8 Comments
"But rather" or "but instead", both are good at describing the situation. I wonder about the etymology of the word "hanem". It may be just a coincidence that it can be split into "ha" ( = if ) and "nem" ( = not ). The usage is not to be confused with "ha nem"
It is worthwhile noting that the "hanem" part always contradicts a previous negated statement.
Not (one statement) but instead (a different statement).
"Sino" in Spanish also has similar components, "si" (if) and no (no/not) and has the same meaning
Nice, thanks! I keep finding these small similarities between Spanish and Hungarian myself. "Como no" - "hogyne", "me gusta" - "nekem tetszik", etc. Similar logic.
I think Hungarian might have picked up a lot of structure from Latin, as well.
I think these "The X is not [preposition], but (rather) [opposite preposition]" sentence are very effective for these prepostions.
Because it is unnecessary to repeat the verb, just like in the English sentence. You can do it but there is no need.
