An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are the 25 most common Hungarian idioms, ranked by how often you will actually meet them, each with its literal translation, real meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Hungarian idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, Nem esik messze az alma a fájától literally means "The apple does not fall far from its tree" but is used to mean children take after their parents in character. This free page ranks the 25 most common Hungarian idioms by how often you meet them, each with its literal translation, meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation.
All 25 idioms, most common first.
Guess the meaning, then tap a card to check.
Idiom list verified as of August 2026.
Nem esik messze az alma a fájától
Literally The apple does not fall far from its tree
Means children take after their parents in character
English idiom the apple doesn't fall far from the tree
Example Ugyanolyan makacs, mint az apja, nem esik messze az alma a fájától.
He is just as stubborn as his father, the apple does not fall far from the tree.
Két legyet üt egy csapásra
Literally He hits two flies with one stroke
Means to get two things done with a single action
English idiom kill two birds with one stone
Example Ha most elintézzük ezt is, két legyet ütünk egy csapásra.
If we sort this out now as well, we kill two birds with one stone.
Se füle, se farka
Literally It has neither ear nor tail
Means something makes no sense at all and has no clear point
English idiom can't make head nor tail of it
Example Ennek a történetnek se füle, se farka.
This story makes no sense at all.
Töri a fejét
Literally He breaks his head
Means to think hard about something, trying to work it out
English idiom rack your brains
Example Egész délután a megoldáson törte a fejét.
He spent the whole afternoon racking his brains over the solution.
Nem az én asztalom
Literally It is not my table
Means it is not my responsibility or my area of expertise
English idiom not my department
Example Ezzel a kérdéssel a könyveléshez fordulj, ez nem az én asztalom.
Take that question to accounting, it is not my department.
Note Very common in offices as a polite way of passing a request on to somebody else.
Kutyából nem lesz szalonna
Literally Bacon will not come from a dog
Means a person's basic nature cannot be changed
English idiom a leopard can't change its spots
Example Hiába próbálod nevelni, kutyából nem lesz szalonna.
No matter how you try to bring him up, a leopard cannot change its spots.
Éhes, mint a farkas
Literally Hungry as the wolf
Means extremely hungry
English idiom hungry as a horse
Example Egész nap nem ettem semmit, éhes vagyok, mint a farkas.
I have not eaten anything all day, I am as hungry as a wolf.
Tele van a hócipője
Literally His snow boot is full
Means to be completely fed up with something
English idiom fed up to the back teeth
Example Tele van a hócipőm ezzel a sok túlórával.
I am fed up to the back teeth with all this overtime.
Note Informal, fine with friends but too casual for a work email.
Szegény, mint a templom egere
Literally Poor as the church mouse
Means having almost no money at all
English idiom poor as a church mouse
Example Az egyetem alatt szegény voltam, mint a templom egere.
During my university years I was as poor as a church mouse.
Ne fesd az ördögöt a falra
Literally Do not paint the devil on the wall
Means do not talk about a bad outcome, you may bring it on
English idiom don't tempt fate
Example Ne fesd az ördögöt a falra, még minden jóra fordulhat!
Do not tempt fate, everything can still turn out fine.
Addig üsd a vasat, amíg meleg
Literally Strike the iron while it is warm
Means act now, while the moment is right
English idiom strike while the iron is hot
Example Most figyelnek rád, addig üsd a vasat, amíg meleg.
They are paying attention to you now, so strike while the iron is hot.
Nagy fába vágja a fejszéjét
Literally He sinks his axe into a big tree
Means to take on a hard job that may turn out to be beyond one's strength
English idiom bite off more than you can chew
Example Nagy fába vágta a fejszéjét, amikor egyedül állt neki felújítani a házat.
He took on a huge job when he started renovating the house on his own.
Több is veszett Mohácsnál
Literally More was lost at Mohács
Means there is no reason to despair, far worse losses have been survived
English idiom it's not the end of the world
Example Elrontottad a vizsgát? Sebaj, több is veszett Mohácsnál.
You messed up the exam? Never mind, worse things have happened.
Note Mohács is the 1526 battle Hungary lost to the Ottomans, so the comfort comes with a wry historical shrug.
Ajándék lónak ne nézd a fogát
Literally Do not look at the teeth of a gift horse
Means do not find fault with something you got for free
English idiom don't look a gift horse in the mouth
Example Régi a bicikli, de ingyen kaptad, ajándék lónak ne nézd a fogát.
The bike is old, but you got it for free, so do not look a gift horse in the mouth.
Leesik a tantusz
Literally The token drops
Means to finally grasp something that had not made sense before
English idiom the penny drops
Example Sokáig magyaráztam, mire végre leesett nála a tantusz.
I explained it for ages before the penny finally dropped for him.
Note A tantusz was the coin-like token used in old public phone boxes, so younger speakers use the phrase without knowing the object.
