Párbeszéd az orvosnál kezdőknek

What does “jobbulást” mean in Hungarian?

Jobbulást! is what Hungarians say to someone who’s unwell — “get well soon!” It’s built from jobbulás (“getting better,” from jó, “good”) wearing nothing but the accusative -t. That bare -t is the secret handshake of Hungarian well-wishes: you’re not making a full sentence, you’re handing someone a wished-for thing. So literally it’s “(I wish you) a getting-better.”

Once you spot that accusative ending, a whole family opens up: jó étvágyat! (“enjoy your meal,” literally “good appetite”), jó utat! (“safe trip,” “good road”), jó pihenést! (“rest well”), jó mulatást! (“have fun”). Each is just a noun in the accusative — the wished-for thing, with the “I wish you” left unsaid. For a heartfelt version add mielőbbi: mielőbbi jobbulást! (“a speedy recovery!”). Here it lands as the doctor’s parting line, sending the patient home for a week’s rest.