Sörben

Sörben is the locative form of the Hungarian noun sör, meaning beer. In Hungarian grammar, -ben (or -ban, depending on vowel harmony) marks the inessive or locative case, indicating that something is located in or inside the referenced noun. Therefore, sörben translates to “in beer” or “inside the beer” and is used to describe position, state, or processes involving beer.

In usage, sörben is a standard noun form and does not carry a meaning of its own apart from the role it plays in a sentence. It commonly appears in culinary, descriptive, or colloquial contexts where beer functions as a medium, container, or environment. For example, the phrase “A húst sörben pácolják” means “The meat is marinated in beer.” Another example is “A hab a sörben úszik,” meaning “The foam floats in the beer.” A broader construction can describe properties of beer itself, as in “A sörben lévő cukor az erjesztést segíti,” translated as “The sugar in the beer aids fermentation.”

Etymology-wise, sör is the Hungarian word for beer, and the locative suffix -ben forms the inessive case in combination with sör, following standard Hungarian vowel harmony rules. This pattern—noun plus -ben/-ban to express “in” or “inside”—is common across the language and is used with many different stems.

See also: Hungarian grammar, Hungarian noun declension, inessive case, vowel harmony.