Egy fecske nem csinál nyarat
Literally One swallow does not make a summer
Means one good sign is not enough to prove a trend
English idiom one swallow doesn't make a summer
Example Igaz, hogy egyszer sikerült, de egy fecske nem csinál nyarat.
True, it worked once, but one swallow does not make a summer.
Beadja a kulcsot
Literally He hands in the key
Means to die
English idiom kick the bucket
Example A vén kandúr tizennyolc évesen adta be a kulcsot.
The old tomcat kicked the bucket at the age of eighteen.
Note Flippant and informal, so avoid it when speaking to people close to the person who died.
Jobb ma egy veréb, mint holnap egy túzok
Literally A sparrow today is better than a bustard tomorrow
Means a small sure thing beats a bigger uncertain one
English idiom a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
Example Fogadd el az ajánlatot, jobb ma egy veréb, mint holnap egy túzok.
Accept the offer, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Kutyaszorítóban van
Literally He is in a dog squeeze
Means to be stuck in a tight situation with no good way out
English idiom between a rock and a hard place
Example A határidő miatt most igazi kutyaszorítóban vagyok.
Because of the deadline I am really between a rock and a hard place right now.
Borsot tör az orra alá
Literally He grinds pepper under someone's nose
Means to annoy someone on purpose or make life hard for them
Example A szomszéd folyton borsot tör az orrunk alá.
The neighbour keeps making life difficult for us on purpose.
Sok víz lefolyt azóta a Dunán
Literally Much water has flowed down the Danube since then
Means a lot of time has passed and much has changed
English idiom a lot of water under the bridge
Example Húsz éve nem jártam itt, azóta sok víz lefolyt a Dunán.
I have not been here for twenty years, a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then.
Addig nyújtózkodj, ameddig a takaród ér
Literally Stretch only as far as your blanket reaches
Means live within your means and do not want more than you can afford
English idiom cut your coat according to your cloth
Example Addig nyújtózkodj, ameddig a takaród ér, ne vegyél fel újabb hitelt!
Live within your means, do not take out another loan.
Kosarat ad
Literally He gives a basket
Means to turn down someone who asks you out or proposes
Example Meghívta randira, de a lány kosarat adott neki.
He asked her out on a date, but she turned him down.
Note The other side of it is kosarat kap, said of the person who gets rejected.
Bottal ütheti a nyomát
Literally He can beat its track with a stick
Means someone or something is gone for good and cannot be found
Example Mire kiértünk az utcára, a tolvajnak már bottal üthettük a nyomát.
By the time we got out onto the street, the thief was long gone.
Ajtóstul ront be a házba
Literally He bursts into the house door and all
Means to come out with unwelcome news or a request bluntly, with no lead-up
Example Ahelyett, hogy finoman közölte volna, ajtóstul rontott be a házba, és kimondta az igazságot.
Instead of breaking it gently, he came straight out with it and told the truth.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is fixed by convention, not built from its words. That is why a word-for-word translation fails: Nem esik messze az alma a fájától comes out as "The apple does not fall far from its tree", which makes no sense until you know it means children take after their parents in character.
Learn a few at a time, not a whole list. Pick the ones you keep running into, say them out loud in a real sentence, and you will remember them far longer than by drilling flashcards.
The most reliable way to absorb idioms is to meet them in context, again and again, in things you actually read. Parallel text and audio let you catch an idiom in a real Hungarian sentence and check what it means without breaking your reading. That is what reading in Lingo7 is built for.
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The most common Hungarian idioms, ranked by everyday frequency, start with Nem esik messze az alma a fájától, Két legyet üt egy csapásra, Se füle, se farka, Töri a fejét, Nem az én asztalom. Each one means something you could not guess from the words alone, which is exactly why learners have to meet them in context. This page lists 25 of them with meanings and example sentences.
In Hungarian, "Nem esik messze az alma a fájától" translates literally as "The apple does not fall far from its tree", but it actually means children take after their parents in character. The closest English idiom is "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree". Example: Ugyanolyan makacs, mint az apja, nem esik messze az alma a fájától. ("He is just as stubborn as his father, the apple does not fall far from the tree.")
The Hungarian equivalent is "Nem esik messze az alma a fájától", literally "The apple does not fall far from its tree". Example: Ugyanolyan makacs, mint az apja, nem esik messze az alma a fájától. ("He is just as stubborn as his father, the apple does not fall far from the tree.")
In Hungarian, an idiom is called szólás, and a proverb is közmondás. A szólás is a fixed figurative phrase that you fit into a sentence of your own, while a közmondás is a complete sentence that states a piece of folk wisdom.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Nem esik messze az alma a fájától translates literally as "The apple does not fall far from its tree", yet it means children take after their parents in character. Translate word for word and you get nonsense, so idioms have to be learned as whole units.
The fastest way is to meet them in context and reuse them, not to memorize a list. Learn a handful at a time, notice them while reading and listening, and try them in your own sentences. Reading real Hungarian with tap-to-translate, the way Lingo7 works, turns every page into idiom practice.