Emlékeztem

Emlékeztem is a Hungarian verb form meaning “I remembered.” It is the first-person singular past tense (preterite) of the verb emlékezni, which means to remember or recall.

Etymology and related forms: The form is built from the stem emlékez- of emlékezni, with the personal ending -tem, typical for the 1st person singular past tense in Hungarian. Related words include emlék (memory or keepsake) and emlékezet (memory as a faculty). Other related verbs are emlékeztet (to remind) and emlékszik (he/she remembers).

Usage and nuance: Emlékeztem is used to report a memory from the speaker’s past. It can take phrases indicating what is remembered, such as rá or valamire, depending on the context. Examples include: Emlékeztem rá, hogy megígértem. (I remembered that I had promised.) and Emlékeztem egy nyári napra. (I remembered a summer day.) The form signals a completed act of recalling at a past point in time.

See also: emlékezés (remembrance or recollection), emlékezet (memory as a faculty), emlék (memory or keepsake), emlékezni (to remember), emlékeztet (to remind), emlékszik (he/she remembers).