hátha

See also: hatha and haða

Hungarian

Etymology

hát +‎ ha

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈhaːthɒ]

• Audio

  (file)

• Hyphenation: hát‧ha
• Rhymes: -hɒ

Adverb

hátha (not comparable)

1. wish, if only

   Hátha nem hal meg! ― Wish he won't die!

2. what if, perhaps, hopefully, hoping for, just in case

   Próbáld meg újra, hátha most sikerül! ― Try it again, perhaps it will work now.

   Leírom, hátha érdekel valakit. ― I'll write it down, in case (hopefully) someone is interested.

   Vigyázz, hátha lehallgatnak. ― Be careful, just in case they're wiretapping you.

   Ne bántsd, hátha nem is ő a tolvaj. ― Don't hurt him, just in case he's not the thief.

Usage notes

This word has no direct equivalent in English. In the simplest case it means “I wish”, “if only” or “just in case”. With the other more complex meaning, the clause of hátha describes the purpose or reason of a specified action, or in what case an action makes sense (is not in vain), or what one has in mind by doing something. This action is usually explicitly specified in the preceding clause (Megnézem, hátha már itt vannak. ― “I'll take a look, just in case they are already here”). It may also be implicit, e.g. the action that the speaker is doing (Hátha még nem zárt be a bolt! ― “Just in case the shop hasn't closed yet” and then leaving).

Further reading

• hátha 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

Irish

Pronunciation

• (Ulster) IPA^(key): /haː/

Noun

hátha

1. h-prothesized form of átha