mintha

Hungarian

Etymology

mint (“as”) +‎ ha (“if”)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈminthɒ]

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: mint‧ha
• Rhymes: -hɒ

Conjunction

mintha

1. (for an unreal condition) as if, as though

   Úgy haragszik rám, mintha én lennék a hibás. ― S/he is angry at me as though I were at fault.

2. (for a real condition) Misspelling of mint ha.
3. Expresses uncertainty.

   Mintha hallottam volna valami zajt. ― I think I heard a noise.

Usage notes

Depending on the context, it can be written as one or two words:

• mintha: If the condition is not real, it is written in one word. In this case, the verb in the clause is in conditional mood.

  Éjfélkor nem lehet olyan világos, mintha nappal volna. ― It can't be so bright at midnight as if it were daytime.

• mint ha: If the condition is real, it is written in two words. In this case, the verb in the clause is in indicative mood and the adverb akkor (“then”) could be inserted between the two: “mint akkor, ha”

  Jobban halad a munka, ha csinálod, mint ha csak beszélsz róla. ― The work progresses better if you do it than if you just talk about it.

Derived terms

• zuhog, mintha dézsából öntenék

Further reading

• mintha in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (“The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language”, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN