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If you read the title, you may wonder, "Okay, so I will learn about adjectives in Korean, but why is there 'present tense?' in the title?" Korean adjectives are a little different than English. They can work like verbs! Let's check out the features of Korean adjectives and how we can conjugate them. Please don't forget to download the worksheets!
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1. Korean Adjectives
Korean adjectives mainly have two ways to use them. It's already different from English, right? I'll show you each one. Don't worry.
First, you can use them like English adjectives. You can directly describe a noun, for example, a big house or a small mouse. In this case, an adjective is a part of the sentence. For example, you can say "I want to live in a big house." or "There is a small mouse."
Second, Korean adjectives can work like verbs! That means it can come to a predicate position (the end of the sentence to describe or state). It is a very different part from English! They have basic forms like verbs. So, all Korean adjectives end with "다 [da]." We need to change the forms to use in a conversation or writing. By changing the form, we can add tense, politeness, and tone to it. Take a look at the quick example below.
작다 to be small → 집이 작아요. The house is small.
As you see, the adjective comes at the end of the sentence, just like a verb! So, when it comes to the end, if you want to understand it like English, you can think of an adjective that includes the be verb. (am/are/is/was/were + Adj.)
In this lesson, you will learn about Korean adjectives' basic forms and how to conjugate them into an informal (conversational) present tense. This version is polite and friendly and commonly used in daily conversation. The first usage of adjectives (directly describing a noun) is actually a little more complicated grammar so you will learn about it later.
2. Regular Conjugation Rules
Since adjectives work like verbs, we must change their forms to use them in conversation. Luckily, conjugating the informal present tense of adjectives is not that different from verb rules! Remember what was the key to deciding forms? YES, the stem's last vowel! I will show you step-by-step conjugation rules. Please carefully follow to see the conjugation rules.
1) ㅏ, ㅗ , ㅑ adjectives + 아요
Just like verbs, check the syllable right before 다. That is the last syllable of the stem. If the vowel is ㅏ, ㅗ, or ㅑ, you will need to add 아요.
작다 to be small → All adjectives (and verbs) always end with 다. We don't need it. Let's erase 다. → 작 → If you look at the last (and only) syllable, it has the vowel ㅏ. That means we have to add 아요 to it. → 작아요. (am/are/is) small
많다 to be a lot /many/much → I will skip talking about erasing 다 from now on. → 많 → Check the vowel. It's "ㅏ". We need 아요 to make it a polite present ending. → 많아요. (am/are/is) a lot
A quick pronunciation tip about 많다
When ㄷ[d] and ㅎ[h] meet, it becomes ㅌ[t]. That is how ㅌ was originally made. So, 많다 pronounced as [만타 man-ta]. But when it is used in 많아요 or 많았어요, ㅎ[h] is a silence. (Like Spanish!) So the ㅎ doesn't move over to the ㅇ spot. So you don't say 만하요 [man-ha-yo]. Instead, the ㄴ moves over and becomes [마나요 ma-na-yo].
얇다 to be thin → 얇 → The vowel is 야. Add 아요. → 얇아요
A quick pronunciation tip about 얇다
얇다 pronounced as [얄따 yal-dda]. The ㄹ [l] survived as the final consonant sound and ㅂ[b] moved on to the next. As it moved on ㅂ [b] affected ㄷ [d] and made it the double consonant ㄸ [dd]. When it is conjugated with 아요, ㅂ also again needs to move on, but this time it can take the no sound ㅇ spot. So, 얇아요 sounds [얄바요 yal-ba-yo].
2) 하다 adjectives: +여요
Remember 하다 verbs? That time you learned that 하다 means "do." However, it can be shown in adjectives as well. In adjectives, it doesn't have a "do" meaning anymore. Still, it follows the same rules though. You'll add 여요 to 하. The original form of this word is 하여요. But it is a bit old-fashioned word. These days, people use 해요 instead.
날씬하다 to be slim/skinny → 날씬하 → 날씬하+여요 → 날씬하여요 → 날씬해요.
뚱뚱하다 to be fat → 뚱뚱해요.
건강하다 to be heatlhy → 건강해요.
3) Others: +어요
The adjectives that do not follow rules 1 or 2 above will follow this rule number 3. So, for adjectives that don't have ㅏ, ㅗ, or ㅑ as the last vowels or end with 하다, you will add 어요 for the present tense.
적다 to be few/little → 적 → The vowel is "ㅓ." It is not ㅏ or 오. It is not 하다 adj. So, we add 어요. → 적어요.
느리다 to be slow → 느리 → 느리+어요 → 리 and 어 combine and become 려 . → 느려요.
3. Irregular Conjugation Rules
Adjectives have so many irregular conjugation forms! Just like verbs, the key is the final consonant of the last syllable of the stem. But some rules are slightly different from verbs. No adjective ends with ㄷ in a stem. There are many with ㅂ and you will see ㅎ as well! Sounds complicated? But don't worry! Please follow them one by one!
