lefogjanak

Lefogjanak is the third-person plural present subjunctive (jussive) form of the Hungarian verb lefogni, meaning to seize, arrest, or confiscate. This mood is used for wishes, recommendations, or hypothetical actions in subordinate clauses and is common in formal or legal language. The base verb lefogni is built from le- (a prefix indicating a direction away or completion) and fogni (to seize, to grab). The -janak ending marks the 3rd person plural present subjunctive in forms that follow vowel harmony.

In everyday Hungarian, statements about arrests typically use the indicative form lefogják (they arrest). The subjunctive lefogjanak appears mainly in formal, legislative, or official contexts, often after verbs such as kérik, javasolják, írják elő, or in constructions like Kérjük, hogy lefogjanak minden gyanúsítottat. It expresses a request, recommendation, or hypothetical action rather than a straightforward factual statement.

Examples:

- Kérjük, hogy lefogjanak minden gyanúsítottat. (We request that they arrest all suspects.)

- A rendelet lehetővé teszi, hogy lefogjanak bizonyos személyeket a vizsgálat idejére. (The regulation allows authorities to arrest certain individuals during the investigation.)

Related terms include lefogás (the act of seizing) and lefoglalás (confiscation). The form lefogjanak is most frequently encountered in legal or institutional language and is less common in casual speech.