vállaltak

Vállaltak is the past tense, 3rd person plural form of the Hungarian verb vállal, meaning to undertake or to assume. It denotes that a subject or several subjects undertook a task, responsibility, obligation, or risk in the past. The form is used with various direct objects, such as feladatot (task), felelősséget (responsibility), kockázatot (risk), or kötelezettséget (obligation).

Usage and nuances: In sentences with plural subjects, vállaltak expresses that multiple agents took on something. For example: A dolgozók vállaltak több feladatot. A cég vállalta a felelősséget a környezeti hatásokért. The verb can also appear with a broader sense of agreeing to carry out a duty or commitment that had been accepted previously.

Relation to other forms: Vállaltak is distinct from the noun vállalatok (companies). Although they share a common root, vállaltak is a verb form and does not denote organizations. The related verb felvállal means to undertake something openly or to take something upon oneself, while vállal focuses more generally on taking on duties or risks.

Etymology and meaning: The root váll- is linked to the idea of shouldering responsibility (from a historical sense of bearing something with the shoulder). Thus, vállal encompasses undertaking, accepting, or shouldering obligations. The past tense vállaltak therefore describes actions completed in the past by a plural subject.

See also: vállal, felvállal, vállalás, vállalatok.