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1 The Basics of Korean

Pronouns and Contractions

Let’s start by reviewing the basics here. As you should know by this point, you change your pronouns depending on how much respect you want to give the person you’re talking to.

English	Lower	Higher
I	나 na	저 jeo
You	너 neo	당신 dangsin
We	우리 uri	저희 jeohui
This	이것 igeot	이것
That	그것 geugeot	그것
That (over there)	저것 jeogeot	저것

너 is used all the time in 반말 (informal language), but if you want to be respectful, it’s far more common to refer to someone you’re talking to in the third person: 선생님 seonsaengnim (teacher), 계현씨 gyehyeonssi (polite way to address a person named 계현) or even 민정 엄마 minjeong eomma (Minjeong’s mother) or something similar. Although 당신 is technically the polite way to say “you,” it’s almost never used in spoken Korean and if it is, it often means a fight is about to break out. So be very careful with 당신.

As you should also know, subjects and objects take endings: 은/는, 이/가, 을/를 eun/neun, i/ga, eul/reul are the ones we’ll deal with here. Go to page 30 if you need to learn about any of these endings.

Here’s a table to show you how to contract each word.

Original word	저 jeo	나 na	우리 uri	저희 jeohui	너 neo	이(그/저)것 igeoseun
+는 neun	저는 jeoneun	나는 naneun	우리는 urineun	저희는 jeohuineun	너는 neoneun	이것은 igeoseun
Contraction	전 jeon	난 nan	우린 urin	저흰 jeohuin	넌 neon	이건 igeon
+이/가 i/ga	제가 jega	내가 naega	우리가 uriga	저희가 jeohuiga	네가 nega	이것이 igeosi
Contraction						이게 ige
+을/를 eul/reul	저를 jeoreul	나를 nareul	우리를 urireul	저희를 jeohuireul	너를 neoreul	이것을 igeoseul
Contraction	절 jeol	날 nal	우릴 uril	저흴 jeohuil	널 neol	이걸 igeol
+의 ui	저의 jeoui	나의 naui	우리의 uriui	저희의 jeohuiui	너의 neoui	이것의 igeosui
Contraction	제 je	내 nae			네 ne

저걸로 주세요. Jeogeollo juseyo. Give me that.

이건 어때요? Igeon eottaeyo? How about this?

More Contractions:

이렇다/그렇다/저렇다/어떻다 ireota/geureota/jeoreota/eotteota

As you may know, these mean “to be a certain way.” 이렇다 means “to be this way,” 그렇다 means “to be that way” and 저렇다 means “to be that way over there” and isn’t really used that much. These are very versatile expressions that you’ll see. and they are used in all kinds of ways. 어떻다 by itself doesn’t translate well, but you’ll see it all the time as 어떻게 (how).

The most common way you’ll probably see them conjugated is by adding the ending 게, which turns a verb into an adverb. We don’t have these adverbs in English, at least not as single words, but if “thisly,” “thatly,” and “that over therely” were words, they’d be translated this way.

어떻게

eotteoke

How?

이렇게

ireoke

Like this.

그렇게

geureoke

Like that.

저렇게

jeoreoke

Like that over there.

Let’s try making some sentences:

어떻게 하면 돼요?

Eotteoke hamyeon dwaeyo?

What’s a good way to do it? (How can I do this?)

그렇게 하면 안 돼요.

Geureoke hamyeon an dwaeyo.

You can’t do it like that.

이렇게 어려운 책을 읽지 못 해요.

ireoke eoryeoun chaegeul ikji mot taeyo.

I can’t read such a difficult book.

And here’s how to abbreviate 이렇다, 그렇다, 저렇다, and 어떻다 using the tense markers ㄴ and ㄹ. (See page 235 for more information on tense markers).

Original word	이렇다 ireota	그렇다 geureota	저렇다 jeoreota	어떻다 eotteota
+ㄴ	이렇 + ㄴ	그렇 + ㄴ	저렇 + ㄴ	어떻 + ㄴ
Contraction	이런 ireon	그런 geureon	저런 jeoreon	어떤 eotteon
+ㄹ	이렇 + ㄹ	그렇 + ㄹ	저렇 + ㄹ
Contraction	이럴 ireol	그럴 geureol	저럴 jeoreol

이런 헤어 스타일은 어떠세요?

Ireon heeo seu-ta-i-reun eotteoseyo?

What do you think about this hairstyle?

어떤 헤어 스타일을 좋아하세요?

Eotteon heeo seu-ta-i-reul joahaseyo?

What kind of style do you like?

저런 헤어 스타일을 좋아해요.

Jeoreon heeo seu-ta-i-reul joahaeyo.

I like that kind of hairstyle.

More ways to use 이렇다, 저렇다 and especially 그렇다 are on page 377. For now, let’s look at 어떻다 and its unique contractions.

When you add 어떻게 plus 하다, you can keep on using 어떻게 하다 or you can contract the whole thing to 어쩌다. This contraction happens in many commonly used expressions.

■ 어쩔 수 없다 Eojjeol su eopda

A: 저기 버스가 가네요! Jeogi beoseuga ganeyo! The bus is leaving!

B: 어쩔 수 없죠, 뭐. 다음 버스 타요. Eojjeol su eopjo, mwo. Daeum beoseu tayo. Oh well, it can’t be helped. Let’s take the next one.

■ 어쩌면 eojjeomyeon Maybe

내일 어쩌면 비가 올 지도 몰라요. Naeil eojjeomyeon biga ol jido mollayo. Maybe it’ll rain tomorrow.

■ 어쩐지 eojjeonji Somehow

A: 저 감기 걸린 것 같아요. Jeo gamgi geollin geot gatayo. I think I caught a cold.

B: 어쩐지, 얼굴이 안좋아보이더라고요. Eojjeonji, eolguri an-jo-a-bo-i-deo-ra-go-yo. Somehow, your face doesn’t look that good.

(Here “somehow” means “in some vague way.” And while it’s strange to tell people in English that their face doesn’t look so good, it’s done in Korean all the time.)

How to Talk to People Without Being Rude

반말 and 존댓말 and All Their Permutations

There are seven levels of speech in Korean. There used to be many more, but thankfully they’ve been greatly simplified. Even more thankfully, most of the seven aren’t that commonly used. 반말 banmal is the lowest form, used toward children or people very close to you, and it actually covers five of the seven levels, including all the ones you don’t need to worry about. The next two levels are both called 존댓말 jondaenmal. One is what I’ll refer to as “informal polite” and is by far the most common and useful level. It’s used toward strangers, people you don’t know well, or people older than you. The other is super-polite and is used when speaking to people higher in rank or status or when addressing crowds. Just as an example, I use 반말 to my students and informal polite to my co-teachers. I just about never use super-polite, but I hear it all the time in subway announcements. Finally, you don’t really use any of the levels in writing, so I’ll show you how to end sentences when you’re writing, too.

