Politeness and Basic Conjugations

In this lesson we’re going to learn about various politeness levels and conjugation of regular verbs

in Korean.

Politeness levels

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There are lots of different politeness levels in Korean, but in this lesson we are going to

focus on three of them. We will take a look at introducing oneself in an informal setting

and in a formal setting. We will also take a look at informal casual language.

Formal polite conjugation

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When speaking in formal settings you add -ᄇ니다 or -습니다 after the verb stem.

Formal setting examples: news, military, podcasts/broadcasts, youtube,

writings/speeches etc. also used to be extra polite.

Verb stems ending in a consonant is followed by -습니다, and verb stems ending in a

vowel is followed by -ᄇ니다. To get the verb stem you remove the -다 at the end of the

verb.

Examples:

먹다 - 다 + 습니다 = 먹습니다 (I eat)

가다 - 다 + ᄇ니다 = 갑니다 (I go)

하다 - 다 + ᄇ니다 = 합니다 (I do)

To turn your sentence into a question you change -습니다/-ᄇ니다 to -습니까?/-ᄇ니까?.

Informal polite conjugation (of regular verbs)

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This is what you use in your normal everyday life with anyone you aren't close enough to use informal casual speech with.

When conjugating in the informal polite form you remove the -다 and add -아/어요.

When the last vowel of the stem is ᅩ or ᅡ, you add 아요.

When the last vowel of the stem is any other vowel than ᅳ, ᅩ or ᅡ, you add 어요.

(verbs with ᅳ as the last vowel are irregular)

Verbs ending in ᅵ, if no 받침 (final consonant) the 이어 is shortened to ᅧ

-> 마시다 (to drink)-> 마시어요 / 마셔요

If there is no final consonant, the ᄋ is removed and they are written as diphthongs (because this is how they are pronounced, so they are constantly written like this)

배우다 -다+어요= 배우어요 / 배워요 (I learn)

보다 - 다 + 아요= 보아요 / 봐요 (I see)

There is one exception to these rules, which is when conjugating the verb 하다. Then

you remove -다 and add 여요. Normally this would be shortened to 해요, but you can see it in the original form sometimes in formal texts, speeches etc.

But for now, just think 하다 -> 해요.

Examples:

먹다 - 다 + 어요 = 먹어요 (I eat)

가다 - 다 + 아요 = 가요 (Shortened to 가요 instead of 가아요 for ease of pronunciation) (I

go)

하다 - 다 + 여요 = 하여요 -> 해요

*​The verbs still have the exact same meanings as when conjugated with -습니다/ᄇ니다,

but this (-아/어요) conjugation is used in less formal situations.

Informal casual conjugation (of regular verbs)

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This is the form of speech you would use to people you are very close to, friends of the

same age, or people a lot younger than you. You would never use this to a stranger at

the store, or a teacher at school etc. NEVER use this without getting permission.

To conjugate in the informal casual form, there is only a tiny difference from the

informal polite form. You remove the -다 and add -아/어 (without the 요 this time). The

rules for adding either 아 or 어 is the same as the informal polite form.

When conjugating 하다 it becomes 해.

Examples:

먹다 - 다 + 어 = 먹어

가다 - 다 + 아 = 가 (Shortened to 가 instead of 가아 for ease of pronunciation)

하다 - 다 + 여 = 하여 -> 해

이다

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이다 is the verb for “to be”, and it is conjugated differently from other verbs.

In the Formal polite form 이다 is changed to 입니다 whether it ends in a consonant or a

vowel.

In the informal polite form 이다 can be conjugated as 이에요 or 예요 depending on if the

preceding syllable ends in a consonant or a vowel. If the preceding syllable ends in a

consonant you add 이에요, and if it ends in a vowel you add 예요.

In the informal casual form 이다 is conjugated as 이야 if it ends in a consonant and 야 if

it ends in a vowel.

Example:

Formal polite

과일 + 이다 = 과일입니다 (it is fruit)

채소 + 이다 = 채소입니다 (it is a vegetable)

Informal polite form

사과 + 이다 = 사과예요 (it is an apple)

학생 + 이다 = 학생이에요 (I am a student)

Informal casual form

당근 + 이다 = 당근이야 (it is a carrot)

바나나 + 이다 = 바나나야 (it is a banana)