tessék

See also: tessek

Hungarian

Etymology

Lexicalization of the obsolete tetik variant of tetszik.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈtɛʃːeːk]
• Hyphenation: tes‧sék
• Rhymes: -eːk

Verb

tessék

1. Archaic third-person singular subjunctive present form of tetszik.

   Synonyms: tetsszen, (modern form) tetsszék

   • 1893, Paul Bourget, translated by Tóth Béla, Hazugságok, vol. 2‎^[1], Budapest: Athenaeum, translation of Mensonges (in French), page 38:

     Nem mert volna hazudni ez asszonynak, még azért sem, hogy tessék neki.

     He had scruples about lying to this woman, even to please her. [translator: John De Villiers (A Living Lie, page 118)]

2. (auxiliary, with a verb in the infinitive) please, would you?, kindly (especially towards elderly people, clients, or by children towards adults, used as a polite alternative to the imperative mood)

Derived terms

• tessék-lássék

Interjection

tessék

1. (offering or doing a favor for someone, expressing consent, approval, readiness, or encouragement)
   1. here you are! (handing something over to someone)
   2. help yourself!, do start! (offering food and encouraging eating)
   3. after you!, go ahead! (allowing someone to pass at the door)
   4. go ahead! (answering a request for permission, like whether to open the window)
   5. yes please!, can I help you? (expressing full attention by a shop assistant towards a customer)
2. come again?, I beg your pardon? (if the speaker did not hear or understand or cannot believe what was heard)
3. action (instruction to start an act or scene of a theatric performance)

Further reading

• tessék 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