As you may also know, Korean grammar much depends on what kind of sentence you’re forming. These can be classified as follows:

1. Statements with action verbs

2. Statements with descriptive verbs

3. Statements with nouns

4. Commands

5. Questions

6. Suggestions

Here’s how to end each kind of sentence in each level of speech. Note as well that there are many ways to end sentences—this whole book’s worth, in fact. The ones listed here are just the basics. Let’s start with the three very common ways of speaking.

Sentence type	Tense	반말 (해체 haeche) (casual)	존댓말 (해요체 haeyoche) (informal polite)	존댓말 (하십시오체 hasipsi-o-che) (super polite)	문어체 muneoche (writing)
Action verb statements ending in vowels	Past	했어 haeseo	했어요 haeseoyo	했습니다 haetseupnida	했다 haetda
Present	해 hae	해요 haeyo	합니다 hapnida	한다 handa
Future	할 거야 hal geoya	할 거예요 hal geoyeyo	하겠습니다 hagetseumnida	할 것이다 hal geosida
Action verb statements ending in consonants	Past	먹었어 meogeoseo	먹었어요 meogeoseoyo	먹었습니다 meogeotseupnida	먹었다 meogeotda
Present	먹어 meogeo	먹어요 meogeoyo	먹습니다 meokseubnida	먹는다 meokneunda
Future	먹을 거야 meogeul geoya	먹을 거예요 meogeul geoyeyo	먹을 겁니다 meogeul geopnida	먹을 것이다 meogeul geosida
Descriptive verb statements ending in vowels	Past	작았어 jagasseo	작았어요 jagasseoyo	작았습니다 jagatseumnida	작았다 jagatda
Present	작아 jaga	작아요 jagayo	작습니다 jakseumnida	작다 jakda
Future	작을 거야 jageul geoya	작을 거예요 jageul geoyeyo	작을 겁니다 jageul geopnida	작을 것이다 jageul geosida
Descriptive verb statements ending in consonants	Past	예뻤어 yeppeoseo	예뻤어요 yeppeoseoyo	예뻤습니다 yeppeotseumnida	예뻤다 yeppeotda
Present	예뻐 yeppeo	예뻐요 yeppeoyo	예쁩니다 yeppeupnida	예쁘다 yeppeuda
Future	예쁠 거야 yeppeul geoya	예쁠 거예요 yeppeul geoyeyo	예쁠 겁니다 yeppeul geopnida	예쁠 것이다 yeppeul geosida
Noun statements ending in vowels	Past	남자였어 namjayeosseo	남자였어요 namjayeosseoyo	남자였습니다 namjayeotseumnida	남자였다 namjayeotda
Present	남자야 namjaya	남자예요 namjayeyo	남자입니다 namjaipnida	남자이다 namja-i-da
Future	남자일 거야 namja-il geoya	남자일 거예요 namja-il geoyeyo	남자일 겁니다 namja-il geopnida	남자일 것이다 namja-il geosida
Noun statements ending in consonants	Past	물이었어 murieosseo	물이었어요 murieosseoyo	물이었습니다 murieotseumnida	물이었다 murieotda
Present	물이야 muliya	물이에요 mul-i-eyo	물입니다 mulipnida	물이다 mulida
Future	물일 거야 mulil geoya	물일 거예요 mulil geoyeyo	물일 겁니다 mulil geopnida	물일 것이다 mulil geosida
Commands ending in vowels	Present	해 hae	하세요 haseyo	하십시오 hasipsio	해라E haela
Commands ending in consonants	Present	먹어 meogeo	잡으세요C jabeuseyo	잡으십시오C jabeusipsio	잡아라E jabala
Questions ending in vowels	Past	했어? haesseo?	했어요? haesseoyo?	했습니까? haetseumnikka?	했나?A haenna?
Present	해? hae?	해요? haeyo?	합니까? hapnikka?	하나?A hana?
Future	할 거야? hal geoya?	할 거예요? hal geoyeyo?	할 겁니까? hal geopnikka?	하겠나?A hagenna?
Questions ending in consonants	Past	먹었어? meogeosseo?	먹었어요? meogeosseoyo?	먹었습니까? meogeotseumnikka?	먹었나?A meogeonna?
Present	먹어? meogeo?	먹어요? meogeoyo?	먹습니까? meokseupnikka?	먹나?A meokna?
Future	먹을 거야?A meogeul geoya?	먹을 거예요? meogeul geoyeyo?	먹을 겁니까? meogeul geopnikka?	먹겠나?A meokgenna?
Suggestions ending in vowels	Present	하자 haja	할래요 hallaeyo/ 할까요 halkkayo	합시다 hapsida	하자 haja
Suggestions ending in consonants	Present	먹자 meokja	먹을래요 meogeullaeyo/먹을 까요 meogeulkkayo	먹읍시다 meogeupsida	먹자 meokja

Now let’s take a look at some of the more uncommon forms. You’ll most likely never hear these in real life. 하오체 and 하게체 are used only by older people (and on warning signs, in the case of [으]시오), while 해라체 is used by people talking either to themselves or to very young children. You may note that it’s very similar to the written style (문어체) listed above: in fact, in most respects, they’re the same. You have to show great respect to your audience while addressing a crowd verbally, which is almost always done in the super-polite 하십시오체 form, but none at all while addressing them in writing.

