Sentence Endings

Korean Grammar 2

Course 2 Β· Chapter 10 Β· Sentence Endings and Putting It Together

🎢 Sentence Endings and Putting It Together β€” λ¬Έμž₯ 끝 μ–΄λ―Έ

Native speakers hardly ever end a sentence on a bare -μ•„/μ–΄μš”. They add a sentence-final ending that shows what the speaker feels about the sentence: surprise, a realisation, a request for agreement, an explanation, a reminder, a promise, an invitation. The grammar underneath is the same as in the previous nine chapters, but these endings carry the tone, and tone is what makes Korean sound natural. This final chapter teaches nine of them, with the contrasts that matter, and then recaps the whole course.

The nine at a glance Discovery: -λ„€μš” Β· -κ΅°μš”
Seeking agreement: -μ£ 
Explaining / reminding: -κ±°λ“ μš” Β· -μž–μ•„μš”
Trailing off, softening: -λŠ”λ°μš”
Deciding / inviting / asking: -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš” Β· -(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš” Β· -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”

1. Discovering something: -λ„€μš” and -κ΅°μš”

-λ„€μš” attaches directly to the stem of verbs, adjectives and 이닀 and tells the listener that you have just noticed something: 아듀이 κ·€μ—½λ„€μš” "Oh, your son is so cute (I hadn't realised)", 이 μŒμ‹μ μ€ μŒμ‹μ΄ 정말 λ§›μžˆλ„€μš” "Wow, the food at this restaurant is really delicious". The past is -μ•˜/μ—ˆλ„€μš” (λ°₯을 빨리 λ¨Ήμ—ˆλ„€μš” "You ate quickly!") and a guess is -κ² λ„€μš” (μ•„ν”„κ² λ„€μš” "That must hurt"). It also works as a reply: κ·Έλ ‡λ„€μš”. "So it is." The informal -λ„€ drops μš”: μ•„! μž”λˆμ΄ μ—†λ„€! "Oh! I've got no change!". Since the start of -λ„€ is γ„΄, a γ„Ή-stem drops its γ„Ή (μ‚¬λ„€μš”, κΈ°λ„€μš”), a general point not covered by the sources checked.

-κ΅°μš” is the "I see!" realisation: adjectives take the bare stem (λΉ„μ‹Έκ΅°μš”), 이닀 takes 이 (κ³Όν•™ μ„ μƒλ‹˜μ΄κ΅°μš”), and verbs add -λŠ” (아듀이 μˆ˜μ˜μ„ 잘 ν•˜λŠ”κ΅°μš” "Oh, so your son is good at swimming"). Past: -μ•˜/μ—ˆκ΅°μš”; a guess: -κ² κ΅°μš”. μžˆλ‹€/μ—†λ‹€ take the adjective pattern (μ—†κ΅°μš”). The plain forms are -κ΅¬λ‚˜ (mostly self-talk, informal) and -κ΅°; -κ΅°μš” is polite.

-λ„€μš”-κ΅°μš”
Verbκ°€λ„€μš”κ°€λŠ”κ΅°μš”
Adjectiveν¬λ„€μš”ν¬κ΅°μš”
μ΄λ‹€ν•™μƒμ΄λ„€μš”ν•™μƒμ΄κ΅°μš”
Pastκ°”λ„€μš”κ°”κ΅°μš”
Feelimpression, often about what you see nowrealisation, "I see", often self-directed

The two are close, and the source treats both as "I didn't realise". As a rough guide, -λ„€μš” reacts to something in front of you and is addressed to the listener; -κ΅°μš” reacts to new information.

2. Seeking agreement: -μ£  (-μ§€μš”)

-μ£  is the polite contraction of -μ§€μš”; the informal form is -지. It attaches to the bare stem with no irregular changes (it begins with γ…ˆ), and takes -μ•˜/μ—ˆ- and -(으)γ„Ή κ±°-: κ°”μ£ , 갈 κ±°μ£ . It asks the listener to confirm something the speaker already believes: 날씨가 μΆ₯μ£ ? "It's cold, isn't it?", μ„ μƒλ‹˜! λ°”μ˜μ£ ? "Teacher! You're busy, aren't you?". With a falling tone it states something as obvious: 배고프지! "Of course I'm hungry!", λ‚˜λŠ” μ§€κΈˆ 가야지! "I really must go now!" (-μ•„/어야지 from Chapter 9). With a question word it is a real question: λ‚΄κ°€ 뭐 λ¨Ήμ—ˆμ§€? "What did I eat?" (to oneself). Without a question word, talking to yourself with -지 is unnatural.

