Adjectives - Polite [Present, Past]

Polite Form

In the previous post, Adjectives - Present, Past, we learned to distinguish between the written and spoken forms of Korean. In addition to it, we're going to further distinguish between the polite and informal forms in Korean.

What are the difference between the informal and polite forms?

• Informal - Generally speaking, the informal form is used among people of the same age or to people who are younger by older people. It is also used by people who are closely related such as such family members and relatives. People who are close friends would use this form depending on the familiarity and acceptability.

• Polite - The polite form is used when speaking to people who are older than you or of a higher rank than you such as in the company, army and other institutions. However, people generally use the polite form in many social settings regardless of one's age. Initially, it would be best to stick to the polite form when learning Korean, as this would be the predominant form of speaking to people in many social environments. However, if you attend school or other similar institutions where you'd make friends and the environment is more casual, it might be more appropriate to use the informal form.

Below are the two tables showing the polite form of the written and spoken forms of Korean. Please note that the words in bold indicate which of the two negatives are more common in each form, i.e. 빠르지 않습니다 is more commonly used than 안 빠릅니다 in the written form whereas 안 빨라요 is more commonly used than 빠르지 않아요 in the spoken form.

Polite Written Form	Present	Past
Positive	빠릅니다	빨랐습니다
Negative	빠르지 않습니다 안 빠릅니다	빠르지 않았습니다 안 빨랐습니다

Polite Spoken Form	Present	Past
Positive	빨라요	빨랐어요
Negative	빠르지 않아요 안 빨라요	빠르지 않았어요 안 빨랐어요

Conjugations rules

I) Informal written form → Polite written form (Present tense)

First of all, take 다 off adjectives, and then:

1. For adjectives whose final character has no final consonant, add ㅂ 니다.

E.g.

• 크다 → 큽니다 = big/large
• 세다 → 셉니다 = strong

• 빠르다 → 빠릅니다 = fast
• 느리다 → 느립니다 = slow
• 착하다 → 착합니다 = kind

• 따뜻하다 → 따뜻합니다 = warm (touch, feeling)
• 시원하다 → 시원합니다 = cool (touch, feeling)

2. For adjectives whose final character has a final consonant, attach 습니다.

E.g.

• 작다 → 작습니다 = small (size)
• 많다 → 많습니다 = many
• 적다 → 적습니다 = small (quantity)
• 쉽다 → 쉽습니다 = easy

• 어렵다 → 어렵습니다 = difficult
• 뜨겁다 → 뜨겁습니다 = hot (touch)
• 새롭다 → 새롭습니다 = new

II) Informal written → Polite written (Past tense)

Take 다 off the past tense of adjectives, and then attach 습니다.

E.g.

• 컸다 → 컸습니다 = was big/large
• 작았다 → 작았습니다 = was small (size)
• 좋았다 → 좋았습니다 = was good

• 빨랐다 → 빨랐습니다 = was fast
• 느렸다 → 느렸습니다 = was slow
• 쉬웠다 → 쉬웠습니다 = was easy

• 어려웠다 → 어려웠습니다 = was difficult
• 뜨거웠다 → 뜨거웠습니다 = was hot (touch)
• 차가웠다 → 차가웠습니다 = was cold (touch)
• 새로웠다 → 새로웠습니다 = was new

III) Informal → Polite (Spoken)

Attach 요 at the end of the adjectives of all forms.


E.g.

• 높아 → 높아요 = high
• 안높아 → 안높아요 = not high
• 높았어 → 높았어요 = was high
• 안높았어 → 안높았어요 = was not high

• 많아 → 많아요 = many
• 안많아 → 안많아요 = not many
• 많았어 → 많았어요 = were many
• 안많았어 → 안많았어요 = were not many

• 커 → 커요 = big/large
• 안커 → 안커요 = not big/large
• 컸어 → 컸어요 = was big/large
• 안컸어 → 안컸어요 = was not big/large

For help with the pronunciations of these adjectives in various forms, please use the 'listen' feature on Google Translate.

Adjectives - Connective Form

This lesson is about the connective form of adjectives. This form is used to list several adjectives in a sequence, and to connect one sentence to another.

The conjugation rule for the connective form is easy.

• Take 다 off adjectives and then attach 고 to them.

Written Form	Present	Connective
High	높다	높고
Low	낮다	낮고
Big	크다	크고
Small (size)	작다	작고
Spacious	넓다	넓고
Cramped	좁다	좁고
Many	많다	많고
Small (quantity)	적다	적고
Kind	착하다	착하고
Fast	빠르다	빠르고
Slow	느리다	느리고
Outgoing	활달하다	활달하고
Quiet	조용하다	조용하고
Easy	쉽다	쉽고
Difficult	어렵다	어렵고
Interesting	재미있다	재미있고
Boring	지루하다	지루하고
Hot (tangible)	뜨겁다	뜨겁고
Cold (tangible)	차갑다	차갑고
Warm	따뜻하다	따뜻하고
Cool	시원하다	시원하고
Wonderful	굉장하다	굉장하고
Beautiful	아름답다	아름답고
Patient	인내심 있다	인내심 있고
Humorous	웃기다	웃기고
Calm	침착하다	침착하고
Humble	겸손하다	겸손하고
Lovely	사랑스럽다	사랑스럽고

The connective form of adjectives is used in two situations: 

• To list adjectives in a sequence 
• To connect one sentence to another

1. To list adjectives in a sequence

If I was to say 'kind, beautiful and humble' in Korean, the adjectives must be changed to their connective forms except the last adjective of a sentence which determines its tense.

E.g.

• 착하다 → 착하고 = kind
  
• 아름답다 → 아름답고 = beautiful
• 겸손하다 = humble

• 착하고 아름답고 겸손하다 → kind, beautiful and humble
  
• 착하고 아름답고 겸손했다 → was kind, beautiful and humble

Alternatively,

• 아름답고 겸손하고 착했다 → was beautiful, humble and kind
• 겸손하고 착하고 아름다웠다 → was humble, kind and beautiful

As you can see, the last adjective determines the tense of a sentence.


2. To connect one sentence to another.

The connective form of adjectives is also used to connect sentences.

• 유리는 착해요 = Yuri is kind
  
• 미나는 아름다워요 = Mina is beautiful
  
• 진수는 겸손해요 = Jinsu is humble

유리는 착하고, 미나는 아름답고, 진수는 겸손해요. 
= Yuri is kind, Mina is beautiful and Jinsu is humble.

• 앤디는 웃겨요 = Andy is humorous/funny
• 프랭클린은 조용해요 = Franklin is quiet
• 제시카는 활달해요 = Jessica is outgoing

앤디는 웃기고, 프랭클린은 조용하고, 제시카는 활달해요
= Andy is humorous/funny, Franklin is quiet, and Jessica is outgoing.

• 음료수는 시원하다 = A soft drink is cool
• 차는 뜨겁다 = Tea is hot
• 포도는 달다 = Grapes are sweet

음료수는 시원하고, 차는 뜨겁고, 포도는 달다.
= A soft drink is cool, tea is hot, and grapes are sweet.

         

Adjectives - Descriptive Form

In the previous posts, Adjectives - Present, Past and Adjectives - Polite [Present, Past], we learned that adjectives in Korean function like verbs in that they can be conjugated into present and past tenses, and various other forms.

However, when describing nouns using adjectives placed in front of them, for example, 'a beautiful bird', the adjectives must be conjugated to the descriptive form.

E.g.

• 아름답다 → 아름다운 [A plain form → A descriptive form]
• 아름다운 새 = a beautiful bird

The Table of Common Adjectives and Their Descriptive Forms

Written Form	Plain Positive	Descriptive
High	높다	높은
Low	낮다	낮은
Big	크다	큰
Small (size)	작다	작은
Spacious	넓다	넓은
Cramped	좁다	좁은
Many	많다	많은
Small (quantity)	적다	적은
Kind	착하다	착한
Fast	빠르다	빠른
Slow	느리다	느린
Handsome	멋있다	멋있는
Ugly	못생기다	못생긴
Easy	쉽다	쉬운
Difficult	어렵다	어려운
Interesting	재미있다	재미있는
Boring	지루하다	지루한
Hot	뜨겁다	뜨거운
Cold	차갑다	차가운
Warm	따뜻하다	따뜻한
Cool	시원하다	시원한
Wonderful	굉장하다	굉장한
Beautiful	아름답다	아름다운
Pretty	예쁘다	예쁜
Humble	겸손하다	겸손한
Loving	사랑스럽다	사랑스러운
Red	빨갛다	빨간
Yellow	노랗다	노란

Conjugations rules

First of all, take 다 off adjectives and then:

1. Attach 은 to any adjectives of one character with a final consonant.
(Note: The next rules override this rule.)

E.g.

• 많다 → 많은 = many
• 많은 사람들 → many people

• 작다 → 작은 = small
• 작은 난쟁이 → a small dwarf

• 얇다 → 얇은 = thin
• 얇은 팔 → a thin arm

• 높다 → 높은 = high
• 높은 하늘 → a high sky

2. Attach 는 to any adjectives whose final character is 있 and 없.

E.g.

• 맛있다 → 맛있는 = delicious
• 맛있는 음식 → delicious food

• 멋있다 → 멋있는 = handsome/good-looking
• 멋있는 차 → a good-looking car

• 재미있다 → 재미있는 = interesting/fun
• 재미있는 영화 → a fun movie

• 재미없다 → 재미없는 = not interesting (boring)
• 재미없는 드라마 = a boring drama (soap opera)

Note: The meaning of 있다 is 'to exist', and its opposite is 없다 which means 'to not exist'. Therefore, the adjectives which have a stem of 있다 can also be used with 없다.

E.g.

• 맛있다 → 맛없다 [tasty/delicious → not tasty/delicious]
• 멋있다 → 멋없다 [handsome/good-looking → not handsome/good-looking (ugly)]
• 재미있다 → 재미없다 [interesting/fun → not interesting/fun (boring)]

3. For adjectives whose final character has a final consonant of either ㄹ or ㅎ, replace them with ㄴ.

E.g.

• 길다 → 긴 = long
• 긴 연필 → a long pencil

• 달다 → 단 = sweet (taste)
• 단 초콜렛 → sweet chocolate

• 빨갛다 → 빨간 = red
• 빨간 사과 → a red apple

• 노랗다 → 노란 = yellow
• 노란 우산 = a yellow umbrella

4. For adjectives who final character has a final consonant, ㅂ, take it off and attach 운 to them.

E.g.

• 쉽다 → 쉬운 = easy
  
• 쉬운 문제 → an easy problem/question

• 아름답다 → 아름다운 = beautiful
  
• 아름다운 꽃 → a beautiful flower

• 차갑다 → 차가운 = cold (tangible)
• 차가운 바닥 = a cold floor

• 뜨겁다 → 뜨거운 = hot (tangible)
• 뜨거운 커피 = hot coffee

*Exception: 

• 좁다 → 좁은 = narrow, small, cramped (space) (NOT 조은)
• 좁은 운동장 = a small/cramped playground

5. For adjectives whose last character does not have a final consonant, just attach ㄴ to it.

E.g.

• 멋지다 → 멋진 = nice/cool
• 멋진 모자→ a nice/cool hat

• 예쁘다 → 예쁜 = pretty
• 예쁜 구두 → pretty shoes

• 빠르다 → 빠른 = fast
• 빠른 자동차 → a fast car

• 느리다 → 느린 = slow
• 느린 속력 → a slow speed

Irregular

• 좋다 → 좋은 = good
• 좋은 사람 → a good man

Please note, however, that the descriptive form is usually used in writings, as in written Korean.

In spoken Korean, it is more natural to say 'beautiful flowers' as '꽃이 아름다워요' rather than '아름다운 꽃이에요.' (For more on the 'spoken form,' please read Adjectives - Present, Past)

E.g.

• 꽃들이 아름다워요 = The flowers are beautiful.
• 자동차가 멋져요 = The car is good-looking.
• 문제가 쉬워요 = The question is easy.

Also, in spoken Korean, the particles are often omitted except for the 을/를 particle.

• 꽃들 아름다워요 = The flowers are beautiful.
• 자동차 멋져요 = The car is good-looking.
• 문제 쉬워요 = The question is easy.

Again, in casual conversations, these sentences would more naturally flow by using '네.'

• 꽃들 아름답네요
• 자동차 멋지네요
• 문제 쉽네요

The difference between '문제 쉬워요' and '문제 쉽네요' is that  '쉽네요' is less blunt than '쉬워요' which sounds more factual and generalised.

• 문제 쉽네요 = (I see that) The problem/question is easy.
• 문제 쉬워요 = The problem/question is easy.

• 방이 넓네요 = (I see that) The room is spacious/large.
• 방이 넓어요 = The room is spacious/large. (It can sound quite blunt and just factual.)

Adjectives - Present, Past

 형용사 [Adjectives]

We're going to look at adjectives in this post. First of all, please have a look at the two tables below, which are similar to the way the 'nouns' were presented in the previous post, Nouns - Present, Past.

As I've mentioned before in Nouns - Present, Past, there are two primary forms in which Korean is used, the written and spoken forms.

• The written form is used in literature such as books, newspapers and any form of writing that is not 'conversational.' The written form, in essence, is literary, factual and declarative. It is rarely used in normal everyday conversations. However, the news on TV uses this written form of Korean. It is also used in public speeches. The reason is probably due to the fact that the news and public announcements or speeches are usually all declarative and/or factual.

