Polite Ending -아/어요 in Korean

In Brief

To speak politely in ordinary Korean conversation, remove -다 from a dictionary form and add -아요 after a stem whose last vowel is ㅏ or ㅗ, or -어요 after other vowels: 살다 → 살아요, 먹다 → 먹어요. Common combinations contract, so 가아요 becomes 가요, 오아요 becomes 와요, and 하여요 normally becomes 해요.

Overview

The ending -아/어요 creates 해요체, the polite conversational speech style heard constantly in shops, workplaces, classrooms, and conversations with people who are not close friends. It lets you sound courteous without the more formal tone of -습니다/ㅂ니다. This is one of the most useful patterns introduced at A1: once you can find a verb stem, you can turn a large number of verbs and descriptive verbs into natural sentences.

Korean politeness is built into sentence endings in a way that English politeness is not. English may add please, use a softer question, or choose a more formal phrase. Korean normally chooses a speech level—a set of endings showing the relationship between speaker and listener. Therefore, translating 가요 merely as “go” misses part of its meaning: the action is expressed in a polite conversational style.

The form is often called a “present-tense ending,” but it is more accurate to call it the basic polite nonpast form. Context can give it a present, habitual, or near-future meaning: 매일 운동해요 means “I exercise every day,” while 내일 가요 can mean “I’m going tomorrow.”

How It Works

Step 1: Find the stem

The stem is the part that remains after removing the dictionary ending -다.

Dictionary form	Stem	Meaning
가다	가-	to go
먹다	먹-	to eat
하다	하-	to do
좋다	좋-	to be good

Do not attach -아요/어요 to the complete dictionary form. Start with the stem.

Step 2: Check the stem’s last vowel

Vowel harmony—the tendency to group vowels into compatible patterns—determines the basic choice. Look at the last vowel in the stem, not simply its final written letter.

Last stem vowel	Ending	Formation	Result
ㅏ or ㅗ	-아요	살- + 아요	살아요
Any other vowel	-어요	먹- + 어요	먹어요
하-	usually 해요	하- + 여요 → 해요	해요

This beginner rule works directly for forms such as 살아요, 찾아요, 먹어요, 읽어요, and 웃어요. The ending does not change for grammatical person: “I eat,” “you eat,” and “they eat” can all use 먹어요. Korean often leaves out the subject when context makes it clear.

Step 3: Make the normal contraction

When the stem ends in a vowel, the stem vowel and the initial 아/어 often merge. These are not optional curiosities: the contracted forms are the normal forms learners should use.

Pattern	Uncontracted combination	Normal form	Example
ㅏ + 아요	가아요	가요	가다 → 가요
ㅓ + 어요	서어요	서요	서다 → 서요
ㅗ + 아요	오아요	와요	오다 → 와요
ㅜ + 어요	주어요	줘요	주다 → 줘요
ㅣ + 어요	마시어요	마셔요	마시다 → 마셔요
ㅚ + 어요	되어요	돼요	되다 → 돼요
하 + 여요	하여요	해요	하다 → 해요

With many ㅐ and ㅔ stems, no visible extra syllable is added: 보내다 → 보내요, 세다 → 세요. In careful or older usage, some uncontracted forms may occur, but forms such as 봐요, 줘요, 마셔요, and 해요 dominate everyday speech.

The special case 하다

하다 is extremely productive. It appears by itself and in many noun-plus-하다 verbs:

Dictionary form	Polite form	Meaning
하다	해요	do
공부하다	공부해요	study
일하다	일해요	work
요리하다	요리해요	cook
좋아하다	좋아해요	like

Treat 해요 as a core form to memorize rather than trying to produce 하아요.

Descriptive verbs use the same ending

Korean words often translated as English adjectives behave as descriptive verbs—words that express a quality as the sentence’s predicate. They take -아/어요 just as action verbs do:

• 작다 → 작아요 — is small
• 좋다 → 좋아요 — is good
• 맛있다 → 맛있어요 — is delicious
• 피곤하다 → 피곤해요 — is tired

You do not need an extra word equivalent to English “is.” 날씨가 좋아요 is literally structured around “the weather is-good,” and is a complete sentence.

