károsítanak

Károsítanak is a Hungarian verb form, the present tense, third person plural of the verb károsítani, meaning to damage or harm. It is used when the subject is plural, for example az ipari tevékenységek károsítanak környezetet. The infinitive is károsítani, and the form károsítanak corresponds to a plural subject in the present tense.

Etymology and form: károsítanak derives from the base adjective káros, meaning harmful, combined with the attributive verb suffixí -ít, which creates action verbs. The plural ending -anak/-enek marks the third person plural present tense, so károsítanak literally means “they damage.” The related forms include károsítok (I damage) and károsítanak (they damage).

Usage: The form is used across contexts to describe actions that cause damage or harm, including environmental damage, material harm, or reputational or economic impacts. It often appears with definite or indefinite objects, depending on the construction and emphasis. In formal or scientific writing, the sentence structure remains subject–verb–object, with károsítanak agreeing with a plural subject.

Examples:

- Az ipari tevékenységek károsítanak élőhelyeket.

- A légszennyezés és a vízszennyezés együttesen károsítanak tengeri ökoszisztémákat.

See also: károsítani, károsodás, környezetvédelem.