• The spoken form is the usual way in which people speak and have a conversation. It is used in all types of spoken Korean such as normal conversations, dramas, and movies, with the possible exceptions of news, documentaries and other factual, formal types of programs on TV and radio.

Please also note that there are two ways of expressing negatives, for example, 좋다 means 'good' and 많다 means 'many', and they can be expressed in the negative form in the following two ways:

1. Take 다 off the present tense of an adjective, and attach 지 않다 (or 지 않아 for the spoken form).

The Written Form

• 좋지 않다 = not good
• 많지 않다 = not many

The Spoken Form

• 좋지 않아 = not good
• 많지 않아 = not many 

2. Attach 안 to the present tense of an adjective.

The Written Form

• 안좋다 = not good 
• 안많다 = not many

The Spoken Form

• 안좋아 = not good 
• 안많아 = not many 

Below are the two tables showing the informal written and spoken forms of the adjective, 빠르다. (Please read Adjectives - Polite for polite forms)

Please note that the words in bold indicate which of the two negatives are more common in each form, i.e. 빠르지 않다 is more commonly used than 안 빠르다 in the written form whereas 안 빨라 is more commonly used than 빠르지 않아 in the spoken form.

Informal Written Form	Present	Past
Positive	빠르다	빨랐다
Negative	빠르지 않다 안 빠르다	빠르지 않았다 안 빨랐다

Informal Spoken Form	Present	Past
Positive	빨라	빨랐어
Negative	빠르지 않아 안 빨라	빠르지 않았어 안 빨랐어

Here are the meanings of the different forms of an adjective, 빠르다.

• 빠르다 = fast
• 빠르지 않다/안 빠르다 = not fast
• 빨랐다 = was/were fast
• 빠르지 않았다/안 빨랐다 = was/were not fast

• 빨라 = fast
  
• 빠르지 않아/안 빨라 = not fast
  
• 빨랐어 = was/were fast
  
• 빠르지 않았어/안 빨랐어 = was/were not fast

The List of Common Adjectives

	Present		Past
Positive	Written	Spoken	Written	Spoken
High	높다	높아	높았다	높았어
Low	낮다	낮아	낮았다	낮았어
Big	크다	커	컸다	컸어
Small (size)	작다	작아	작았다	작았어
Spacious	넓다	넓어	넓었다	넓었어
Cramped	좁다	좁아	좁았다	좁았어
Many	많다	많아	많았다	많았어
Small (quantity)	적다	적어	적었다	적었어
Kind	착하다	착해	착했다	착했어
Fast	빠르다	빨라	빨랐다	빨랐어
Slow	느리다	느려	느렸다	느렸어
Easy	쉽다	쉬워	쉬웠다	쉬웠어
Difficult	어렵다	어려워	어려웠다	어려웠어
Interesting	재미있다	재미있어	재미있었다	재미있었어
New	새롭다	새로워	새로웠다	새로웠어
Hot (tangible)	뜨겁다	뜨거워	뜨거웠다	뜨거웠어
Cold (tangible)	차갑다	차가워	차가웠다	차가웠어
Warm	따뜻하다	따뜻해	따뜻했다	따뜻했어
Cool	시원하다	시원해	시원했다	시원했어
Wonderful	굉장하다	굉장해	굉장했다	굉장했어
Beautiful	아름답다	아름다워	아름다웠다	아름다웠어
Honest	솔직하다	솔직해	솔직했다	솔직했어
Lovely	사랑스럽다	사랑스러워	사랑스러웠다	사랑스러웠어
Humble	겸손하다	겸손해	겸손했다	겸손했어

The following are the rules for the conjugation of adjectives:

I) Present (Written) → Past (Written)

1. For adjectives whose last character contain a final consonant, add 았 or 었.

• 았 for the vowels, ㅏ and ㅗ
• 었 for the vowels, ㅓ, ㅜ, ㅡ and ㅣ

E.g.

• 얇다 → 얇았다 = was thin
• 높다 → 높았다 = was high
• 적다 → 적었다 = was small (quantity)
• 굵다 → 굵었다 = was thick  
• 가늘다 → 가늘었다 = was thin
• 재미있다 → 재미있었다 = was interesting/fun  

Note: The rules 2 to 6 override the rule 1.


2. For adjectives whose last character is 하, it changes to 했.

E.g.

