definiál

Definiál is the Hungarian verb meaning “to define” or “to give a definition.” It is a regular verb belonging to the –ál/-él conjugation class, which is characterized by the presence of the vowel alternation a/e in the stem (defin‑/defin‑) and the suffix –ál for the infinitive. The verb originates from the Latin word definire, passed into Hungarian through scholarly and scientific terminology during the 19th century, when many academic concepts were being standardized.

In contemporary usage, definiál functions both transitively and intransitively. The transitive form takes a direct object that receives a definition: “A tudós definiálta a fogalmat” (“The scientist defined the concept”). The intransitive form appears in contexts such as “Ez a kifejezés jól definiálja a problémát” (“This expression defines the problem well”). The participle forms are definiáló (present active participle, “defining”) and definiált (past passive participle, “defined”).

Grammatically, definiál follows regular Hungarian verb patterns: its present indicative forms are definiálok, definiálsz, definiál, definiálunk, definiáltok, definiálnak, while the past definite forms are definiáltam, definiáltad, definiálta, etc. The verb also appears in derived nouns, such as definiálás (“the act of defining”) and definíció (“definition”), which are integral to academic, legal, and technical discourse in Hungarian.