nként

The term "nként" is a Hungarian adverbial suffix used primarily in the context of frequency or rate, often translating to English as "per" or "each." It is attached to nouns to indicate a unit of measurement or division, commonly in expressions of time, space, or quantity.

In Hungarian, "nként" functions similarly to English prepositions like "per hour" or "per kilometer," but it is grammatically integrated into the noun it modifies. For example, "óránként" means "hourly," combining the noun "óra" (hour) with the suffix "-ánként." This construction is widely used in everyday speech, literature, and formal writing to specify intervals or rates.

The suffix can also appear in more complex phrases, such as "naponta" (daily), derived from "nap" (day) with the suffix "-onként" (a variant of "nként" used with certain nouns). Another example is "évenként," meaning "annually," formed from "év" (year) with the same suffix.

Grammatically, "nként" is attached to the accusative or dative case of the noun it modifies, depending on context. For instance, "egy óránként" (every hour) uses the accusative form of "óra," while "egy órára nként" (per hour) may appear in specific constructions. The suffix is flexible and adapts to the noun's case endings, reflecting Hungarian's agglutinative nature.

While "nként" is most commonly associated with temporal or spatial frequency, it can also appear in abstract contexts, such as "szemmel nként" (per eye), though such uses are less frequent. The suffix plays a crucial role in conveying precise measurements and is essential for understanding rate-based expressions in Hungarian.