mesélt

Mesélt is the past tense form of the Hungarian verb mesél, meaning to tell or narrate. It is used for third-person singular subjects in the simple past, indicating that someone told or recounted something. For example, A bácsi mesélt egy történetet means “The grandfather told a story.” The form can appear with or without a direct object; with an object, Hungarian uses the standard past tense construction.

As a member of the standard Hungarian verb system, mesél also has other tense forms and person endings. Related present-tense forms include mesélek (I tell), mesélsz (you tell), mesélünk (we tell), and mesélnek (they tell). The related noun mesélés denotes storytelling or narration, while mesélő means a storyteller or narrator.

Usage and nuance: mesélt is commonly found in everyday speech as well as in literature and journalism whenever a past act of telling is reported. It can be used to recount events, relay memories, or describe how someone conveyed information. The term is typically understood in ordinary narrative or descriptive contexts and may appear in both informal and formal language, depending on tone and register. See also related forms and words such as mesélés and mesélő for broader discussion of storytelling in Hungarian.