Welcome to the 8th lesson about Korean grammar. We will first learn about prepositions, negation, questions, adverbs, and pronouns including: personal, object and possessive pronouns. To hear the pronunciation, just click on the sound icon.
We will start with prepositions. In general, they are used to link words to other words. For example: I speak Korean and English the preposition is [and] because it connects both words Korean and English. The following is a list of the most used prepositions in Korean.
| Prepositions - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| and 그리고 [keurigo] |
| above -보다 위에 [-boda wiie] |
| under 아래에 [arae-ye] |
| before 전에 [jeone] |
| after 뒤에 [dwiie] |
| in front of -의 앞쪽에(앞에) [-ye apcho-ge(ape)] |
| behind 뒤에 [dwiie] |
| far from -멀리 [-meolli] |
| near 에서 가까이 [eseo kakka-i] |
| in -에 [-e] |
| inside 안 [an] |
| outside 겉에 [keote] |
| with -와 함께 [-wah hamkke] |
| without 없이 [eobshi] |
| about -에 대한 [-e dae-han] |
| between 사이에 [sa-ie] |
| but 그러나 [keureona] |
| for 를 위해 [reul wiihae] |
| from 부터 [bu-teo] |
| to 에 [e] |
The following examples use prepositions in different ways and places to demonstrate how they behave in a sentence.
| Prepositions + Rules - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| I eat without a knife [preposition + noun] 저는 식사할 때 나이프가 필요하지 않습니다 [jeoneun shiksahal ttae na-ipeuga pilyohaji anhseumnida] |
| she lives near the church [verb + preposition] 그녀는 교회 근처에 삽니다 [keunyeoneun gyohweh keun-cheoe samnida] |
| he is taller than her [adjective + preposition] 그는 그녀보다 키가 큽니다 [keuneun geunyeoboda gi-ga keumnida] |
| he came with his small dog [preposition + pronoun] 그는 작은 개를 데리고 왔습니다 [keuneun cha-geun gaereul derigo wah-ssseumnida] |
| can you come with me? [preposition + pronoun] 저랑 함께 가시겠습니까? [jeorang hamkke kashikessseumnikka?] |
Now let's learn how to make a negative sentence (negation). For example: Saying no, I can't, I don't ... The following examples use negation in different ways and places to demonstrate how they behave in a sentence.
| Negation + Rules - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| I understand you [affirmative form] 당신을 이해합니다 [tangshineurihae-hamnida] |
| I don't understand you [negation + verb] 당신을 이해하지 못합니다 [tangshineurihae-haji mothamnida] |
| this is not the correct word [negation + adjective] 이 단어는 올바를 단어가 아닙니다 [i daneoneun olbareul daneo-ga animnida] |
| don't leave me [imperative negation] 떠나지 말아주세요 [tteonaji marajuseyo] |
| no problem [negation + noun] 문제없습니다 [munjeyeoptseumnida] |
| Negative Sentences - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| I don't speak French [negation + present tense] 저는 프랑스어를 못합니다 [jeoneun peurangseu-eoreul mothamnida] |
| she didn't visit Germany [negation + past tense] 그녀는 독일을 방문하지 않았습니다 [keunyeoneun do-gi-reul bangmunhaji anhassseumnida] |
| he cannot see us [negative modal verb] 그가 우리를 볼 수 없습니다 [keuga urireul bol su eoptseumnida] |
| can't she play chess? [interrogative negation] 그녀는 체스를 두지 않습니까? [keunyeoneun cheseureul duji anhseumnikka?] |
| we will not come late [negation + future tense] 우리는 늦게까지 오지 않을 겁니다 [urineun neujkekkaji oji anheul keomnida] |
Now let's learn how to ask questions (interrogative). Such as: what, why, can you ...? Here are some common examples:
| English - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| how? 어떻게? [eotteohke?] |
| what? 무엇? [mu-eos?] |
| who? 누구? [nu-gu?] |
| why? 왜? [waeh?] |
| where? 어디에? [eodi-e?] |
More of the interrogative form, now in a sentence:
| Questions + Rules - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| where do you live? [interrogative + verb] 당신은 어디 사십니까? [tangshineun eodi- sashimnikka?] |
| does she speak Chinese? [interrogative verb] 그녀는 중국어를 합니까? [keunyeoneun junggugeoreul hamnikka?] |
| how much is this? [interrogative preposition] 이것은 얼마입니까? [ikeoteun eolma-imnikka?] |
| can I help you? [interrogative modal verb] 도움이 필요하십니까? [doumi pilyohashimnikka?] |
| what is your name? [interrogative preposition] 성함(이름)이 어떻게 되십니까? [seong-ham(ireum)i eotteohke dwehshimnikka?] |
It's time to learn the adverbs in Korean. But what is an adverb? In general, adverbs modify verbs and adjectives. For example: You speak fast. The adverb is [fast] because it describes the verb and answers the question how do you speak?. Here is a list of the most common ones:
| Adverbs - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| now 지금 [chigeum] |
| yesterday 어제 [eoje] |
| today 오늘 [oneul] |
| tonight 오늘밤 [oneulbam] |
| tomorrow 내일 [nae-il] |
| soon 곧 [kod] |
| quickly 빨리 [ppalli] |
| slowly 천천히 [cheon-cheonhi] |
| together 함께 [hamkke] |
| very 매우 [ma-eu] |
| almost 거의 [keoyi] |
| always 항상 [hangsang] |
| usually 보통 [botong] |
| sometimes 가끔 [kakkeum] |
| rarely 드물게 [deumul-ke] |
| never 결코 [kyeol-ko] |
The following examples use the adverbs in different ways and places to demonstrate how it behaves in a sentence.