3. Explaining why: -κ±°λ“ μš”

-κ±°λ“ μš” attaches to the bare stem of verbs, adjectives and 이닀 (no irregulars; it starts with γ„±), and gives the listener a reason or piece of background that they do not have: 문을 λ‹«μ•˜μ–΄μš”. 이제 냉방 μ€‘μ΄κ±°λ“ μš”. "I closed the door. The air conditioning is on now, you see." Past -μ•˜/μ—ˆκ±°λ“ μš”; future -(으)γ„Ή κ±°κ±°λ“ μš” (갈 κ±°κ±°λ“ μš”). It answers an unspoken "why?": μ €λŠ” λ§ˆμΉ΄λ‹€λ―Έμ•„λ₯Ό μ’‹μ•„ν•˜κ±°λ“ μš”. "(The reason is that) I like macadamia nuts." With μ•„λ‹ˆκ±°λ“ μš”! it flatly contradicts: "No, it isn't!". The informal form is -κ±°λ“ .

4. Reminding: -μž–μ•„μš”

-μž–μ•„μš” attaches to a stem (and to 이닀, to the past and the future) to say "you know / you should know / as you know": 이 길은 μžμ „κ±° μ „μš© κΈΈμ΄μž–μ•„μš” "This is a road for bicycles only, you know", λ‚˜λŠ” 돈이 μ—†μž–μ•„! "I've got no money, remember!", 이 μ„œλΉ„μŠ€λŠ” 이미 μ’…λ£Œλμž–μ•„μš” "This service ended already". It treats the fact as shared, so it can sound sharp: toward older people it can sound rude. The source suggests -λ‹€μ‹œν”Ό for that situation (μ•„μ‹œλ‹€μ‹œν”Ό "as you know"). It is also the opener μžˆμž–μ•„μš”β€¦ "You know what…". The contrast with -κ±°λ“ μš” is simple: -κ±°λ“ μš” gives information the listener lacks; -μž–μ•„μš” recalls information the listener has.

5. Softening and trailing off: -λŠ”λ°μš”

-λŠ”λ°μš” is the clause ending -(으)γ„΄/λŠ”λ° of Chapter 5 with μš” and nothing after it. Verbs and μžˆλ‹€/μ—†λ‹€ take -λŠ”λ°μš”, adjectives -(으)γ„΄λ°μš”, 이닀 -μΈλ°μš”; the past is -μ•˜/μ—ˆλŠ”λ°μš”. The ending leaves the next thought for the listener: κ°€κΈ° μ‹«μ€λ°μš”β€¦ "I don't want to go, though…", λ‚˜λŠ” μΆ”μš΄λ°μš”β€¦ "But I'm cold…". Used to answer someone's suggestion, it softly objects; used to open a request, it sets the scene (μ§€κΈˆ μ‹œκ°„μ΄ μ—†λŠ”λ°μš” "I don't have time right now…"). The source notes that answering with it can come across as a little rude, so pair it with a polite tone.

6. Deciding, inviting, asking: -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš”, -(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš”, -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”

Three endings that all attach to a verb stem with -γ„Ή (after a vowel) or -을 (after a consonant) look alike. They differ by who acts and what the speaker is doing:

EndingFunctionExample
-(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš”a promise or decision by the speaker, unless the listener objects (a statement, never a question)문을 μ—΄μ–΄ μ€„κ²Œμš”. "I'll open the door for you."
-(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš”"Do you want to…?" (question), "I'd rather… / I don't want to…" (statement), a polite request with μ£Όλ‹€, or a blunt threat내일 κ³΅λΆ€ν•˜λŸ¬ λ…μ„œμ‹€μ— κ°ˆλž˜μš”? "Shall we go to the library to study tomorrow?" Β· λ‚˜λŠ” μ•ˆ λ¨Ήμ„λž˜μš”. "I don't want to eat."
-(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”"Shall we…?", "Shall I…?", "Do you think it will…?"λ°₯을 λ¨Ήμ„κΉŒμš”? "Shall we eat?" Β· 내일 λΉ„κ°€ μ˜¬κΉŒμš”? "Do you think it will rain tomorrow?"
  • -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš” is always about the speaker's own act. Compare 문을 μ—΄μ–΄ μ€„κ²Œμš” (statement: "I'll open it for you") with 문을 μ—΄μ–΄ μ€„κΉŒμš”? (question: "Shall I open it for you?"). It is not used with the listener's act.
  • -(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš” has four uses: invitation (κ°ˆλž˜μš”?), the speaker's wish (μ•ˆ λ¨Ήμ„λž˜μš”), a polite request with μ£Όλ‹€ (κΉ€μΉ˜λ₯Ό 더 μ£Όμ‹€λž˜μš”? "Could you please give me more kimchi?") and a threat (λ§žμ„λž˜? "Do you want to get hit?"). The "wish" use is for short, simple sentences. It is usually more casual than -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”.
  • -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš” asked to yourself ("Should I…?") loses its μš”: λ°₯을 λ¨Ήμ„κΉŒ?. As a thought it combines with ν•˜λ‹€: κ·Έ μ˜ν™”λ₯Ό 볼까 ν•΄μš” "I'm thinking of watching that film"; the past 볼까 ν–ˆμ–΄μš” means that you thought of it but did not.

The sources checked did not give γ„Ή-stem or irregular rules for these three; from general knowledge, γ„Ή-stems keep the γ„Ή and add no 으 (μ‚΄κ²Œμš”, λ§Œλ“€κΉŒμš”, λ†€λž˜μš”), and Chapter 3's irregulars change before the vowel (μΆ”μšΈκΉŒμš”, λ“€μ„κ²Œμš”, λ„μšΈλž˜μš”).

7. Putting it together: tone and politeness

The endings above live almost entirely in ν•΄μš”μ²΄ and informal 해체 (Chapter 1). Some drop the μš” for friends (-λ„€, -κ΅°, -지, -κ±°λ“ , -μž–μ•„, -λŠ”λ°, -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œ, -(으)γ„Ήλž˜, -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒ), and their politeness interacts with the other chapters:

  • Honorifics (Chapter 2) go inside: λ°”μ˜μ‹œμ£ ?, κ°€μ‹œλ„€μš”, λ“œμ‹€λž˜μš”?, ν•˜μ‹œκ±°λ“ μš”. Do not use -μž–μ•„μš” to a senior without care.
  • Irregular verbs (Chapter 3): after -λ„€μš”, -κ΅°μš”, -μ£ , -κ±°λ“ μš” and -μž–μ•„μš” the stem is unchanged (μΆ₯λ„€μš”, μΆ₯μ£ ), but before -(으)γ„Ή- endings it changes (μΆ”μšΈκΉŒμš”, μΆ”μšΈκ²Œμš”).
  • Tenses (Chapter 4): -μ•˜/μ—ˆλ„€μš”, -μ•˜/μ—ˆμ£ , -μ•˜/μ—ˆκ±°λ“ μš”, -κ² λ„€μš”. A finished action: 벌써 κ°”λ„€μš”.
  • Connectors (Chapters 5 and 6) become sentence endings when the main clause is dropped: -λŠ”λ°μš” is the example in this chapter.
  • Quotation (Chapter 8): reports already end in a sentence-final form (-λŒ€μš”, -λž˜μš”, -μž¬μš”).
  • Ability, obligation and guessing (Chapter 9): -(으)γ„Ή 수 있죠? "You can, can't you?", -μ•„/μ–΄μ•Ό ν•˜μž–μ•„μš” "You know we have to…".
Watch out: -κ±°λ“ μš” and -μž–μ•„μš” are not "because" Neither one is a connector. λΉ„κ°€ μ™€μ„œ μ•ˆ κ°”μ–΄μš” uses -μ•„/μ–΄μ„œ (Chapter 5) to tie a reason to its result in one sentence. -κ±°λ“ μš” appears after the result has already been said and adds the reason: μ•ˆ κ°”μ–΄μš”. λΉ„κ°€ μ˜€κ±°λ“ μš”. And -μž–μ•„μš” appeals to knowledge that the listener already has.
Watch out: three -γ„Ή endings, one question Ask yourself who is acting: only you β†’ -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš” (promise); you and the listener together, or you asking about the listener's wish β†’ -(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš” / -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”; a guess about the world β†’ -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš” ("Do you think it will…?"). And remember that -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš” is never a question.

