Previously, you've learned "에 [ae] or [eh]" as the place marker. In this lesson, you will learn another purpose of this "에". It can also work as a time marker! Let's learn the details about it along with time-related words!
<Table of Contents>
1. Time-related words
Here are some time-related words. Those are pretty basic words, so try to memorize them!
when 언제 [un-jae]
what time 몇 시 [myeo ssi]: Even though we write it as 몇 시, you have to read it like /며씨/ because the final consonant ㅊ [ch] affected ㅅ [s].
A.M. 오전 [oh-jeon]
P.M. 오후 [oh-hu]
<Langauge Tip!>
오 [oh] in this case means "noon". So 오전 is before noon and 오후 is after noon. From here, you can learn 전 means 'before' and 후 means 'after.'
morning/breakfast 아침 [ah-chim]
around noon/lunch 점심 [jeom-sim]
daytime 낮 [nat]
evening/dinner 저녁 [jeo-nyeok]
night 밤 [bam]
dawn 새벽 [sae-byeok]
<Tips / Fun Fact!>
밥 [bab] means cooked rice (steamed rice). In Korea's agricultural society, 밥 has been the staple food for a long time. So, the meaning of 밥 expanded, not only just cooked rice but also meal.
아침 [ah-chim], 점심 [jeom-sim], and 저녁 [jeo-nyeok] means morning, around noon, and evening. With the word 밥, they mean the meal of that time. So, 아침밥 [ah-chim-bab] is breakfast, 점심밥 [jeom-sim-bab] is lunch, and 저녁밥 [jeo-nyeok-bab] is dinner.
However, 밥 for those words can be omitted! So instead of saying 저녁밥 you can just say 저녁 to mean "dinner". Then how can we distinguish whether it means meal or evening? You have to figure it out with the provided context.
For example, the verb "먹어요 [meo-geo-yo]" means "eat". So, if you say "아침을 먹어요 [ah-chi-meul meo-geo-yo] that means you are eating breakfast. (Since you can't eat morning!)
2. The Korean Time Marker: 에
1) 에 [ae/eh] is the Korean time marker. It comes after a time word or specific time and indicates when an event happens.
아침에 학교에 가요. [ah-chi-mae hak-gyo-eh ga-yo] I go to school in the morning.
여덟 시에 학교에 가요. [yeo-deol-ssi-ae hak-ggyo-ae ga-yo] I go to school at 8:00.
↪ There are two 에 in this sentence. The red one is attached to the time word. So, it is a time marker. The blue one is attached to a place (school). That means it is a place marker.
2) It only has one form. That means you don't have to worry about the final consonant of a noun.
몇 시에 가요? [myeo ssi-eh ga-yo?] What time do you go?
두 시 반에 가요. [du-si ba-nae ga-yo] I go at 2:00.
3) However, some words are not allowed to have 에, even though they are time-related words! Check the list below.
when 언제 [eon-jae]
now 지금 [ji-geum]
the day before yesterday 그저께 [geu-jeo-ggae]
yesterday 어제 [eo-jae]
today 오늘 [oh-neul]
tomorrow 내일 [nae-il]
the day after tomorrow 모레 [mo-lae]
For example, you can say "아침에 학교에 가요. [ah-chi-mae hak-gyo-eh-ga-yo] I go to school in the morning," attaching 에 to 아침. But you can't say 오늘에 학교에 가요. [oh-neu-lae hak-gyo-eh ga-yo], because 에 can't be attached to 오늘. You must say "오늘 학교에 가요 [oh-neul hak-gyo-eh ga-yo] I go to school today.
3. Question Forms
1) To ask the questions with "when" start the sentence with 언제 [eon-jae] without the timer marker.
언제 가요? [un-jae ga-yo?] When do you go?
언제 집에 가요? [eon-jae ji-bae ga-yo?] When do you go home?
2) To ask the questions with "what time" start the sentence with 몇 시 [myeo ssi] with the time marker 에 [eh], 몇 시에 [myeo ssi-eh].
몇 시에 가요? [myeo-ssi-eh ga-yo?] What time do you go?
몇 시에 집에 가요? [myeo-ssi-eh ji-bae ga-yo?] What time do you go home?
4. Examples
1
가: 언제 학교에 가요? [eon-jae-eh hak-ggyo-eh ga-yo?] When do you go to school?
나: 여덟 시 반에 학교에 가요. [yeo-deol ssi ba-nae hak-ggyo-eh ga-yo] I go to school at 8:30.
↪ 반 [ban] means half. "여덟시 반 [yeo-deol ssi ban]" also can be said 여덟 시 삼십 분 [yeo-deol ssi sam-sip-bun]". Because 30 is half of 60 minutes.
2
다: 언제 학교에 가요? [eon-jae-eh hak-ggyo-eh ga-yo?] When do you go to school?
라: 여덟 시 반에 가요. [yeo-deol ssi ba-nae ga-yo] I go (to school) at 8:30.
↪ You can omit "학교에" because the both speaker and listener know about this part. The subject parts (I and you) are also omitted for the same reason.
3
마: 언제 티비를 봐요? [eon-jae tee-vee-leul bwa-yo?] When do you watch TV?
바: 저녁에 봐요. [jeo-nyeo-gae bwa-yo] I watch (TV) in the evening.
↪ When you answer "언제 when" you can give the specific time or the range of the time (time-related words), just like you answer the "when" questions in English.
4
사: 몇 시에 점심을 먹어요? [myeo ssi-eh jeom-si-meul meo-geo-yo?] What time do you eat lunch?
아: 열두 시에 먹어요. [yeol-du si-eh meo-geo-yo] I eat at 12.
↪ Unlike 언제 when, if you are asked by "몇 시 what time", it is natural to give the specific time to answer.
5
자: 오늘 영화관에 가요? [oh-neul young-wha-gwa-nae ga-yo?] Do you go to the movie theater today?
차: 아니요, 내일 가요. [ah-ni-yo, nae-il ga-yo] No, I will go tomorrow.
↪ 오늘 [oh-neul] today and 내일 [nae-il] tomorrow can't be followed with the time marker 에.
6
카: 내일 친구를 만나요? [nae-il chin-gu-leul man-na-yo?] Will you meet your friend tomorrow?
타: 네, 내일 다섯 시에 만나요. [nae, nae-il da-seo ssi-eh man-na-yo] Yes, I will meet (my friend) tomorrow at five.
↪ Surprise fact! You learned 아/어/여요 as a preset tense, but guess what, you can talk about the future using this form as well!
5. Quiz
Check out your understanding with the quizzes below!
6. Wrap-up: Korean time marker 에
에 is the time marker and is attached to a specific time or time-related words to tell the time an event happens.
Some time-related words can't be followed by 에. Those are 언제 (when), 지금 (now), 오늘 (today), etc.
To ask "when," start a sentence with 언제. To ask "what time," start a sentence with 몇 시에.
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