Statements and questions can have the same form

In 해요체, a yes-or-no question often keeps exactly the same ending as a statement. Rising intonation and the question mark distinguish it in speech and writing.

• 커피 마셔요. — I drink coffee. / I’m drinking coffee.
• 커피 마셔요? — Do you drink coffee? / Are you drinking coffee?

Question words also fit naturally before the same polite predicate: 어디 가요? “Where are you going?” and 뭐 먹어요? “What are you eating?” Korean does not need an auxiliary like English do to form these questions.

Examples in Context

Korean	English	Note
저는 매일 아침 일찍 일어나요.	I get up early every morning.	ㅏ + 아요; repeated ㅏ contracts
보통 버스로 회사에 가요.	I usually go to work by bus.	가다 → 가요
친구가 오후에 와요.	My friend is coming in the afternoon.	오다 → 와요
점심에 비빔밥을 먹어요.	I eat bibimbap for lunch.	ㅓ takes -어요
물을 자주 마셔요.	I drink water often.	마시다 → 마셔요
주말에 한국어를 공부해요.	I study Korean on weekends.	공부하다 → 공부해요
이 가방은 조금 비싸요.	This bag is a little expensive.	Descriptive verb 비싸다
오늘 날씨가 정말 좋아요.	The weather is really good today.	좋다 → 좋아요
여기에서 기다려요.	Wait here.	Context gives a gentle instruction
동생에게 선물을 줘요.	I give my younger sibling a gift.	주다 → 줘요
내일 서울에 가요.	I’m going to Seoul tomorrow.	Time word gives a future reading
지금 뭐 해요?	What are you doing now?	Same ending in a question
매운 음식을 잘 먹어요?	Are you good at eating spicy food?	Rising intonation marks the question
네, 조금 먹어요.	Yes, I eat a little.	The subject is understood

Translations often supply “I,” “you,” “he,” or “she,” although the Korean sentence contains no pronoun. Do not guess the subject from -아/어요 itself; infer it from the conversation.

Common Mistakes

Attaching the ending to -다

• Wrong: 먹다어요
• Right: 먹어요
• Why: Remove dictionary -다 first: 먹다 → 먹- + 어요.

Choosing by the final consonant

• Wrong: 살어요
• Right: 살아요
• Why: The deciding factor is the stem’s last vowel, not whether the stem ends in a consonant. The vowel in 살- is ㅏ, so use -아요.

Avoiding required contractions

• Wrong or unnatural in ordinary speech: 가아요, 오아요, 주어요
• Right: 가요, 와요, 줘요
• Why: Vowel-ending stems normally contract. Learn the contracted word as the usable form.

Treating 하다 like an ordinary ㅏ stem

• Wrong: 하아요 or 하어요
• Right: 해요
• Why: 하다 combines historically with -여요, producing the standard contraction 해요. The same applies in 공부해요 and 일해요.

Assuming -요 alone creates the form

• Wrong: 먹요
• Right: 먹어요
• Why: For this pattern, attach -아요 or -어요, not simply -요. In contracted forms such as 가요, the missing-looking vowel has merged with the stem vowel.

Using 해요체 with everyone in every setting

• Potentially inappropriate: 안녕하세요. 저는 민수예요. during a highly formal presentation
• Better in that setting: 안녕하십니까? 저는 민수입니다.
• Why: 해요체 is polite, but official announcements, formal presentations, and some professional situations favor 하십시오체, commonly formed with -습니다/ㅂ니다. Conversely, among close friends, 해요체 may sound needlessly distant.

