2 · The basic sentence
How something is done: -게
turning an adjective into an adverb
-게 on an adjective stem makes an adverb: 맛있게 deliciously, 크게 loudly, 늦게 late.
At a glance
- Remember
- Before a noun the adjective takes -n; before a verb it takes -ge.
- Form
- 크다 → 크게after a vowel
- Signal words
- -게
- -히
- -하게
- 좀 더
- Trap
- Wrong:어제 저녁을 맛있는 먹었어요.Right:어제 저녁을 맛있게 먹었어요.
Your turn
10 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.
The form
| after a vowel | 크다 → 크게 |
| after a consonant | 늦다 → 늦게 |
| an irregular stem stays as it is | 쉽다 → 쉽게 |
| a stem in rieul | 길다 → 길게 |
| an adjective in 하다 | 따뜻하다 → 따뜻하게 |
| the older form in -히 | 조용하다 → 조용히 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
-게 goes straight onto the stem of an adjective and makes an adverb.
좀 더 크게 말해 주세요.Please speak a little louder.
The adverb stands before the verb it describes.
오늘 아침에 늦게 일어났어요.I got up late this morning.
Irregular stems do not change before -게.
이 문제는 생각보다 쉽게 풀었어요.I solved this problem more easily than I expected.
With 하다, 만들다 or 자르다, -게 says what state something is brought into.
머리를 짧게 잘랐어요.I had my hair cut short.
Example sentences
맛있게 드세요.Enjoy your meal.
어제는 정말 재미있게 놀았어요.We had a really good time yesterday.
이름을 여기에 크게 써 주세요.Please write your name here in large letters.
아이가 예쁘게 웃었어요.The child gave a lovely smile.
방을 깨끗하게 청소했어요.I cleaned the room thoroughly.
겨울에는 집을 따뜻하게 해야 해요.In winter you have to keep the house warm.
8 more example sentences
천천히 그리고 정확하게 읽으세요.Read slowly and accurately.
요즘 시간이 빠르게 지나가요.Time goes by quickly these days.
그 문을 조용하게 닫아 주세요.Please close that door quietly.
국을 좀 짜게 만들었어요.I made the soup a bit salty.
친구들과 즐겁게 이야기했어요.I had a lovely chat with my friends.
이 바지를 좀 길게 해 주세요.Please make these trousers a bit longer.
늦게 와서 죄송합니다.Sorry I am late.
조명을 좀 밝게 해 주세요.Please make the lighting a bit brighter.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
맛있는 is the form that stands before a noun: 맛있는 저녁, “a delicious dinner”. Before a verb the adjective needs -게: 맛있게 먹었어요, “I enjoyed my dinner”.
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
English makes most adverbs with “-ly”: quick, quickly. Korean adds -게 to the stem of an adjective: 크다 → 크게, 맛있다 → 맛있게, 늦다 → 늦게, 예쁘다 → 예쁘게. There is no vowel to choose and no 으 to insert: the stem stays exactly as it is, whatever sound it ends in.
The adverb stands before the verb it describes: 크게 말해 주세요, “please speak up”, 맛있게 드세요, “enjoy your meal”. Because the stem does not change, even the irregular adjectives keep their plain shape here: 쉽다 → 쉽게, 빠르다 → 빠르게, 길다 → 길게.
With verbs like 하다, 만들다 and 자르다, the -게 form says what state something is brought into: 방을 따뜻하게 했어요, “I made the room warm”, 머리를 짧게 잘랐어요, “I had my hair cut short”. English uses the adjective there; Korean still wants -게.
Many adjectives in 하다 also have an older adverb in -히 or -이: 조용히, 천천히, 깨끗이, 열심히. Some of those are the only usual form — nobody says 열심하게 — and others stand next to the -게 form: 조용히 and 조용하게 both mean “quietly”.
A closer look
Not every -ge is an adverb
The same syllable turns up in larger patterns that have their own topics: -게 되다, “to end up doing”, and -게 하다, “to make somebody do”. There it follows a verb rather than an adjective, and the meaning is not “in a … way” any more.
A quick test: if you can ask “how?” and the answer is the -게 word, it is the adverb. 어떻게 먹었어요? — 맛있게 먹었어요. 어떻게 itself is the adverb of 어떻다, “to be how”.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the adjective is 많다 or 적다
the everyday adverbs are 많이, “a lot”, and 조금 or 적게.
오늘은 많이 먹었어요.I ate a lot today.
많게 exists, but only in the sense “so that there is a lot”; “eat a lot” is always 많이 먹다.
Worth knowing (1)
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Wishes that use -ge
Several everyday wishes are built on the adverb: 맛있게 드세요 before a meal, 즐겁게 보내세요, “have a good time”, and 재미있게 보세요 before a film. They are said to the person who is about to do it.
주말 즐겁게 보내세요.Have a lovely weekend.
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