• 착하다 → 착했다 = was kind
  
• 따뜻하다 → 따뜻했다 = was warm
• 시원하다 → 시원했다 = was cool
• 신기하다 → 신기했다 = was amazing
• 굉장하다 →  굉장했다 = was wonderful

3. For adjectives whose last character contain ㅂ as a final consonant, take it off and add 웠다. (Except for 좁다 which changes to 좁았다)

E.g. 

• 아름답다 → 아름다웠다 = was beautiful
• 뜨겁다 → 뜨거웠다 = was hot (tangible)
• 차갑다 → 차가웠다 = was cold (tangible)
• 춥다 → 추웠다 = was cold (feeling)

4. For adjectives whose last character contain no final consonant and the vowel, ㅡ, take it off and add ㅓ,ㅆ.

E.g.

• 크다 → 컸다 = was big
• 예쁘다 → 예뻤다 = was pretty 

However, when the vowel before the last character is ㅏ, then ㅏ, ㅆ can be used instead.

• 아프다 → 아팠다/아펐다 = was sick (illness)
• 나쁘다 → 나빴다/나뻤다 = was bad 

  
Also, in the case of 르 as the last character, ㄹ, 랐 is used.

• 빠르다 → 빨랐다 = was fast

5. For adjectives whose last character contain the vowel, ㅣ, take it off and add ㅕ, ㅆ.

E.g. 

• 느리다 → 느렸다 = was slow
• 잘생기다 → 잘생겼다 = was handsome/good-looking
• 못생기다 → 못생겼다 = was ugly

6. For adjectives whose last character contains ㅏ as a vowel and ㅎ as a final consonant, they change to ㅐ and ㅆ, i.e. 앟 changes to 앴.

E.g.

• 빨갛다 → 빨갰다 = was red
• 노랗다 → 노랬다 = was yellow
• 파랗다 → 파랬다 = was blue

II) Present (Written) → Present (Spoken)

First of all, take 다 off adjectives and then:

1. For adjectives whose last character contain a final consonant, add 아 or 어.

• 아 for the vowels, ㅏ and ㅗ
• 어 for the vowels, ㅓ, ㅜ, ㅡ and ㅣ

E.g.

• 작다 → 작아 = small (size)
• 높다 → 높아 = high
• 적다 → 적어 = small (quantity)
• 굵다 → 굵어 = thick 
• 가늘다 → 가늘어 = thin
• 재미있다 → 재미있어 = interesting/fun

2. For adjectives whose last character is 하, it changes to 해.

E.g.

• 지루하다 → 지루해 = boring
• 시원하다 → 시원해 = cool
• 겸손하다 → 겸손해 = humble
• 신기하다 → 신기해 = amazing

3. For adjectives whose last character contain ㅂ as a final consonant, take it off and add 워. (Except for 좁다 which changes to 좁았다)

E.g.

• 춥다 → 추워 = cold (feeling)
• 어렵다 → 어려워 = difficult
• 뜨겁다 → 뜨거워 = hot (tangible)
• 사랑스럽다 → 사랑스러워 = lovely

4. For adjectives whose last character contain ㅡ as a vowel and no final consonant, change ㅡ to ㅓ. (Exceptions, 빠르다 which changes to 빨라, and 배고프다 to 배고파)

E.g.

• 크다 → 커 = big/large 
• 예쁘다 → 예뻐 = pretty

However, when the vowel before the last character is ㅏ, then ㅡ can be changed to ㅏ instead.

• 아프다 → 아파/아퍼 = sick (illness) 
• 나쁘다 → 나빠/나뻐 = bad 

5. For adjectives whose last character contain ㅣ as a vowel and no final consonant, change ㅣ to ㅕ.

E.g. 

• 느리다 → 느려 = slow
• 잘생기다 → 잘생겨 = handsome/good-looking
• 못생기다 → 못생겨 = ugly 

6. For adjectives whose last character contains ㅏ as a vowel and ㅎ as a final consonant, ㅏ is changed to ㅐ, and ㅎ is taken off. (i.e. 앟다 is changed to 애)

E.g.

• 빨갛다 → 빨개 = red
• 노랗다 → 노래 = yellow
• 파랗다 → 파래 = blue

III) Past (Written) → Past (Spoken)

Simply change 다 to 어. 

• 컸다 → 컸어 = was big/large
• 높았다 → 높았어 = was high
• 느렸다 → 느렸어 = was slow
• 빨갰다 → 빨갰어 = was red
• 따뜻했다 → 따뜻했어 = was warm (both tangibility and feeling)
• 뜨거웠다 → 뜨거웠어 = was hot (tangible)