kulcsra

Kulcsra is a term used in Hungarian linguistics and everyday language as part of the phrasal verb construction kulcsra zárni, meaning to lock up or to lock with a key. The form combines the noun kulcs (key) with the postposition -ra and functions as a means or instrument in the expression. The overall meaning is securing something by locking it using a key.

In usage, kulcsra zárni appears with a direct object that is being locked. For example, szobát kulcsra zárták means that the room was locked up with a key. The construction is common in both informal and formal registers and can appear in various tense forms: Az ajtót kulcsra zárják (they lock the door with a key), A szobát kulcsra zárták (the room was locked with a key), A bejárati ajtó kulcsra zárva van (the front door is locked with a key).

Variants and nuance: some speakers also use kulccsal or other instrumental expressions to emphasize the means of locking, as in kulccsal zárni az ajtót (to lock the door with a key). While kulccsal emphasizes the tool, kulcsra often functions as a fixed collocation associated with the action of securing something by locking it.

See also: Hungarian phrasal verbs, zárni, kulcs, grammatical instruments in Hungarian.