The past tense
-았-, -었- and -했-.
The past is made from the 아/어 form: put -ㅆ- after it and end with -어요. In practice, the stem takes -았어요 where the present has -아요, -었어요 where it has -어요, and 하다 becomes 했어요.
| Dictionary | Present | Past |
|---|---|---|
| 가다 to go | 가요 | 갔어요 gasseoyo |
| 오다 to come | 와요 | 왔어요 wasseoyo |
| 살다 to live | 살아요 | 살았어요 sarasseoyo |
| 먹다 to eat | 먹어요 | 먹었어요 meogeosseoyo |
| 마시다 to drink | 마셔요 | 마셨어요 masyeosseoyo |
| 하다 to do | 해요 | 했어요 haesseoyo |
| 좋다 to be good | 좋아요 | 좋았어요 joasseoyo |
| 이다 to be | 이에요, 예요 | 이었어요, 였어요 |
- eoje yeonghwareul bwasseoyo.I watched a film yesterday.
- jeomsim meogeosseoyo?Have you had lunch?
- siheomi eoryeowosseoyo.The exam was hard.
The formal past is -았습니다/-었습니다 (갔습니다), the casual one -았어/-었어 (갔어), and the honorific -(으)셨어요 (가셨어요).
One past for many English tenses
The Korean past covers "I went", "I have gone" and often "I had gone": 점심 먹었어요? is both "did you eat lunch?" and "have you had lunch?"
States that began in the past
Some changes are told in the past where English uses the present for the state they leave: 결혼했어요 "I'm married" (I got married), 늦었어요 "I'm late" (it got late), 잘생겼어요 "he's handsome" (his looks came out well), 닮았어요 "they look alike".
Cards from this guide
9 cardsEach card asks about one thing this guide teaches, and its back gives the answer with why and an example. They're reviewed with the rest of the Verbs and adjectives cards.
What's the past of 가다 (to go)?
갔어요 (gasseoyo).
What's the past of 먹다 (to eat)?
먹었어요 (meogeosseoyo).
What's the past of 하다 (to do)?
했어요 (haesseoyo).
What's the past of 보다 (to see)?
봤어요 (bwasseoyo).
What's the past of 마시다 (to drink)?
마셨어요 (masyeosseoyo).
How do you say 'He was a student' with 학생?
학생이었어요.
How does Korean say 'I'm married', using 결혼하다 (to marry)?
In the past: 결혼했어요.
What's the honorific past of 오다 (to come)?
오셨어요 (osyeosseoyo).
How do you ask 'Have you had lunch?' with 점심 (lunch)?
점심 먹었어요?