Sentence type	Tense	하오체 haeche	하게체 haeyoche	해라체 muneoche
Action verb statements ending in vowels	Past	했소 haetso	했네 haenne	했다 haetda
Present	하오 hao	하네 hane	한다 handa
Future	할 거요 hal geoyo	할 거네 hal geone	하겠다/할 것이다/할 거다 hagetda/hal geotsida/hal geoda
Action verb statements ending in consonants	Past	먹었소 meogeotso	먹었네 meogeonne	먹었다 meogeotda
Present	먹소 meokso	먹네 meokne	먹다 meokda
Future	먹을 거요 meogeul geoyo	먹을 거네 meogeul geone	먹겠다/먹을 것이다/먹을 거다 meokgetda/meogeul geosida/meogeul geoda
Descriptive verb statements ending in vowels	Past	작았소 jagatso	작았네 jaganne	작았다 jagatda
Present	작소 jakso	작네 jakne	작다 jakda
Future	작을 거요 jageul geoyo	작을 거네 jageul geone	작겠다/작을 것이다/작을 거다 jakgetda/jageul geosida/jageul geoda
Descriptive verb statements ending in consonants	Past	예뻤소 yeppeotso	예뻤네 yeppeonne	예뻤다 yeppeotda
Present	예쁘오 yeppeuo	예쁘네 yeppeune	예쁘다 yeppeuda
Future	예쁠 거요 yeppeul geoyo	예쁠 거네 yeppeul geone	예쁘겠다/예쁠 것이다/예쁠 거다 yeppeugetda/yeppeul geosida/yeppeul geoda
Noun statements ending in vowels	Past	남자였소 namjayeotso	남자였네 namjayeonne	남자였다 namjayeotda
Present	남자요 namjayo	남자이네 namja-i-ne	남자다/남자이다B namjada/namja-i-da
Future	남자일 거요 namja-il geoyo	남자일 거네 namja-il geone	남자일 갓이다/남자일 거다 namja-il gasida/namja-il geoda
Noun statements ending in consonants	Past	물이었소 mulieotso	물이었네 mulieonne	물이었다 mulieotda
Present	물이오 mulio	물이네 muline	물이다 mulida
Future	물일 거요 mulil geoyo	물일 거네 mulil geone	물일 것이다/물일 거다 mulil geosida/mulil geoda
Commands ending in vowels	Present	하시오 hasio	하게 hage	해라E haela
Commands ending in consonants	Present	잡으시오C jabeusio	먹게 meokge	먹어라E meogeola
Questions ending in vowels	Past	했소? haetso?	했나?A haetna?	했니? haetni?
Present	하오? hao?	하나?A hana?	하니? hani?
Future	할 거요? hal geoyo?	할 건가? hal geonga?	할 것이니?/할 거니?D hal geosini?/hal geoni?
Questions ending in consonants	Past	먹었소? meogeotso?	먹었나?A meogeonna?	먹었니? meogeonni?
Present	먹소? meokso?	먹나?A meokna?	먹니? meokni?
Future	먹을 거요? meogeul geoyo?	먹을 건가? meogeul geonga?	먹을 것이니?/할 거니?D meogeul geosini?/hal geoni?
Suggestions ending in vowels	Present	합시다 hapsida	하세 hase	하자 haja
Suggestions ending in consonants	Present	먹읍시다 meogeupsida	잡세C jabse	먹자 meokja

A These are actually conjugated using the 나/(으)ㄴ가 question forms, which you can find on page 44. Action verbs such as the ones above are conjugated with 나 and descriptive verbs take (으)ㄴ가. So you would say 하나? but 예쁜가?, and 먹나? but 작은가?

B 남자다 and 남자이다 are both acceptable.

C This example was changed from 먹다 to 잡다 because it’s impolite to say 먹으세요 and 먹으십시오: you have to change them to 드세요 and 드십시오.

D 거니 is a contraction of 것이니 and is much more commonly used.

E These are conjugated with 어/아/여라, so they actually depend on the vowel in the first syllable rather than whether it ends in a vowel or a consonant.

How to Add Expressions to Verbs

This looks confusing at first, but with some practice it will become second nature to you. The best way to learn it is to learn how different expressions can connect to different verbs, and the good news here is that there are actually only a few ways to do this. First, find the stem of the verb you want to conjugate. That part is easy: just drop the 다, and there’s your verb stem. Thus, the stem of 하다 is 하, the stem of 먹다 is 먹, the stem of 모으다 moeuda is 모으, and so on. You will never add a Korean grammar expression to a verb including the 다 ending—always use the stem.

Irregular verbs can be tricky, even for advanced students. However, even they are not totally lawless and will always interact with the same kinds of expressions in the same way. Go to the end of the irregular verbs section to find out how to combine them with each type of ending.

Expressions that Don’t Change Verbs

Many expressions, particularly those beginning with ㅈ or ㄱ, can simply be added to verbs on their own without any special adaptation. In these cases you won’t see anything in parentheses before the expression. Let’s take a look at three: 거든, 잖아요, and 지만.

		거든 geodeun	지만 jiman	잖아요 janhayo
Action verbs ending in a vowel	하다 hada	하거든 hageodeun	하지만 hajiman	하잖아요 hajanhayo
Action verbs ending in a consonant	먹다 meokda	먹거든 meokgeodeun	먹지만 meokjiman	먹잖아요 meokjanhayo
Descriptive verbs (adjectives) ending in a vowel	예쁘다 yeppeuda	예쁘거든 yeppeugeodeun	예쁘지만 yeppeujiman	예쁘잖아요 yeppeujanhayo
Descriptive verbs (adjectives) ending in a consonant	작다 jakda	작거든 jakgeodeun	작지만 jakjiman	작잖아요 jakjanhayo

Expressions with 으 or 이 Prefixes

You’ll see many expressions in this book that have either 으 or 이 before them in parentheses. In these cases, if your verb stem or noun ends in a consonant, add that 으 or 이 first. Some examples are (으)니까, (으)나 and (이)라서. Normally 으 is used with expressions that are added to verbs and 이 with expressions that are added to nouns.

		(으)니까 (eu)nikka	(으)나 (eu)na	(이)라서 (i)laseo
Action verbs ending in a vowel	하다 hada	하니까 hanikka	하나 hana
Action verbs ending in a consonant	먹다 meokda	먹으니까 meogeunikka	먹으나 meogeuna
Descriptive verbs (adjectives) ending in a vowel	예쁘다 yeppeuda	예쁘니까 yeppeunikka	예쁘나 yeppeuna
Descriptive verbs (adjectives) ending in a consonant	작다 jakda	작으니까 jageunikka	작으나 jageuna
Nouns ending in a vowel	남자 namja	남자이니까 namja-i-nikka	남자이나 namja-i-na	남자라서 namjalaseo
Nouns ending in a consonant	물 mul	물이니까 mulinikka	물이나 mulina	물이라서 mulilaseo

Expressions with 아/어/여

In these cases, you have to check the last syllable of your verb stem to know how to conjugate the verb.

If that last syllable contains an 아 or an 오, you should add 아. (That includes syllables with 애, 얘, 야 or 요, though I’ve never seen any verb stems ending in the latter three.)

If it contains any other vowel (어, 우, 으 or 이) then add 어. Again, that includes 여, 유, 에 and 예.

If the verb is 하다, add 여. This makes it 해 plus the rest of the expression; the only time you’ll see 하여 is in formal situations, usually in writing. Even in this case, it’s not all that commonly used except in the past tense: 하였다.

Let’s take a look at 아/어/여서 and 았/었/였이다.

Verb stems ending in vowels can be a somewhat special; see page 26 on how to add 아/어/여 to vowels.

