Ártás

Ártás is a Hungarian noun meaning the act or result of harming, that is, harm or damage and its negative effects. The term is formed from the verb ártani “to harm” together with the nominalizing suffix -ás, which yields a noun describing an action or its outcome. Related words include ártó (harmful) and ártalom (harmful influence or threat).

In contemporary Hungarian, ártás is relatively rare in everyday speech. It tends to occur in literary, historical, or formal contexts, and in some technical or specialized writings. In common usage, the word kár is more typical for denoting damage, while ártás may convey a more formal, sometimes archaic tone. The range of meanings can cover physical damage, personal injury, material loss, or broader negative impacts on people, property, or the environment, depending on context.

Usage examples are more common in older texts or formal discourse, where authors may refer to the concept of harm or damage as ártás. In modern legal or administrative language, ártás might appear in discussions of harm in a broader, ethical, or societal sense, but even there it is less frequent than alternatives such as kár or károsodás.

See also: kár, károsodás, ártalom.