túléltek

Túléltek is a Hungarian verb form, the third-person plural past tense of the verb túlélni, meaning to survive or to outlive. It is used to state that a group of people or things endured a dangerous event or difficult conditions in the past. In narrative or reporting styles, túléltek can describe the outcome of disasters, wars, accidents, illnesses, or extreme environments.

Etymology and form: the word combines the prefix túl- (“over,” “beyond”) with élni (“to live”) to form túlélni, “to survive.” The past tense plural ending is -tek, yielding túléltek for “they survived.” As a verb form, túléltek carries action and is not a standalone noun.

Usage notes: in standard Hungarian, túléltek functions as a verb. To refer to the people who survived as a group, Hungarian typically uses the noun túlélő (survivor) or the plural túlélők (survivors). The noun túlélés denotes the act or process of surviving, not the people themselves. Context determines whether túléltek describes a completed act by a subject, or whether a sentence should use a noun to label the survivors.

Related terms: túlélő (survivor), túlélés (survival, act of surviving). In discourse about historical events, phrases like “a túlélők” or “a túléltek” may appear, but the latter is less common and can sound informal or colloquial depending on construction.

Examples: A csoport tagjai közül többen túléltek. A földrengés után a túléltek közé tartozott több civil és mentős. These illustrate the use of túléltek as a past-tense verb describing survival by a group.