		아/어/여서 a/eo/yeoseo	았/었/였이다 at/eot/yeosida
Verbs with 아 or 오	작다 jakda	작아서 jagaseo	작았다 jagatda
Regular verbs with 어, 우, 으 or 이 (see below for exceptions)	먹다 meogda	먹어서 meogeoseo	먹었다 meogeotda
하다	하다 hada	해서 haeseo	했다 haetda

(으)ㄴ/는, and ㄴ/는

Here’s where it gets interesting. First, check the title of the expression carefully to see which of the above sets you should use.

First, we have (으)ㄴ/는. When you see this, you have to go a step further and differentiate between active verbs and descriptive verbs. Descriptive verbs are like adjectives: 예쁘다 yeppeuda, 작다 jakda, 크다 keuda, 조용하다 joyonghada, 중요하다 jungyohada, and so on, while active verbs are verbs that describe actions: 먹다 meokda, 가다 gada, 걷다 geodda, 띄다 ttuida, and so on.

With (으)ㄴ/는 expressions, active verbs always take 는. Descriptive verbs are conjugated with ㄴ if they end in a vowel and 은 if they end in a consonant. Expressions that are conjugated in this way include (으)ㄴ/는데 and (으)ㄴ/는 탓에.

		(으)ㄴ/는데 (eu)n/neunde	(으)ㄴ/는 탓에 (eu)n/neun tase
Action verbs ending in a vowel	하다	하는데 haneunde	하는 탓에 haneun tase
Action verbs ending in a consonant	먹다	먹는데 meokneunde	먹는 탓에 meokneun tase
Descriptive verbs (adjectives) ending in a vowel	예쁘다	예쁜데 yeppeunde	예쁜 탓에 yeppeun tase
Descriptive verbs (adjectives) ending in a consonant	작다	작은데 jageunde	작은 탓에 jageun tase

Finally, ㄴ/는 is added to verbs which use indirect speech particles; see page 304 on how to conjugate these. Basically, descriptive verbs take 다 plus whatever else you’re using in your expression (다고 하다 dago hada, 다기보다 dagiboda, 다면 damyeon) while active verbs take either ㄴ or 는. ㄴ is added to action verb stems ending in vowels while 는 goes after action verb stems ending in consonants.

How to Handle Verbs, Part 1: Changing Their Form

Changing Verbs to Nouns: (으)ㅁ, 기, (으)ㄴ/는 것

■ (으)ㅁ

This can be added to any kind of verb or even to nouns with 이 in case you need to change a noun into a verb and then back into a noun. It’s often used in writing and less so in speaking. You’re likely to see it on warning signs and other formal notices. There are a few common nouns which always use ㅁ: 꿈 kkum (“dream” from 꾸다 kkuda), 잠 jam (“sleep” from 자다 jada), and 얼음 eoleum (“ice” from 얼다 eolda) come to mind.

While 기 tends to have more to do with activities and appearances, (으)ㅁ is an introvert; it’s more concerned with thoughts and ideas.

ㅁ follows vowels and 음 follows consonants. 음 can follow the past tense, but not the future tense.

하다 hada (to do) > 함 ham (doing)

슬프다 seulpeuda (to be sad) > 슬픔 seulpeum (sadness)

살다 salda (to live) > 삶 salm (life) (irregular)

믿다 mitda (to believe) > 믿음 mideum (belief)

■ 기

기 gi also turns verbs into nouns and can be added to any kind of verb. It’s often used in speaking and there are quite a number of grammar points which demand 기 if you want to use a verb with it. Like (으)ㅁ, some words just like to be used with 기. I’m sure you’re all trying to improve your Korean 듣기 deudgi, 쓰기 sseugi, 말하기 malhagi and 읽기 ilggi.

(으)ㅁ is the “quiet, contemplative” way to turn verbs into nouns while 기 is the “extrovert.” 기 is normally used more for activities and actions as well as being more common in spoken Korean. It’s also used more in proverbs and slogans.

하다 hada (to do) > 하기 hagi (doing)

찾다 chajda (to find) > 찾기 chajgi (finding)

보다 boda (to see) > 보기 bogi (seeing)

크다 keuda (to be big) > 크기 keugi (size)

■ (으)ㄴ/는 것

는 것 neun geot is a very easygoing expression. You can use it just about anywhere to turn a verb into a noun. 것 means “thing” and 는 is the present tense marker, but don’t think of 는 것 that way; use 는 with any tense and 것 whether you’re talking about something concrete or not. Compared to 기 and (으)ㅁ, 는 것 can be used in a greater variety of ways without the same kind of nuances.

하다 hada (to do) > 하는 것 haneun geot (doing)

찾다 chajda (to find) > 찾는 것 chajneun geot (finding)

살다 salda (to live) > 사는 것 saneun geot (living) (irregular)

믿다 mitda (to believe) > 믿는 것 mitneun geot (believing)

This 것 will often be followed by the subject marker 이 (assuming, of course, that it is the subject of your sentence). In that case it can be shortened to 게. This is used more often in conversation while 것이 is more commonly seen in writing.

Here’s a table that shows how to conjugate 는 것. See page 237 for more on 던 deon.

	Example	Past	Present	Future
Action verbs ending in vowels	하다	했던 것 haetdeon geot	하는 것 haneun geot	할 것 hal geot
Action verbs ending in consonants	찾다	찾던 것 chajdeon geot	찾는 것 chajneun geot	찾을 것 chajeul geot
Descriptive verbs ending in vowels	예쁘다	예뻤던 것 yeppeotdeon geot	예쁜 것 yeppeun geot	예쁜 것 yeppeun geot
Descriptive verbs ending in consonants	작다	작았던 것 jagatdeon geot	작은 것 jageun geot	작은 것 jageun geot

Changing Action Verbs to Descriptive Verbs: (으)ㄴ/는/(으)ㄹ

(으)ㄴ/는/(으)ㄹ are tense markers and are covered in greater detail on page 235. For now, let’s look at how to use them to change an action verb into an adjective. English isn’t very efficient about this; if you want to talk about a person visiting your house, you have to say “the person who came,” “the person who is coming,” or “the person who will come.” In Korean, it’s much simpler.

ㄴ and 은 are past tense markers. ㄴ goes after verbs ending in vowels and 은 after verbs ending in consonants.

는 is the present tense marker and follows any verb.

ㄹ and 을 are future tense markers. ㄹ follows vowels and 을 follows consonants.

Going back to the visitor we had:

온 사람 on saram the person who came

오는 사람 oneun saram the person who is coming

올 사람 ol saram the person who will come

Who, of course, needs to eat from time to time:

먹은 음식 meogeun eumsig the food that was eaten

먹는 음식 meogneun eumsig the food that is being eaten

먹을 음식 meogeul eumsig the food that will be eaten

By adding (으)ㄴ/는/(으)ㄹ, you can use any verb to describe any noun. Please note that your choice of (으)ㄴ/는/(으)ㄹ depends on the time the action happened relative to the sentence, not relative to right now.

