[Translation +vocab] Ősz utca – Szakács Gergő

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Next up is a translation from one of my favorite Hungarian artists. I’ve enjoyed all of his songs and I’m very fond of the lyrics.

Ősz utca (Autumn Road) – Szakács Gergő

my full translation is also available on lyricstranslate 🙂

Végül nem jöttél
Nincs már közös út ezután
A legmélyén hagytál
Elzár a sötét, a homály
You ended up not coming
There’s no shared path after this
You left me at the deepest depths
The darkness, the dimness, is suffocating
Túl nagy a szívem, összezavar
Hogy értünk sír fel minden dal
Túl kicsi a város, túl nagy a zaj
Nincs, aki szól, nincs, aki hall!
My heart is too big, it confuses me
How every song weeps for us
The city’s too small, the noise too loud
There’s no one talking, no one listening
Egy hideg nap után
Az ősz utcán
Egy képedhez suttognám
Hol vagy már
Elém áll a távolság
Átfagyva várok rád
Egyedül, hol vagy már
After a cold day
On the autumn road
I would whisper to a picture of you
Where are you now
The distance is right in front of me
I’m frozen, waiting for you
Alone, where are you now
Így várok rád
Így várok rád
Átfagyva várok rád
Hol vagy már
I wait for you like this
I wait for you like this
I’m frozen, waiting for you
Where are you now
Kísér pár emlék
A sétány – nézem némán
Ha kell, én állok még
A szélben, míg jössz értem
A few memories accompany me
The promenade – I silently look at it
If I have to, I’ll keep standing
In the wind, until you come for me

Vocabulary

végül (adv.) – in the end, finally, ultimately (the line here literally is “in the end you didn’t come”)

közös (adj.) – common, joint, shared

út (n.) – path, track, course
note: this declines with the somewhat irregular “a” instead of “o” that back-vowel words usually take. the ú will become u in plural (utak) and accusative (utat). It will additionally change for all SINGULAR possessive declensions except for 3rd person singular (útja) and 3rd person plural (útjuk), where the stem stays the same. it’s a funky word, sorry

mély(adj.) deep ; (n.) the deep
note: the full word here legmélyén literally translates to “in/at the deepest” and it includes the 3rd person possessive suffix that I can’t really translate word-for-word in English, but essentially it means the really really deep part of some unmentioned abyss or other depth

hagy (v.) – to leave (behind), to let/allow

elzár (v.) – to close in, strangulate

sötét(adj.) dark, somber ; (n.) the dark(ness)

homály (n.) – dimness, the state of being poorly illuminated

összezavar (v.) – to confuse, mix up

felsír (v.) – to cry, burst into tears

dal (n.) – song (a more colliquial and current term is szám, which also means “number” but is used to refer to a track/song)

város (n.) – city

zaj (n.) – noise (the line here literally translates “the noise is too big”)

szól (v.) – to speak, talk

hall (v.) – to hear (I used “listen” in this context because it flowed better, but usually “listen” in Hungarian is hallgat, which means to actively listen to something)

hideg (adj.) – cold

ősz(n.) autumn, fall ; (adj., referring to hair) gray

utca (n.) – street, road

suttog (v.) – to whisper

már (adv.) – yet, already
note: this is an adverb used in a variety of situations, so it won’t always necessarily translate to those exact two words

távolság (n.) – distance

átfagyva – the root verb is fagy (to freeze), with the coverb át (through, across, over), and the modifier -va which turns it into an adverbial participle1. So altogether it means “(in the state of being) frozen all over”.

egyedül (adv.) – alone, on one’s own

kísér (v.) – to accompany
related: hazakísér (v.) – to take someone home, accompany somebody home

emlék (n.) – memory

sétány (n.) – promenade2

némán (adv.) – silently, speechlessly
related: néma (adj.) – silent, speechless

még (adv.) – still, yet, even
note: as with már, this word has a variety of uses and you will not necessarily always see it translated to these exact words

szél (n.) – wind

míg (adv.) – while, until

  1. A participle that modifies a verb in the same sentence and is equivalent to an adverbial clause in English. Adverbial participles may denote time, condition, cause, concession, manner, means, purpose, or attendant circumstance. ↩︎
  2. a paved public walk, typically one along a waterfront at a resort ↩︎

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