πŸ—£οΈ In Use β€” μ‹€μ œ 예문

β‘  A meal with a new friend

A: 이 식당 정말 λ§›μžˆλ„€μš”! 뭐 더 μ‹œν‚¬κΉŒμš”? This restaurant is really good! Shall we order something more?
B: μ €λŠ” λ°°κ°€ λΆˆλŸ¬μ„œ μ•ˆ μ‹œν‚¬λž˜μš”. 그런데 κΉ€μΉ˜λŠ” 더 λ¨Ήμ„λž˜μš”. μ œκ°€ μ‹œν‚¬κ²Œμš”. I'm full so I won't order anything. But I'll have more kimchi. I'll order it.

β‘‘ Explaining and reminding

A: μ™œ 아직 μ•ˆ κ°”μ–΄μš”? 였늘 약속이 μžˆμž–μ•„μš”. Why haven't you gone yet? You've got an appointment today, you know.
B: μ•Œμ•„μš”. 그런데 λΉ„κ°€ 많이 μ˜€κ±°λ“ μš”. 날씨가 μ’‹μœΌλ©΄ κ°€κ² λŠ”λ°μš”β€¦ I know. But it's raining a lot, you see. If the weather were good I'd go, but…

β‘’ Confirming and realising

A: ν•œκ΅­μ— 였래 사셨죠? You've lived in Korea a long time, haven't you?
B: λ„€, μ‹­ λ…„ λμ–΄μš”. μ•„, κ·Έλž˜μ„œ ν•œκ΅­μ–΄λ₯Ό μ΄λ ‡κ²Œ μž˜ν•˜μ‹œλŠ”κ΅°μš”! Yes, ten years. Oh, so that's why you speak Korean this well!

πŸ“‹ Quick Reference β€” μš”μ•½ν‘œ

EndingFeelExample
-λ„€μš”"Oh, I notice that…"κ·€μ—½λ„€μš”
-κ΅°μš”"I see that…"잘 ν•˜λŠ”κ΅°μš”
-μ£ "…, right?" / "of course"μΆ₯μ£ ?
-κ±°λ“ μš”"…, you see" (reason)λ°”μ˜κ±°λ“ μš”
-μž–μ•„μš”"…, you know / remember"μžˆμž–μ•„μš”
-λŠ”λ°μš”"…, but" (softener)μ‹«μ€λ°μš”β€¦
-(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš”"I'll…" (promise)ν• κ²Œμš”
-(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš”"Do you want to…? / I'd rather…"κ°ˆλž˜μš”?
-(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”"Shall we/I…? / Will it…?"λ¨Ήμ„κΉŒμš”?

✏️ Try It Yourself β€” μ—°μŠ΅

Work out the answer first, then click to check.

1. React with surprise: "This house is big!" (-λ„€μš”) and "Oh, so you're a teacher!" (-κ΅°μš”).

Show answer

이 집이 ν¬λ„€μš”! Β· μ•„, μ„ μƒλ‹˜μ΄κ΅°μš”!

2. Confirm: "It's raining, isn't it?" and "You went there, didn't you?" (-μ£ ).

Show answer

λΉ„κ°€ 였죠? Β· κ±°κΈ° κ°”μ£ ?

3. Add the reason with -κ±°λ“ μš”: "I couldn't come. I was busy, you see."

Show answer

λͺ» μ™”μ–΄μš”. λ°”λΉ΄κ±°λ“ μš”.