올 사람은 김종국이라고 했어요.

Ol sarameun Kim-jong-guk-i-lago haesseoyo.

The person who was going to come was called Kim Jongkook.

온 사람은 김종국이라고 했어요.

On sarameun Kim-jong-guk-i-lago haesseoyo.

The person who had come was called Kim Jongkook.

오는 사람은 김종국이라고 했어요.

Oneun sarameun Kim-jong-guk-i-lago haesseoyo.

The person who was coming was called Kim Jongkook.

Descriptive verbs usually take only (으)ㄴ or maybe sometimes (으)ㄹ. This (으)ㄴ is built into many of them: you’ve probably talked about things that were 큰 or 작은 or 아름다운. These are all based on verbs (크다, 작다 and 아름답다) that were conjugated using (으)ㄴ.

예쁜 아이 yeppeun a-i a beautiful child

멋있는 남자 meo-sinneun namja a handsome man

아름다운 여자 areumdaun yeoja a beautiful woman

Changing Verbs to Adverbs: 히, 이, 게

■ 게

This is the most common way to form an adverb. You just take the 다 off your verb and add 게.

조용하다 joyonghada (to be quiet) > 조용하게 joyonghage (quietly)

즐겁다 jeulgeobda (to be pleasant) > 즐겁게 jeulgeobge (pleasantly)

슬프다 seulpeuda (to be sad) > 슬프게 seulpeuge (sadly)

In particular, any verb not ending in 하다 should be changed to an adverb using 게. 하다 verbs can always be changed this way as well if you’d like, but in many cases it’s more natural to use 히. See below.

■ 히

You can also form an adverb by taking a verb ending in 하다 and changing that 하다 to 히.

적당하다 jeogdanghada (to be suitable) > 적당히 jeogdanghi (suitably)

무사하다 musahada (to be safe) > 무사히 musahi (safely)

편하다 pyeonhada (to be comfortable) > 편히 pyeonhi (comfortably)

부지런하다 bujileonhada (to be diligent) > 부지런히 bujileonhi (diligently)

■ 이

This is the rarest of the adverbial forms, and I’ve seen it only a few times:

~없이 eobsi without

~빠듯이 ppadeusi barely, narrowly

밖이 bakki outside (as an adverb)

깊이 gipi deeply

굳이 guji firmly, stubbornly

깨끗이 kkaekkeusi cleanly

This isn’t a comprehensive list, but it does cover most of the more common 이 adverbs.

Changing Descriptive Verbs to Action Verbs: 아/어/여지다, 게 되다

To change an adjective (descriptive verb) into an action verb, you need to add “become.” So “big” becomes “to become big.” “Beautiful” becomes “to become beautiful.” There are two ways to add this “become,” and which one you use depends on whether you’re focusing on the situation changing or the fact that the situation has already changed. 아/어/여지다 a/eo/yeojida means the focus is on the change itself while 게 되다 ge doeda means the focus is on the finished product. In situations where you’re using 아/어/여지다 in the past tense (아/어/여졌다), although the change has been completed, the focus is on the situation changing rather than the final result. This is usually not a very big difference.

게 되다 can be added to any verb. 아/어/여지다 follows the same rules as 아/어/여: 아 follows verbs with 아 or 오 as their last vowel, 어 follows verbs with 어, 우, 으 or 이 as their last vowel, and 여 follows 하다.

예쁘다 yeppeuda (to be beautiful) > 예뻐지다 yeppeojida (to become beautiful)

작다 jakda (to be small) > 작아지다 jagajida (to become small)

조용하다 joyonghada (to be quiet) > 조용해지다 joyonghaejida or 조용하게 되다 joyonghage doeda (to become quiet)

Changing Nouns to Verbs: 하다, 이다

A large number, I’d even say most, nouns can be changed to verbs simply by the addition of 하다 hada. This is especially true of words derived from 한자 hanja. You’ll notice Korean has many two-syllable nouns to which you can add 하다 and get a four-syllable word; this is usually two 한자 characters plus 하다. This is also done with many words derived from English.

So if you ever need to change a noun to a verb in a hurry and don’t have a grammar reference guide handy, try 하다. It’s usually a good guess.

운전 unjeon (driving) > 운전하다 unjeonhada (to drive)

공부 gongbu (studying) > 공부하다 gongbuhada (to study)

지각 jigak (tardiness) > 지각하다 jigakhada (to be late)

인쇄/프린트 inswae/peulinteu (printing) > 인쇄하다/프린트 하다 inswaehada/peulinteu hada (to print)

게임 geim (game) > 게임 하다 geim hada (to play a game)

블로그 beullogeu (blog) > 블로그 하다 beullogeu hada (to blog)

The second way to change a noun is to add 이다, which means “it is.” This is necessary for many grammar patterns that will accept only verbs. If you want to sneak a noun in, you can quite often get away with it by adding 이다 to the noun.

학생 haksaeng (student) > 학생이다 haksaeng-i-da (it’s/he’s/she’s a student)

남자 namja (man) > 남자이다 namja-i-da (he’s a man)

물 mul (water) > 물이다 murida (it’s water)

책 chaek (book) > 책이다 chaegida (it’s a book)

Changing Nouns to Descriptive Verbs: 적

Finally, here’s how to turn a noun into an adjective. It works with the two-syllable 한자 hanja nouns we talked about in the last section. Add 적 jeok to the end and the result is an adjective. However, these adjectives can’t be conjugated like regular Korean adjectives (descriptive verbs); for that, you need to add 이다 ida to the end of them as if they were nouns.

개인 gaein (individual) > 개인적 gaeinjeok (private) > 개인적이다 gaeinjeogida

과학 gwahak (science) > 과학적 gwahakjeok (scientific) > 과학적이다 gwahakjeogida

효율 (efficiency) hyoyul > 효율적 hyoyuljeok (efficient) > 효율적이다 hyoyuljeogida

이렇게 개인적인 질문을 하지 마세요. Ileoke gaeinjeogin jilmuneul haji maseyo. Please don’t ask such personal questions.

이것은 더 효율적인 연료인데요. Igeoseun deo hyoyuljeogin yeonryoindeyo. This is a more efficient fuel.

How to Handle Verbs, Part 2: Irregular Verbs

Vowels

When a verb stem ends in a vowel and the expression you’re adding to the end begins with a vowel (어/아 or 었/았 expressions), you have to combine the two vowels. This isn’t difficult as long as you learn how each set combines. In all other cases, ㄴ/는/ㄹ, expressions that have one form for vowels and another for consonants, and expressions that don’t change no matter what they follow, you don’t have to worry about verbs ending in vowels at all. They’re very easy to deal with most of the time.

