névszót

Névszó is a term used in Hungarian linguistics to denote words that name entities, such as people, objects, places, or abstract concepts. The literal meaning is "name word." In modern practice, the more common label is főnév (noun), but névszó remains in use in some grammars and educational materials. Névszók are typically categorized into köznevek (common nouns) and sajátnevek (proper nouns) and function as the main carriers of meaning in noun phrases, capable of serving as subjects or objects and of taking determiners and adjectives.

Morphologically, névszók inflect for number, case, and possession through suffixation. The plural is usually marked with -k, though some words form plurals irregularly. They bear possessive suffixes (-m, -d, -a/-e, etc.) to show ownership, and they receive case endings such as -ban/-ben, -ba/-be, or -hoz/-hez/-höz. The direct object may be marked with the accusative suffix -t in contexts where a definite object is required. Névszók can denote concrete entities (könyv, ház) as well as abstract concepts (szabadság). Proper names typically do not take the definite article in Hungarian, while common nouns often appear with the definite article a/az in specific constructions.

Usage notes: Névszók form the backbone of sentence structure and combine with modifiers to form noun phrases; they are distinguished from pronouns (névmások) and other word classes by their reference to named entities rather than to deictics or general categories.