안녕하세요, 여러분! (Hello, everyone!) Today, I'll teach you how to say "Let's V" in Korean. You can suggest doing something together!
The good news is you actually already learned about it briefly before! You may know what I mean if you studied the Korean present tense form with me! You'll still learn more about details, so please don't skip this lesson!
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1. Korean Propositive Ending: V아/어/여요
What is 아/어/여요?
아/어/여요 came from 아요/어요/여요. It is the Korean present tense ending. When 아/어/여요 is attached to a verb stem, it can express the four types of sentences. These are statement, question, command, and propositive. Mostly, it is used in a statement and a question, but with context, you can suggest doing something together!
How can we add the context? You can add the word like 같이 or 함께. They mean "together". With these words, you can emphasize the propositive meaning. For example, "먹어요." can mean "I eat," "Eat!" or "Let's eat." (It is a pretty useful ending, right?) Now, if you say "같이 먹어요," this will definitely mean "Let's eat."
⚐ Tips: 같이 Pronunciation
Watch out! 같이 is pronounced as [가치]. It is due to palatalization. You don't have to worry about the background. However, if you are curious, click here to read my related lesson!
Only a verb will work!
As I wrote "Let's V" and "V아/어/여요," you can see what it can be attached to! It can only attach this to a verb stem. As you know "V" is short for a "verb."
If you add an adjective to this propositive ending, it would be awkward. No matter you add 같이 or not, it doesn't make sense in Korean.
For example, 예쁘다 means "to be pretty". You can't suggest to be pretty together; 같이 예뻐요. It sounds awkward in English, too. In Korean, it is definitely wrong. When you say "예뻐요" that will only mean someone or something is pretty. It is just a statement or explanation.
If you really want to, we can use another sentence ending and say "Let's become pretty together (같이 예뻐져요.)" But that is another story for another time. Today, we'll focus on the "아/어/여요" form.
To whom can I use this form?
Ending with "요" makes it polite and friendly, suitable for addressing co-workers or individuals older than you. Exercise caution when using it with someone significantly older than yourself.
As I mentioned, this is a friendly ending. You can only use it when you have very intimate relationships with this older person. So, it is not good to use to unfamiliar superior like a boss or professor.
(O) 엄마, 저녁 같이 먹어요. Mom, let's have dinner together.
(X) 사장님, 저녁 같이 먹어요. Boss, let's have dinner together.
Unless your boss is your friend, it is rude to say like the example above! You will learn more polite asking way in the future.
By the way, you can still use this ending for the same age or younger people if you want to be polite to them. As a Korean tutor, I'm using these "요" endings to my students, even though they are younger than me.
2. Regular Conjugation Rules
The propositive 아/어/여요 follows the same rules as the present tense 아/어/여요. But I'll show you the conjugation rules again to help you understand the rules. If you are still working on the present tense rules, this will be a good chance to review. Don't forget to download my free worksheet! You can print and practice writing with it!
1) ㅏ, ㅗ verbs: +아요
Look at the last syllable of the stem. If the vowel is ㅏ or ㅗ, you need to add 아요. We call it the regular rule number one.
앉다 to sit
The stem is 앉. → If you look at 앉, the vowel of it is ㅏ so let's add 아요. → 앉아요. Let's sit down.
The basic form | Let's V form |
가다 to go
The stem is 가. → The vowel is ㅏ so we add 아요. → 가아요 → 가아 shortens to 가. → 가요. Let's go.
보다 to see
보 → The vowel of it is ㅗ so we will add 아요 to it. → 보아요 → ㅗ and ㅏ become the compound vowel. → 봐요. Let's see.
2) 하다 verbs: 해요
If the verb ends with 하다, you are supposed to add 여요. So, the conjugated form is 하여요. But in modern days, people use the shortened form 해요. This one is called the regular rule number two.
축구하다 to play soccer
축구하 → 축구하여요 → 축구해요 Let's play soccer.
공부하다 to study
공부하 → 공부하여요 → 공부해요. Let's study.
외식하다 to eat out → 외식해요. Let's eat out.
3) Other verbs: + 어요
The vowels that do not follow rules 1 and 2 above will follow this rule number 3. So, for verbs that don't have ㅏ or ㅗ as the last vowels or end with 하다, you will add 어요. Watch out for the vowel "ㅣ" words. When it meets 어, it becomes 여!
먹다 to eat
먹 → The vowel is "ㅓ." It does not follow the rule 1. It also does not end with 하다. So, let's add 어요 to the stem. → 먹어요. Let's eat.
주다 to give
주 → 주어요 → No final consonant! Vowels are combining! ㅜ and ㅓ combine and make the compound vowelㅝ(wo). → 줘요. Let's give.