ㅏ, ㅗ, ㅑ and ㅐ have 아 added to them:

가다 gada > 가 > 가 (아 plus 아 = no change)

사다 sada > 사 > 사

오다 oda > 오 > 와요 wayo (오 plus 아 becomes 와)

보다 boda > 보 > 봐요 bwayo

ㅐ and 야 are based on ㅏ and so are conjugated like 아 verbs.

내다 naeda > 내 > 내요 naeyo

Verbs ending in ㅓ, ㅜ, ㅡ, ㅣ, ㅕ or ㅔ take 어 and this is added as follows:

서다 seoda > 서 > 서요 seoyo (어 plus 어 = no change)

켜다 kyeoda > 켜 > 켜요 kyeoyo (여 plus 어 = no change)

치다 chida > 치 > 쳐요 chyeoyo (이 plus 어 = 여)

지다 jida > 지 > 져요 jyeoyo

마시다 masida > 마시 masi > 마셔요 masyeoyo

으 is a meek shy little vowel and prefers to give way whenever it encounters a stronger vowel. This means that it completely disappears from the word, like this:

크다 keuda > 크 > 커요 keoyo

끄다 kkeuda > 끄 > 꺼요 kkeoyo

우 has 어 added to it. Some words can be written with the 우 and 어 together or in separate syllables; this is mostly a matter of custom.

태우다 taeuda > 태우 > 태워요 taewoyo

세우다 seuda > 세우 > 세워요 sewoyo

주다 juda > 주 > 줘요 jwoyo

나누다 nanuda > 나누 > 나눠요 nanwoyo

두다 duda > 두 > 두어요 dueoyo or 둬요 dwoyo

Verbs ending in 에 absorb their 어 like so:

세다 seda > 세 > 세요 seyo

ㄹ irregular Verbs

Verbs ending in ㄹ and followed by expressions starting with ㅂ, ㅅ, or ㄴ (like ㅂ니다, 세요 or 는) lose the ㄹ altogether.

알다 alda > 알 al > 아세요, aseyo 압니다, 아는, 아시다시피, 아니까, abnida, aneun, asidasipi, anikka …

알아요, 알아, 알면, 알고, 알지만, arayo, ara, almyeon, algo, aljiman …

When verb stems ending in 알 are changed into nouns using the ending ㅁ (see page 22), it just gets added into the same syllable, like so:

알다 alda > 알 > 앎 alm

살다 salda > 살 > 삶 salm

This doesn’t happen with verb stems ending in any other consonant.

Tenses with ㄴ/는/ㄹ look strange with this particular irregularity; see the table below.

Verb	Past Tense	Present Tense	Future Tense
알다 alda	안 an	아는 aneun	알 al
팔다 palda	판 pan	파는 paneun	팔 pal
울다 ulda	운 un	우는 uneun	울 ul

르 irregular Verbs

Verb stems ending in 르 leu are totally regular except when they have to deal with an ending starting with 아/어/여: for instance, 아/어/여요 or 아/어/여서. In these cases, the ㄹ in the verb stem needs an extra ㄹ at the end of the previous syllable with these verbs.

모르다 moreuda > 모르 moreu > 몰ㄹ mol-l > 몰라요 mollayo

고르다 goreuda > 고르 goreu > 골ㄹ gol-l > 골라요 gollayo

바르다 bareuda > 바르 bareu > 발ㄹ bal-l > 발라요 ballayo

빠르다 ppareuda > 빠르 ppareu > 빨ㄹ ppal-l > 빨라요 ppallayo

ㅎ irregular Verbs

These include just about all the color words in Korean, plus 이렇다/그렇다/저렇다 ireota/geureota/jeoreota and 어떻다 eotteota. Other verbs ending in ㅎ are conjugated normally.

놓다 nota > 놓 > 놓아요 noayo

넣다 neota > 넣 > 넣어요 neoeoyo

Color words typically drop their ㅎ and have 이요 added instead of 아요.

빨갛다 ppalgata > 빨갛 > 빨가 ppalga > 빨간, 빨개요 ppalgan, ppalgaeyo

까맣다 kkamata > 까맣 > 까마 kkama > 까만, 까매요 kkaman, kkamaeyo

하얗다 hayata > 하얗 > 하야 haya > 하얀, 하얘요 hayan, hayaeyo

이렇다 ireota/그렇다 geureota/저렇다 jeoreota and 어떻다 eotteota also function like these words.

이렇다 > 이렇 > 이러 ireo > 이런 ireon, 이래요 iraeyo

그렇다 > 그렇 > 그러 geureo > 그런 geureon, 그래요 geuraeyo

저렇다 > 저렇 > 저러 jeoreo > 저런 jeoreon, 저래요 jeoraeyo

어떻다 > 어떻 > 어떠 eotteo > 어떤 eotteon, 어때요 eottaeyo

They’re strange enough that, particularly in the case of 그렇다, which is used all over the place, you’re better off simply memorizing their permutations. See page 377 for a detailed list of the various ways in which 그렇다 can be conjugated.

Irregular Verbs: Stems Ending with ㅂ, ㅅ or ㄷ

Basically, each of these irregular verbs has two forms: in any instance in which an expression that begins (or can begin) with a vowel is added, the verb will change, while in any instance in which an expression that can begin with only a consonant is added, the verb will be conjugated the regular way. The table below shows how each one changes:

Kind of irregular verb (example)	Verb stem before vowels	Verb stem before consonants
ㅂ (돕다) dopda	도우 dou (ㅂ changes to 우)	돕 dob
ㅅ (짓다) jitda	지 ji (ㅅ disappears)	짓 jit
ㄷ (걷다) geotda	걸 geol (ㄷ changes to ㄹ)	걷 geot

And here are some examples of the verbs in action:

Kind of verb	Example	+ consonant (지만)	+ consonant (는)	+ consonant (고)	+ vowel (아/어/여서)	+ vowel ([으]ㄹ)	+ vowel ([으]면)
ㅂ irregular	돕다 dopda	돕지만 dopjiman	돕는 dopneun	돕고 dopgo	도와서 dowaseo	도울 doul	도우면 doumeyon
	밉다 mipda	밉지만 mipjiman	밉는 mipneun	밉고 mipgo	미워서 miwoseo	미울 miul	미우면 miumyeon
	굽다 gupda	굽지만 gupjiman	굽는 gupneun	굽고 gupgo	구워서 guwoseo	구울 guul	구우면 gu-u-myeon
	눕다 nupda	눕지만 nupjiman	눕는 nupneun	눕고 nupgo	누워서 nuwoseo	누울 nuul	누우면 nu-u-myeon
ㅅ irregular	짓다 jitda	짓지만 jitjiman	짓는 jitneun	짓고 jitgo	지어서 jieoseo	지을 jieul	지으면 jieumyeon
	잇다 itda	잇지만 itjiman	잇는 itneun	잇고 itgo	이어서 ieoseo	이을 ieul	이으면 ieumyeon
	붓다 butda	붓지만 butjiman	붓는 butneun	붓고 butgo	부어서 bueoseo	부을 bueul	부으면 bueumyeon
	낫다 natda	낫지만 natjiman	낫는 nanneun	낫고 natgo	나아서 na-a-seo	나을 naeul	나으면 naeumyeon
ㄷ irregular	걷다 geotda	걷지만 geotjiman	걷는 geotneun	걷고 geotgo	걸어서 georeoseo	걸을 georeul	걸으면 georeumyeon
	싣다 sitda	싣지만 sitjiman	싣는 sitneun	싣고 sitgo	실어서 sireoseo	실을 sireul	실으면 sireumyeon
	묻다 mutda	mutjiman	묻는 mutneun	묻고 mutgo	물어서 mureoseo	물을 mureul	물으면 mureumyeon
	듣다 deutda	듣지만 deutjiman	듣는 deutneun	듣고 deutgo	들어서 deureoseo	들을 deureul	들으면 deureumyeon

It’s important to remember that unlike ㄹ, 르, ㅎ, or vowel-based irregularities, which apply to all verbs with that particular spelling pattern, verb stems ending in ㅅ, ㄷ, and ㅂ can be regular or irregular. You just have to memorize which ones are which. Here are a few common ones to get you started:

Regular ㅂ verbs:	입다 ipda, 잡다 japda, 집다 jipda, 씹다 ssipda, 줍다 jupda, 짧다 jjalda, 넓다 neolda, 좁다 jopda
Irregular ㅂ verbs:	덥다 deopda, 쉽다 swipda, 맵다 maepda, 눕다 nupda, 굽다 gupda, 돕다 dopda, 밉다 mipda, 귀엽다 gwiyeopda, 아름답다 areumdapda, 곱다 gopda, 춥다 chupda
Regular ㅅ verbs:	씻다 ssitda, 빗다 bitda, 벗다 beotda
Irregular ㅅ verbs:	붓다 butda, 젓다 jeotda, 짓다 jitda, 잇다 itda, 낫다 natda, 긋 다 geutda
Regular ㄷ verbs:	받다 batda, 쏟다 ssotda, 닫다 datda, 믿다 mitda
Irregular ㄷ verbs:	듣다 deutda, 걷다 geotda, 싣다 sitda, 묻다 mutda

Basic Particles

You should have some familiarity with most of the following particles before using this book. Otherwise you’ll have a hard time understanding the example sentences. There are plenty of good beginning books out there that cover this material; see the list of Useful Korean Language Resources in Appendix 2. As reference, here are the basic particles with their general meanings:

이	i	subject particle for words ending in consonants
가	ga	subject particle for words ending in vowels
은	eun	topic particle for words ending in consonants
는	neun	topic particle for words ending in vowels
을	eul	object particle for words ending in consonants
를	reul	object particle for words ending in vowels
에서	eseo	from, at
에	e	to, at, concerning
더러	deoreo	to/from a person (very informal)
에게	ege	to a person (informal)
에게서	egeseo	from a person (informal)
한테	hante	to/from a person (somewhat polite)
께	kke	to a person (super-polite)
께서	kkeseo	from a person (super-polite)
로	ro	through, to for words ending in vowels
으로	euro	through, to for words ending in consonants
부터	buteo	from
까지	kkaji	to, until
의	ui	’s (possessive particle)
들	deul	s (pluralizing particle)
씩	ssik	each, at a time
마다	mada	each, every
시	si	added to verbs when talking about people higher in status than you
님	nim	Mr./Mrs./Ms./Miss (very polite)
씨	ssi	Mr./Mrs./Ms./Miss (somewhat polite)
만	man	only
도	do	also, too

All these particles are simply added to the ends of nouns when you want to use them.

Helping Verbs

These verbs follow 아/어/여 verb endings. When added to a verb plus one of those three endings, they mean “to take the result of that verb and do something with it.” Here are the more common “helping” verbs:

~가다 gada/오다 oda	to go/to come
~두다 duda/놓다 nota	to keep/to put aside
~넣다 neota	to put
~대다 daeda	to repeat
~가지다 gajida	to carry (in this context, the result of ~ was carried over to something else)
~버리다 beorida	to throw out (in this context, to throw out or to finish/be done with)
~보다 boda	to watch (in this context, to try)
~주다 juda	to give
~내다 naeda	to pay (in this context, it implies accomplishment: ~ was something you did with some effort)

있다 can also follow verbs with 아/어/여, but its use is a little more specialized; see page 255.

As an example, let’s try adding these words to 하다 and see the result:

가다/오다 > 해 가다/해 오다gada/oda > hae gada/hae oda	to do and go/come with
두다/놓다 > 해 두다/해 놓다duda/nota > hae duda/hae nota	to keep/to put aside
넣다 > 해 넣다neota > hae neota	to put
대다 > 해 대다daeda > hae daeda	to do repeatedly
가지다 > 해 가지다gajida > hae gajida	to do and take
버리다 > 해 버리다beorida > hae beorida	to do and throw out/get rid of/be done with
보다 > 해 보다boda > hae boda	to try to do
주다 > 해 주다juda > hae juda	to do and give/to do something for someone else
내다 > 해 내다naeda > hae naeda	to accomplish/to finish doing

And let’s see one more: 만들다 mandeulda, to make.

가다/오다 > 만들어 가다/만들어 오다mandeureo gada/mandeureo oda	to make and go/come with
두다/놓다 > 만들어 두다/만들어 놓다mandeureo duda/mandeureo nota	to make and keep/put aside
넣다 > 만들어 넣다mandeureo neota	to make and put
대다 > 만들어 대다mandeureo daeda	to repeatedly make
가지다 > 만들어 가지다mandeureo gajida	to make and take
버리다 > 만들어 버리다mandeureo beorida	to make and throw out/get rid of/ be done with
보다 > 만들어 보다mandeureo boda	to try to make
주다 > 만들어 주다mandeureo juda	to make and give/to make for someone else
내다 > 만들어 내다mandeureo naeda	to finish making (something very difficult)

Passives and Causatives

Passives

In a passive-voice sentence, make the object of the sentence the subject and don’t worry too much about who did the action. For instance, let’s take the sentence: “He did his homework.” In the passive voice, this would become “His homework was done.” Alternatively, let’s try “The mother hugged the child.” In the passive, it changes to “The child was hugged by the mother.”

