Sejtés

Sejtés is a Hungarian noun that denotes a sense, impression, or belief about something that is not currently supported by direct observation or deliberate reasoning. It is commonly understood as a form of intuition, a vague knowledge, or a preliminary guess that precedes or accompanies more explicit thinking.

The term derives from the Hungarian verb sejt, meaning to sense or perceive faintly. In everyday usage, sejtés can range from a mild hunch to a stronger but still uncertain feeling about an outcome or situation. It is used across contexts, from personal decisions to literary descriptions of characters who feel something before it can be explained.

In cognitive terms, sejtés corresponds to intuition or unconscious inference: rapid judgments shaped by prior experience, pattern recognition, and implicit knowledge. It operates without conscious deliberation and can guide attention or initial hypotheses, but it does not constitute proof. Because it relies on past data and biases, sejtés can be fallible and may lead to erroneous conclusions if not checked against evidence or tested through reasoning and observation.

Culturally, sejtés is a familiar concept in Hungarian language and literature, where it often conveys a sense of foresight or a tacit understanding beyond explicit statements. In everyday speech, phrases like sejtés szerint or csak sejtés form reflect its role as a subjective but meaningful guide, rather than a definitive claim.

See also: intuition, hunch, gut feeling, implicit cognition, unconscious processing.