# Korean Verb Conjugation Quick Reference [Printable]

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## Korean Verb Conjugation Quick Reference [Printable]

Korean verb conjugation can feel like a mountain of endings. 어요, 았어요, ㄹ 거예요, 겠어요, 습니다, 을까요... the list seems to go on forever.

But here's the good news: Korean conjugation follows patterns. Once you learn the patterns, you can conjugate almost any verb. And unlike languages like French or Spanish, Korean verbs don't change based on who's doing the action—"I eat," "you eat," "she eats" all use the same conjugation. No "I am, you are, he is" nonsense.

This printable reference card gives you the most common conjugation patterns in one place. Print it small, keep it in your wallet or next to your study desk, and use it until you don't need it anymore.

### The Foundation: How Korean Verbs Work

Every Korean verb has two parts:

| Part | What it is | Example (먹다 = to eat) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Stem | The core meaning | 먹 |
| Ending | Changes based on tense, politeness, etc. | -어요, -었어요, -을 거예요... |

To conjugate: drop 다 from the dictionary form, then add the ending.

먹**다** → 먹 + 어요 → 먹어요 (eat/eating)

The tricky part? Which ending to add depends on the **last vowel** of the stem. This is called vowel harmony.

### The Vowel Harmony Rule (Learn This Once)

| Last vowel of stem | Ending family | Why |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ㅏ (a) or ㅗ (o) | -아 family | These are "bright" vowels |
| Any other vowel | -어 family | These are "dark" vowels |
| 하다 verbs | -해 family | 하 always becomes 해 |

This one rule applies to present tense, past tense, and many other conjugations. Master it and you've unlocked Korean conjugation.

### Present Tense (Polite: -아요/-어요/-해요)

This is the form you'll use 90% of the time in conversation.

| Verb | Stem | Last vowel | Conjugation | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 | 가 | ㅏ | 가요 | go/going |
| 오다 | 오 | ㅗ | 와요 | come/coming |
| 먹다 | 먹 | ㅓ | 먹어요 | eat/eating |
| 마시다 | 마시 | ㅣ | 마셔요 | drink/drinking |
| 보다 | 보 | ㅗ | 봐요 | see/watching |
| 하다 | 하 | — | 해요 | do/doing |
| 공부하다 | 공부하 | — | 공부해요 | study/studying |
| 읽다 | 읽 | ㅣ | 읽어요 | read/reading |
| 쓰다 | 쓰 | ㅡ | 써요 | write/writing |
| 듣다 | 듣→들 | ㅡ | 들어요 | listen/listening |

Notice 가+아요 contracts to 가요 (not 가아요), and 오+아요 contracts to 와요 (not 오아요). These contractions happen naturally—your mouth just finds the shortcut.

Also notice 듣다 → 들어요. The ㄷ changes to ㄹ before a vowel. This is an irregular verb (ㄷ irregular). There are a few irregular patterns, which I'll cover below.

### Past Tense (Polite: -았어요/-었어요/-했어요)

Same vowel harmony rule, just with 았/었/했 added:

| Verb | Stem | Conjugation | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 | 가 | 갔어요 | went |
| 오다 | 오 | 왔어요 | came |
| 먹다 | 먹 | 먹었어요 | ate |
| 마시다 | 마시 | 마셨어요 | drank |
| 보다 | 보 | 봤어요 | saw/watched |
| 하다 | 하 | 했어요 | did |
| 읽다 | 읽 | 읽었어요 | read (past) |
| 쓰다 | 쓰 | 썼어요 | wrote |
| 듣다 | 듣→들 | 들었어요 | listened |
| 만나다 | 만나 | 만났어요 | met |

### Future Tense (Polite: -(으)ㄹ 거예요)

This one is simpler—no vowel harmony. Just check if the stem ends in a vowel or consonant:

| Stem ends in | Add | Example |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vowel | -ㄹ 거예요 | 가다 → 갈 거예요 (will go) |
| Consonant | -을 거예요 | 먹다 → 먹을 거예요 (will eat) |

| Verb | Conjugation | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 | 갈 거예요 | will go |
| 오다 | 올 거예요 | will come |
| 먹다 | 먹을 거예요 | will eat |
| 보다 | 볼 거예요 | will watch |
| 하다 | 할 거예요 | will do |
| 만나다 | 만날 거예요 | will meet |
| 읽다 | 읽을 거예요 | will read |
| 쓰다 | 쓸 거예요 | will write |

### Formal Polite (-ㅂ니다/-습니다)

For formal situations—presentations, news, speeches, job interviews:

| Stem ends in | Add | Example |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Vowel | -ㅂ니다 | 가다 → 갑니다 (go) |
| Consonant | -습니다 | 먹다 → 먹습니다 (eat) |

| Verb | Formal present | Formal past |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 | 갑니다 | 갔습니다 |
| 먹다 | 먹습니다 | 먹었습니다 |
| 하다 | 합니다 | 했습니다 |
| 보다 | 봅니다 | 봤습니다 |

### Casual (반말, banmal)

For close friends and people younger than you. Just drop the 요:

| Polite | Casual |
| --- | --- |
| 가요 | 가 |
| 먹어요 | 먹어 |
| 했어요 | 했어 |
| 갈 거예요 | 갈 거야 |
| 봐요 | 봐 |

**Real moment:** Understanding formality levels is crucial in Korean. A student once used casual form (반말) with a Korean colleague she'd just met, thinking it was friendly. The colleague was polite about it but clearly uncomfortable. I explained that in Korean culture, you should always default to polite form (-요) unless someone is clearly younger AND you've established a casual relationship. When in doubt: use -요. Always safe, never rude.