Korean verbs are changed to the passive voice by adding 이, 히, 리 or 기. Which syllable you add usually depends on the letter the verb ends with; however, there are many exceptions to this rule and you simply have to memorize most of the words.

Having said that, let’s discuss the general rules first and common exceptions later.

■ Verbs ending in vowels or ㅎ normally have 이 added.

보다 boda (to see) > 보이다 bo-ida (to be showing/seen)

쌓다 ssata (to pile) > 쌓이다 ssa-ida (to be piled up)

놓다 nota (to put) > 놓이다 no-ida (to be put)

바꾸다 bakkuda (to change) > 바뀌다 bakkwida (to be changed)

■ Verbs ending in ㅂ, ㄷ or ㄱ take 히.

잡다 japda (to catch) > 잡히다 japida (to be caught)

읽다 ilgda (to read) > 읽히다 ilkhida (to be read)

먹다 meokda (to eat) > 먹히다 meokida (to be eaten)

닫다 datda (to close) > 닫히다 dachida (to be closed)

■ Verbs ending in ㄹ almost always take 리.

걸다 geolda (to hang) > 걸리다 geollida (to be hung)

열다 yeolda (to open) > 열리다 yeollida (to be opened)

듣다 deutda (to listen) > 들리다 deullida (to be heard)

■ Verbs ending in ㄴ, ㅁ, ㅅ or ㅊ take 기.

안다 anda (to hug) > 안기다 angida (to be hugged)

끊다 kkeunta (to stop) > 끊기다 kkeunkida (to be stopped)

쫓다 jjotda (to chase) > 쫓기다 jjotgida (to be chased)

담다 damda (to put something in) > 담기다 damgida (to be put in)

When an active verb ends in 하다, you can change it to passive simply by changing 하다 to 되다.

사용하다 sayonghada (to use) > 사용되다 sayongdoeda (to be used)

활용하다 hwallyonghada (to use) > 활용되다 hwallyongdoeda (to be used)

이동하다 idonghada (to move) > 이동되다 idongdoeda (to be moved)

You can also change verbs by adding either 아/어/여지다 or 게 되다; see page 25. For quick reference, here are some examples:

예쁘다 yeppeuda (to be beautiful) > 예뻐지다 yeppeojida or 예쁘게 되다 yeppeuge doeda (to become beautiful)

작다 jakda (to be small) > 작아지다 jagajida or 작게 되다 jakge doeda (to become small)

조용하다 joyonghada (to be quiet) > 조용해지다 joyonghaejida or 조용하게 되다 joyonghage doeda (to become quiet)

Causatives

If you’re an active rather than a passive type and found all that talk of having things happen to you to be unpleasant, you’ll enjoy this next part a bit more. This is how to make causative sentences in Korean. In the passive voice, “The child was dressed by the mother”; in the causative voice, “The mother dressed the child.”

Just to make things interesting, Korean uses almost exactly the same particles for this as it does for passives. They are 이, 히, 리, and 기. For causatives you also sometimes need 우 and 추.

Just to make it even more fun, the particles sometimes follow the same rules as passives and sometimes not. There are many more exceptions with causative verbs as well.

Again, let’s start with the general rules and then move on to exceptions.

■ 이 follows verbs ending in vowels, ㄱ, and ㅎ.

보다 boda (to see) > 보이다 bo-ida (to show)

먹다 meokda (to eat) > 먹이다 meogida (to feed)

끓다 kkeulta (to be boiling) > 끓이다 kkeulida (to boil [something])

죽다 jukda (to die) > 죽이다 jugida (to kill)

■ 히 follows ㅂ.

입다 ipda (to wear) > 입히다 iphida (to clothe or to cover)

눕다 nupda (to lie down) > 눕히다 nuphida (to lay [something/someone] down)

■ 리, again, follows ㄹ.

알다 alda (to know) > 알리다 allida (to let something be known)

살다 salda (to live) > 살리다 salida (to save [someone’s life])

울다 ulda (to cry) > 울리다 ullida (to make [someone] cry)

■ 기 follows ㅅ and ㅁ.

숨다 sumda (to hide [oneself]) > 숨기다 sumgida (to hide [something])

남다 namda (to remain) > 남기다 namgida (to leave)

웃다 utda (to smile) > 웃기다 utgida (to make [someone] smile or laugh)

벗다 beotda (to take off [someone’s clothes]) > 벗기다 beotgida (to take off [someone’s clothes])

■ 우 isn’t actually 우, but rather 이우. It follows verbs ending in vowels.

타다 tada (to ride/to burn) > 태우다 taeuda (to give a ride/to burn something)

자다 jada (to sleep) > 재우다 jaeuda (to put to sleep)

서다 seoda (to stand) > 세우다 seuda (to park)

깨다 kkaeda (to wake up) > 깨우다 kkaeuda (to wake up [someone])

■ 추 follows ㅈ.

낮다 natda (to be low) > 낮추다 natchuda (to lower)

늦다 neutda (to be late) > 늦추다 neutchuda (to delay)

맞다 matda (to be right) > 맞추다 matchuda (to fit, to make right)

Here are a few common exceptions:

읽다 ilkda (to read) > 읽히다 ilkhida (to be read)

앉다 anda (to sit) > 앉히다 anchida (to make someone sit)

맡다 matda (to assume, to be in charge) > 맡기다 matgida (to entrust)

Like its partner 게 되다 ge doeda, you can use 게 하다 ge hada to make someone do something or to make something become a certain way. It’s the active version of 게 되다 ge doeda. See page 205 for how to use 게 하다 ge hada.

Certain other causatives are based on the verb 나다 nada. When changed to causative form, this becomes 내다 naeda. That’s true for all variations of 나다 and 내다.

나다 nada (to happen) > 내다 naeda (to make/pay)

끝나다 kkeutnada (to be finished) > 끝내다 kkeutnaeda (to finish)

힘나다 himnada (to gain strength) > 힘내다 himnaeda (to strengthen oneself)

알아내다 aranaeda (to discover)

그 일이 벌써 끝났어요. geu iri beolsseo kkeutnasseoyo. The work is already finished. (passive)

그 일을 벌써 끝냈어요. Geu ireul beolsseo kkeutnaesseoyo. I’ve already finished the work. (causative)

Note that the subject of the sentence changes: for 나다 verbs, the subject will always be whatever was done or whatever happened; for 내다 verbs, the subject should be the person that did the action.

해내다 haenaeda to accomplish (see page 31)

해결해 내다 haegyeolhae naeda to find a solution