Elárulni

Elárulni is a Hungarian verb meaning to reveal something that was meant to be kept secret, or to betray someone by disclosing their confidences or information. It is a transitive verb and is used with a direct object such as a secret, detail, or a person’s trust. The sense can be either revealing information (to disclose) or betraying someone by breaking their trust (to sell out).

In usage, elárulni typically takes an object in the accusative when referring to a secret or information, e.g., elárul egy titkot (to reveal a secret), elárulni valakit (to betray someone). Examples: Megígértem, hogy nem árulom el a titkomat. (I promised I won’t reveal my secret.) Elárulta a barátját. (He betrayed his friend.) Senki sem tudta, ki árulta el a tervet. (No one knew who revealed the plan.)

Grammatically, elárulni is a regular -ni verb built on the stem árul-. Present tense forms are: én elárulom, te elárulod, ő elárulja, mi eláruljuk, ti eláruljátok, ők elárulják. Past tense forms are regular: én elárultam, te elárultál, ő elárulta, mi elárultuk, ti elárultátok, ők elárulták. The infinitive is elárulni; the prefix el- adds a sense of completion or turning the act toward disclosure.

Etymology and nuance: elárulni combines the prefix el- with árul, the root meaning to betray or reveal. The verb covers both moral/ethical notions of breaking trust and the more factual sense of disclosing information, depending on context. Related expressions include elárul egy titkot (to reveal a secret) and elárulja saját magát/valakit (to betray someone).