### Useful Extra Conjugations

Beyond the basic tenses, these forms come up constantly:

**Want to: -고 싶다**

| Verb | "Want to" form | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 | 가고 싶어요 | want to go |
| 먹다 | 먹고 싶어요 | want to eat |
| 보다 | 보고 싶어요 | want to see |
| 하다 | 하고 싶어요 | want to do |

Fun fact: 보고 싶어요 (I want to see you) is how Koreans say "I miss you."

**Can/Can't: -(으)ㄹ 수 있다/없다**

| Verb | "Can" form | "Can't" form |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 | 갈 수 있어요 | 갈 수 없어요 |
| 먹다 | 먹을 수 있어요 | 먹을 수 없어요 |
| 하다 | 할 수 있어요 | 할 수 없어요 |

**Shall we: -(으)ㄹ까요?**

| Verb | "Shall we?" form |
| --- | --- |
| 가다 | 갈까요? |
| 먹다 | 먹을까요? |
| 보다 | 볼까요? |
| 하다 | 할까요? |

**Currently doing: -고 있다**

| Verb | Progressive form | Meaning |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 먹다 | 먹고 있어요 | am eating |
| 가다 | 가고 있어요 | am going |
| 공부하다 | 공부하고 있어요 | am studying |

### The Irregular Verbs You Need to Know

Most Korean verbs are regular, but a handful of common verbs break the rules:

**ㄷ irregular:** ㄷ at the end of the stem becomes ㄹ before a vowel ending.

| Verb | Regular would be | Actually is |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 듣다 (listen) | 듣어요 ❌ | 들어요 ✅ |
| 걷다 (walk) | 걷어요 ❌ | 걸어요 ✅ |

Not all ㄷ verbs are irregular! 받다 (to receive) → 받아요 is regular.

**ㅂ irregular:** ㅂ at the end of the stem becomes 우 before a vowel ending.

| Verb | Regular would be | Actually is |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 돕다 (help) | 돕아요 ❌ | 도와요 ✅ |
| 춥다 (cold) | 춥어요 ❌ | 추워요 ✅ |
| 덥다 (hot) | 덥어요 ❌ | 더워요 ✅ |
| 어렵다 (difficult) | 어렵어요 ❌ | 어려워요 ✅ |

Not all ㅂ verbs are irregular! 입다 (to wear) → 입어요 is regular.

**ㅡ irregular:** When the stem ends in ㅡ, it drops before -아/어.

| Verb | Conjugation | Note |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 쓰다 (write) | 써요 | ㅡ drops, previous vowel determines 아/어 |
| 크다 (big) | 커요 | ㅡ drops |
| 바쁘다 (busy) | 바빠요 | ㅡ drops, ㅏ from 바 determines → 아 |
| 슬프다 (sad) | 슬퍼요 | ㅡ drops |

**Real moment:** Irregular verbs scared one of my students so much that she avoided using 춥다, 덥다, and 돕다 entirely for months. She'd find workarounds—"temperature is low" instead of "it's cold." I told her: just memorize 추워요, 더워요, and 도와요 as fixed phrases. Don't think about the rule—just memorize the result. Within a week she was using them naturally. Sometimes brute-force memorization beats understanding the rule.

### The Master Conjugation Table

Here are the 10 most common verbs conjugated across all major forms:

| Verb | Present | Past | Future | Formal |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 가다 (go) | 가요 | 갔어요 | 갈 거예요 | 갑니다 |
| 오다 (come) | 와요 | 왔어요 | 올 거예요 | 옵니다 |
| 먹다 (eat) | 먹어요 | 먹었어요 | 먹을 거예요 | 먹습니다 |
| 마시다 (drink) | 마셔요 | 마셨어요 | 마실 거예요 | 마십니다 |
| 보다 (see) | 봐요 | 봤어요 | 볼 거예요 | 봅니다 |
| 하다 (do) | 해요 | 했어요 | 할 거예요 | 합니다 |
| 사다 (buy) | 사요 | 샀어요 | 살 거예요 | 삽니다 |
| 읽다 (read) | 읽어요 | 읽었어요 | 읽을 거예요 | 읽습니다 |
| 듣다 (listen) | 들어요 | 들었어요 | 들을 거예요 | 듣습니다 |
| 만나다 (meet) | 만나요 | 만났어요 | 만날 거예요 | 만납니다 |

### How to Use This Reference Card

**Print it small:** The PDF is designed to fit on a single page. Print it, fold it, and keep it where you study.

**Use it as training wheels:** Look at the card when you're writing sentences or doing homework. Over time, you'll check it less and less.

**Focus on one row at a time:** Don't try to memorize the whole table at once. Pick one verb and practice all its forms until they're automatic. Then move to the next.

**Talk to yourself:** Seriously. Narrate your day using these conjugations:

- "아침 먹었어요" (I ate breakfast)

- "지금 일해요" (I'm working now)

- "저녁에 드라마 볼 거예요" (I'll watch a drama tonight)

### Download Your Free Reference Card

📥 **[Download the Korean Verb Conjugation Reference PDF]**

EKC_Verb_Conjugation_CheatSheet.pdf

Includes:

- Present, past, future, and formal conjugation patterns

- 10 most common verbs fully conjugated

- Irregular verb quick reference

- Vowel harmony rule on one line

- Wallet-sized format for printing

For the site tree, see the [root Markdown](https://easykoreanchat.com/.md).