the infinitive of the verb denote situational modality (2). Modal markers can either precede or follow the verb. The word order depends on grammatical factors.

Author: 

Nikolett F. Gulyás