1) ㅅ adjectives: Erase ㅅ + 아요
The only ㅅ adjective in Korean is 낫다. And, yes, we learned 낫다 in the verb lesson. 낫다 as a verb means "to recover/heal". 낫다 in adjective means "to be better/superior".
낫다 to be better → 낫 → The final consonant is ㅅ. Just like a verb, ㅅ will be gone. → 나 → It has ㅏ as a vowel. So, let's add 아요 → 나아요.
2) ㅎ adjectives: Erase ㅎ + ㅣ + 요
The verbs can have ㅎ as the last consonant as well but the verbs with ㅎ follow the regular conjugation rule. Only ㅎ adjectives have the irregular rules. The adjective ㅎ changes really differently with others. You erase ㅎ and then add the vowel ㅣ first and then add (아/어)요. So, in the end, it looks like you attached 애요, 에요, 얘요, or 예요.
파랗다 to be blue→ 파랗 → ㅎ will be disappear. → 파라 → Add the vowel "l" to 라 which makes 파래. Now add 요. → 파래요.
노랗다 to be yellow → 노랗 → Erase ㅎ. → 노라 → Add ㅣ makes 노래. Then add 요. → 노래요.
뿌옇다 to be foggy → 뿌옇 → ㅎ will be gone. → 뿌여 → Now add ㅣ and make 뿌예. → Then add 요. → 뿌예요.
☆ Also, only one adjective with ㅎ, 좋다 [jo-ta] follows the regular rule, even though it is an adjective.
좋다 [jo-ta] to be good → 좋 → It is the only adjective with ㅎ that follows the regular rule. So you can add 아요/았어요 without erasing ㅎ. → 좋아요. [jo-ah-yo]
3) ㅂ adjectives: Erase ㅂ add 와요/워요
There are many adjectives with ㅂ. Just like irregular ㅂ verbs, ㅂ adjectives have their own special forms. First, you have to erase ㅂ. Then, you have to check its last vowel. If it is ㅏ or ㅗ, you have to add 와요 (not 아요). If it is not ㅏ or ㅗ, you will attach 워요 (not 어요).
덥다 to be hot → 덥 → The final consonant is ㅂ. Erase it. → 더 →The vowel is ㅓ. So, we will add 워요 . → 더워요.
춥다 to be cold → 춥 → Erase ㅂ. → 추 →The vowel is ㅜ. It's not ㅏ or ㅗ, so we use the conjugation rule number 3, but with the special form 워요, not 어요. → 추워요.
곱다 to be pretty → 곱 → Erase ㅂ. → 고 →The vowel is ㅗ. ㅏ or ㅗ needs 와요. → 고와요.
곱다 is a bit old-fashioned way to say pretty. Yet, I wanted to show you an example with 와요. These days, people use 예쁘다 more to say pretty.
☆ Even though many of the ㅂ follow the 와요/워요 rules, 좁다 will use the regular conjugation rule. It is good to remember these special words separately.
좁다 to be narrow → 좁 → It follows the regular rule. That means there is no ㅂ drop. And since the vowel is ㅗ, you will add 아요. → 좁아요.
4) ㅡ and 르
This part is an advanced-level rule. If you are curious, you can check my other post. But if you are a beginner, try to memorize them in chunks.
크다 to be big → 커요.
빠르다 to be quick → 빨라요.
예쁘다 to be pretty → 예뻐요.
4. Examples
1
사람이 많아요. There are a lot of people.
사람 means person/people. 많아요 came from 많다 which means a lot/many. By using an adjective at the end, it has the meaning of "are many".
2
가: 키가 커요? Are you tall?
나: 아니요, 키가 작아요. No, I am short.
↪ 키 means height. 크다 / 작다 are to be big/small. By adding 키 to them, you can say someone is tall/short. 키가 크다 means to be tall and 키가 작다 means to be short in height wise.
3
가: 더워요? Are you hot?
나: 아니요, 추워요. No, I'm cold.
↪ 덥다 means "feels hot". 춥다 means "feels cold". They are used to talk if the temperature is hot or cold.
4
치타는 빨라요. A cheetah is fast.
달팽이는 느려요. A snail is slow.
↪ 치타 is a cheetah and 달팽이 is a snail. Fast and slow are antonyms. In Korean, the antonym is called 반대말.
5
이 책은 두꺼워요. This book is thick.
이 책은 얇아요. This book is thin.
↪ 두껍다 means "to be thick". It is one of the irregular ㅂ words, so you add 워요 to it. 얇다 means "to be thin," and it is a word that follows the regular conjugation rule.
5. Wrap-up: Korean adjectives in the present tense
Korean adjectives can come at the end of a sentence to say "be 00."
Adjectives have the basic forms that end with "다". You must conjugate them.
Conjugation rules are similar to verb rules.
The key to conjugation is the last vowel of the stem!
Once you understand the rules, try to memorize a basic form and its conjugated form as a set. You can download the adjective worksheet and continue to add new adjectives you will learn. Please download the worksheets to practice them!
How was the lesson? If you are familiar with informal verb conjugations, the adjective changing would not be too challenging! If you have any questions, please use the comment section. Also, don't forget to be a subscriber to get updates on the newest lessons!
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