4. Remind with -μž–μ•„μš”: "You know, it's your birthday today."

Show answer

였늘 μƒμΌμ΄μž–μ•„μš”.

5. Make a soft objection with -λŠ”λ°μš”: "I don't have time now…" (μ‹œκ°„μ΄ μ—†λ‹€).

Show answer

μ§€κΈˆ μ‹œκ°„μ΄ μ—†λŠ”λ°μš”β€¦

6. Choose -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš” or -(으)γ„ΉκΉŒμš”: "I'll call you later." / "Shall I call you later?"

Show answer

λ‚˜μ€‘μ— μ „ν™”ν• κ²Œμš”. Β· λ‚˜μ€‘μ— μ „ν™”ν• κΉŒμš”?

7. Invite with -(으)γ„Ήλž˜μš”: "Would you like to drink some coffee?" and refuse: "I don't want to eat."

Show answer

컀피 λ§ˆμ‹€λž˜μš”? Β· μ•ˆ λ¨Ήμ„λž˜μš”.

8. Which sounds like a promise and which a question: 도와 μ€„κ²Œμš” / 도와 μ€„κΉŒμš”?

Show answer

도와 μ€„κ²Œμš” = "I'll help you" (promise). 도와 μ€„κΉŒμš”? = "Shall I help you?" (question).

πŸŽ“ Course Complete β€” 수료λ₯Ό μΆ•ν•˜ν•©λ‹ˆλ‹€!

You have finished Korean Grammar 2. Here is what the ten chapters gave you.

ChapterTopicKey tools
1Speech Levels in Depththe seven levels; 합쇼체, ν•΄μš”μ²΄, 해체, 해라체; choosing a level
2Honorifics and Humble Forms-(으)μ‹œ-, κ»˜μ„œ/께, λ“œλ¦¬λ‹€, λ΅™λ‹€, μ €/저희
3Irregular Verbs and Adjectivesγ…‚, γ„·, γ……, γ…Ž, γ…‘, λ₯΄, γ„Ή and 러
4Tenses and Aspect-μ•˜/μ—ˆμ—ˆ-, -κ² -, -κ³  μžˆλ‹€, -던, -(으)γ„΄ 지
5Connecting Clauses 1-κ³ , -μ§€λ§Œ, -λŠ”λ°, -μ•„/μ–΄μ„œ, -(으)λ‹ˆκΉŒ, -(으)λ©΄, -κ±°λ‚˜, -(으)γ„Ή λ•Œ
6Connecting Clauses 2-(으)λ €κ³ , -(으)러, -(으)λ©΄μ„œ, -자마자, -λ‹€κ°€, -κΈ° 전에
7Modifiers and Relative Clauses-λŠ” / -(으)γ„΄ / -(으)γ„Ή / -던, -λŠ” 것, -κΈ°, -(으)ㅁ
8Quotation and Reported Speech-λ‹€κ³ , -(으)냐고, -(으)라고, -자고, -λŒ€μš”
9Ability, Obligation, Permission and Guessing-(으)γ„Ή 수 μžˆλ‹€, -μ•„/어도 λ˜λ‹€, -(으)λ©΄ μ•ˆ λ˜λ‹€, -(으)γ„Ή 것 κ°™λ‹€
10Sentence Endings-λ„€μš”, -κ΅°μš”, -μ£ , -κ±°λ“ μš”, -μž–μ•„μš”, -(으)γ„Ήκ²Œμš”

You can now read and use the grammar that fills the gap between beginner Korean and fluent, natural speech: when to switch speech level, how to honour and lower people correctly, how to conjugate the irregular verbs, how to say when and how things happen, how to join and nest clauses, how to report speech, and how to add the small endings that give a sentence its tone. The best way to keep it all alive is to read and listen to real Korean and notice these patterns turning up.

A note on sources Throughout this course the main references were Wikipedia pages on Korean speech levels, honorifics and pronouns, the Elon grammar reference, and the howtostudykorean.com lessons. Where a point is general knowledge and was not confirmed in those sources, the chapter says so.