hátoldalára

Hátoldalára is a Hungarian postpositional form that expresses movement toward or placement on the back surface of a referent. It combines the noun hátoldal (the back side) with the possessive suffix -a (its/the back side of) and the directional suffix -ra/-re, yielding a form that means “onto its back side” or “to its back.”

Morphology and use

The structure is typically base word + possessive suffix -a/-e (to mark the possessor of the back side) + directional suffix -ra/-re (indicating direction toward that surface). The exact possessive ending varies with person and vowel harmony, but the functional pattern remains: attaching a possessive to hátoldal and then adding -ra to indicate direction. In glossing, it corresponds to “to its back (surface).”

Typical context

Hátoldalára is used with verbs of motion or placement to indicate that something is directed to or placed on the back side of a referent. It often follows a noun phrase that identifies the possessor or the object whose back surface is involved. The first-syllable stress in Hungarian applies to this word as to most native terms.

Examples

- A fény a macska hátoldalára esett. The light fell on the cat’s back.

- A festéket a ruhája hátoldalára cseppentették. They dripped the paint onto the back of his/her clothing.

Notes

This form is a standard example of Hungarian derivation using a compound noun plus possessive and a directional suffix to convey spatial relation.