| Adverbs + Rules - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| do you understand me now? [pronoun + adverb] 당신은 지금 제 말을 이해합니까? [tangshineun chigeum je ma-reurihae-hamnikka?] |
| I need help immediately [noun + adverb] 저는 당장 도움이 필요합니다 [jeoneun dangjang doumi pilyohamnida] |
| she is very intelligent [adverb + adjective] 그녀는 매우 지적인 사람입니다 [keunyeoneun ma-eu jijeo-gin saramimnida] |
| I will always love you [verb + adverb] 저는 언제까지나 당신을 사랑할 것입니다 [jeoneun eonjekkajina tangshineul sarang-hal geo-shimnida] |
| can we learn German together? [adverb in a question] 독일어를 함께 배울 수 있습니까? [do-gi-reoreul hamkke ba-eul su issseumnikka?] |
We're almost done! This time we will learn the pronouns in Korean. In general, a pronoun can be used instead of a noun. For example instead of saying my teacher speaks 3 languages, you can use the pronoun he, and say he speaks 3 languages. Here is a list of the most common ones:
| Personal Pronouns - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| I 나는 [naneun] |
| you 너는 [neoneun] |
| he 그는 [keuneun] |
| she 그녀는 [keunyeoneun] |
| we 우리는 [urineun] |
| they 그들은 [keudeu-reun] |
| Object Pronouns - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| me 나를 [nareul] |
| you 너를 [neoreul] |
| him 그를 [keureul] |
| her 그녀를 [keunyeoreul] |
| us 우리를 [urireul] |
| them 그들을 [keudeu-reul] |
| Possessive Pronouns - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| my 나의 [naye] |
| your 너의 [neoyi] |
| his 그의 [keuyi] |
| her 그녀의 [keunyeoyi] |
| our 우리의 [uriyi] |
| their 그들의 [keudeulyi] |
I think it's better to put the above example in a sentence to better assist you. The following examples use pronouns in different ways and places to demonstrate how they behave in a sentence. We will start with the personal pronouns.
| Personal Pronouns - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| I am your friend [1st pronoun + verb] 당신은 제 친구입니다 [tangshineun je chinguimnida] |
| you speak very fast [2nd pronoun + adverb] 당신은 말을 빨리 합니다 [tangshineun ma-reul ppalli hamnida] |
| he has three dogs [3rd pronoun + verb] 그는 개 세 마리를 키웁니다 [keuneun gae se marireul gi-umnida] |
| she can speak German [3rd pronoun + verb] 그녀는 독일어를 못합니다 [keunyeoneun do-gi-reoreul mothamnida] |
| we will not come late [1st plural pronoun] 우리는 늦게까지 오지 않을 겁니다 [urineun neujkekkaji oji anheul keomnida] |
| they bought milk and bread [3rd plural pronoun] 그들은 우유와 빵을 구입했습니다 [keudeu-reun uyuwah ppangeul kuibhaessseumnida] |
The object pronoun is used as a target by a verb, and usually come after that verb. For example: I gave him my book. The object pronoun here is him. Here are more examples:
| Object Pronouns - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| can you tell me your name? [1st object pronoun] 당신의 이름을 말씀해주실 수 있습니까? [tangshinye ireumeul mal-sseumhaejushil su issseumnikka?] |
| I will give you money [2nd object pronoun] 당신에게 돈을 드리겠습니다 [tangshine-ge doneul deurikessseumnida] |
| she wrote him a letter [3rd object pronoun] 그녀는 그에게 편지를 썼습니다 [keunyeoneun geue-ge pyeonjireul sseossseumnida] |
| they visited her yesterday [3rd object pronoun] 그들은 어제 그녀를 방문했습니다 [keudeu-reun eoje keunyeoreul bangmunhaessseumnida] |
| can she help us? [1st pl. object pronoun] 그녀가 우리를 도와줄까요? [keunyeo-ga urireul dowah-jul-kkayo?] |
| he gave them food [3rd pl. object pronoun] 그는 그들에게 음식을 주었습니다 [keuneun geudeu-re-ge eumshikeul ju-eossseumnida] |
| Possessive Pronouns - Korean + Pronunciation |
|---|
| my name is Maya [1st possessive pronoun] 제 이름은 마야입니다 [je ireumeun maya-imnida] |
| your brother lives here [2nd possessive pronoun] 당신의 형제가 이곳에 삽니다 [tangshinye hyeongje-ga igose samnida] |
| her mother cooks for us [3rd possessive pronoun] 그녀의 어머니가 우리에게 요리를 해줍니다 [keunyeoye eomeoni-ga urie-ge yorireul haejumnida] |
| his hobby is reading books [3rd possessive pronoun] 그의 취미는 독서입니다 [keuye chwiimineun dokseoimnida] |
| our dream is to visit Paris [1st pl. possessive pronoun] 우리의 꿈은 파리를 방문하는 것입니다 [uriye kkumeun parireul bangmunhaneun geo-shimnida] |
| their house is not far [3rd pl. possessive pronoun] 그들의 집은 그리 멀지 않습니다 [keudeulye jibeun geuri meol-ji anhseumnida] |
One more thing you need to know is the demonstrative pronouns. They're very easy to learn.
| Demonstrative Pronouns - Korean - Pronunciation |
|---|
| this is my house 여기가 제 집입니다 [yeo-gi-ga je jibimnida] |
| that restaurant is far 그 식당은 멀리 있습니다 [keu shikdangeun meolli issseumnida] |
| these apples are delicious 이 사과는 맛있습니다 [i sakwahneun mashissseumnida] |
| those stars are shiny 별들이 빛납니다 [byeoldeu-ri binnamnida] |
I hope you learned a lot about the Korean grammar in this lesson. Please check out our main menu here for more lessons: homepage. The next lesson is below, have fun!
Inspirational Quote: First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do. Epictetus |