láncba

Láncba is a Hungarian prepositional phrase formed from lánc, meaning chain, and the directional suffix -ba, indicating movement into or placement within something. It primarily functions to describe literal confinement, when a person or object is placed into chains or restrained, as used in historical contexts or descriptions of physical restraint. In figurative language, láncba expresses constraint or obligation, such as being bound to a task, routine, or responsibility.

In usage, láncba commonly accompanies verbs of binding or containment and appears in idiomatic expressions that denote placing someone in chains. The phrase also gives rise to related expressions describing the act of chaining and to figurative senses such as being “in chains” to a particular commitment or constraint, for example in phrases that mean to end up confined or bound to something.

Etymology-wise, the term combines lánc with -ba, a suffix used in Hungarian to mark motion into a location or state. This aligns with its literal sense of entering a chain and its broader metaphorical uses.

Across literary, historical, and contemporary contexts, láncba reflects themes of captivity, punishment, and constraint, while in modern speech it can indicate being constrained by work, habits, or social roles. It illustrates how physical imagery of binding has extended into everyday language to describe various forms of constraint.

See also: lánc, kötözés, rab, rabság.