그리다 to draw/paint
그리 → 그리어요 → 리 and 어 combine and become 려. → 그려요. Let's draw. / Let's paint.
3. Irregular Conjugation Rules
Alright. How were the three regular rules? They are pretty repetitive, so you should get used to them by now! Now, I'll show you irregular conjugation rules. Irregular is 불규칙 in Korean. This 불규칙 happens when a stem has a special final consonant! Take a look one by one!
1) 불규칙 ㄷ: ㄷ → ㄹ add 아/어요.
When the stem ends with ㄷ, you will change that ㄷ to ㄹ first. Then, add 아요 or 어요 depending on their vowels. Follow the steps below.
묻다 to ask
The stem is 묻. → The final consonant is ㄷ. We need to change that to ㄹ. → 물 →The vowel is ㅜ. It's not ㅏ or ㅗ, so we use the regular conjugation rule 3. Add 어요. → 물어요. Let's ask.
2) 불규칙 ㅅ: Drop ㅅ, add 아/어요.
If the irregular verb ends with ㅅ, you have to erase ㅅ. And then please add 아요 or 어요 depending on their vowels. It's pretty simple!
짓다 to build / to cook rice
짓 → The final consonant is ㅅ and we need to erase it. → 지 →The vowel is ㅣ. It's not ㅏ or ㅗ, so we use the conjugation rule number 3. → 지어요. Let's build. / Let's cook rice.
3) 불규칙 ㅂ: Drop ㅂ, add 와/워요.
If the irregular verbs have ㅂ as the final consonant, first you have to erase that ㅂ. Then, you have to check its last vowel. If the vowel is ㅏ or ㅗ, now you add 와요 (not 아요). If the vowel is not ㅏ or ㅗ, then add 워요 (not 어요). Like this, a ㅂ word will always have its own special form!
줍다 to pick up
줍 → First, get rid of ㅂ. → 주 →The vowel is ㅜ. It's not ㅏ or ㅗ, so we use the conjugation rule number 3 but with the special form 워요. → 주워요. Let's pick it up.
4) 불규칙 ㅡ
This one is a bit complicated. You'll erase the vowel 'ㅡ' from the stem and attach either 아요 or 어요. For now, it is okay to memorize these two most commonly used words. If you want to know more about this irregular ㅡ rule, please click here to read my other post.
쓰다 to write → 써요. Let's write.
부르다 to call (a name)/sing → 불러요. Let's sing.
4. Examples
Here are some examples for you! Let's check it out! (같이 확인해요!) Try to use my examples and make your own sentences. Reading aloud will also be helpful!
1
같이 밥을 먹어요. Let's eat (a meal) together.
밥 means cooked rice and also a meal. (Since cooked rice was a staple food of Korea, the meaning expanded.) If you want to ask someone to eat together, you can use this first example!
2
같이 아침을 먹어요. Let's eat breakfast together.
같이 점심을 먹어요. Let's eat lunch together.
같이 저녁을 먹어요. Let's eat dinner together.
Here is how you can ask for eating specific meals of the day. 아침 means breakfast or morning. 점심 means lunch or lunchtime. 저녁 means dinner or evening. Pretty easy, right? Well for a meal, they are 아침밥, 점심밥, 저녁밥, but you can omit the "밥" part.
3
같이 커피를 마셔요. Let's drink coffee together.
같이 차를 마셔요. Let's drink tea together.
Do you like 커피 (coffee) or 차 (tea)? If you want to suggest someone to drink 커피 or 차 with you, try to use these expressions! You can add other beverages such as 맥주 (beer), 와인 (wine), 소주(soju; the Korean rice wine). All of these alcoholic beverages will be called 술.
4
Let's go to school together.
학교에 같이 가요.
같이 학교에 가요.
You can move the location of 같이. By the way, you are supposed to read it as [가치] not [가티]. There is a big pronunciation reason behind it. I'll post about it one day as well!
5
Let's watch a movie together.
같이 영화를 봐요.
우리 영화를 같이 봐요.
You can also add 우리. It means "we, us, our". You can use this 우리 as a subject of the sentence, but it is optional. If you want to emphasize the propositive meaning, you can add it!
5. Wrap-up & Worksheet: "Let's V" in Korean.
You've learned the Korean propositive ending 아/어/여요. Here is the summary for you!
You can express "Let's V" using 아/어/여요 ending.
You can only use it with verbs, not adjectives.
You can add words 같이or 함께 to emphasize "Lets."
How was the lesson? If you were familiar with the informal present tense ending, this lesson should be an easy peasy! Don't forget to download the free printable PDF Korean practice worksheet! I attached the answer sheet as well, so you can study by yourself!
Next lesson, you'll learn about another way to suggest using the sentence ending. See you in the next lesson! Thanks for reading my post! 감사합니다.
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