Usage Notes

Polite to the listener is not the same as honoring the subject

The final -요 helps mark politeness toward the person listening. It does not by itself honor the person being discussed. Korean can also use the honorific marker -(으)시- for a respected subject—the person doing the action:

• 선생님이 와요. — The teacher comes. (polite to listener)
• 선생님이 오세요. — The teacher comes. (polite to listener and honorific toward teacher)

Beginners can use ordinary 해요체 first, but this distinction explains why -세요 appears so often.

The relationship matters more than a direct English equivalent

English has no single ending that matches 해요체. “Polite” does not mean stiff, and -아/어요 is often the neutral, safe choice with a new acquaintance, a clerk, a colleague you are not close to, or an older person. Exact choices vary with age, status, workplace culture, and closeness. Listen to how the other person speaks rather than mapping every English “please” onto -요.

One form can perform several jobs

A 해요체 sentence may be a statement, question, suggestion, or context-dependent instruction. 같이 가요 can mean “We go together,” “Let’s go together,” or, with questioning intonation, “Shall we go together?” 기다려요 can report that someone waits or politely tell someone to wait. Context and intonation do work that English often assigns to separate words.

Beyond the Basics / Advanced Use

You do not need to master all the following patterns at A1, but they explain forms you will meet early.

ㅡ disappears before the ending

For many stems ending in ㅡ, that vowel drops. The preceding vowel usually determines 아 or 어; if there is no preceding vowel, 어 is used.

Dictionary form	Development	Polite form
아프다	아프- → 아파요	아파요
바쁘다	바쁘- → 바빠요	바빠요
쓰다	쓰- → 써요	써요
크다	크- → 커요	커요

Some stems change shape

Several common irregular classes interact with -아/어요. These are best learned gradually with each verb.

Type	Dictionary form	Polite form	Meaning
ㄷ irregular	듣다	들어요	listen/hear
ㅂ irregular	돕다	도와요	help
르 irregular	모르다	몰라요	not know
ㅅ irregular	짓다	지어요	build

Not every verb with the same final consonant is irregular: 받다 → 받아요 and 입다 → 입어요 remain regular. A dictionary or conjugation reference is more reliable than guessing.

-요 can follow more than -아/어

At a more advanced level, you will see 요 added to various endings and short responses: 그런데요, 맞는데요, 아니요. This does not mean every polite form is made by attaching 요 freely. For the concept in this article, learn -아/어요 as one complete ending first.

Casual speech is closely related

The casual ending -아/어 usually looks like 해요체 without final 요:

Polite	Casual	Meaning
가요	가	go / am going
먹어요	먹어	eat / am eating
해요	해	do / am doing

Although the forms are closely related, dropping 요 changes the social register. Do not do it automatically with strangers or people to whom you should speak politely.

Practice Tips

1. Practice in three groups. Choose five verbs with ㅏ/ㅗ, five with other vowels, and five 하다 verbs. Say the stem and polite form aloud: 찾다, 찾아요; 읽다, 읽어요; 운동하다, 운동해요.
2. Learn contractions as sound pairs. Make short drills such as 오다–와요, 보다–봐요, 주다–줘요, and 마시다–마셔요. This is more useful than repeatedly producing an uncontracted intermediate form.
3. Turn statements into questions. Say 오늘 일해요 once with statement intonation and once as 오늘 일해요? Notice that the words stay the same while the intonation and communicative purpose change.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: Verb Stems — learn how to remove -다 and identify the stem.
• Register contrast: Casual Ending -아/어 — the closely related form used with close friends and others in casual relationships.
• Next step: Negation 안/못 — make polite negative sentences such as 안 가요 and 못 먹어요.
• Next step: Past Tense -았/었 — apply the same vowel pattern in forms such as 갔어요 and 먹었어요.
• Next step: Future/Intention -(으)ㄹ 거예요 — express plans and predictions politely.
• Next step: Wanting -고 싶다 — use 싶어요 to say what you want to do.
• Next step: Can/Able -(으)ㄹ 수 있다 — use 있어요/없어요 to discuss ability and possibility.
• Related: Descriptive Verbs (Adjectives) — see how words such as 좋다 and 크다 use polite endings.