2 · Irregular verbs
Stems in 디귿 (d): 듣다 → 들어요, 걷다 → 걸어요
the d that turns into l
In a handful of common verbs a final d becomes l before a vowel: 듣다, 들어요.
A handful of very common verbs with a stem in 디귿, the letter for d, turn it into l before a vowel: 듣다 (to listen) → 들어요, 걷다 (to walk) → 걸어요, 묻다 (to ask) → 물어요, 싣다 (to load) → 실어요, 깨닫다 (to realise) → 깨달아요. The new l is written as an ordinary 리을, and the ending is joined to it as usual.
The same happens before endings with (으): 들으면, 걸으세요, 물을게요, 들은 노래. Here the 으 is kept, unlike after a real stem in 리을: 걸으면 is “if you walk”, 걸면 “if you hang (it)” from 걸다. Before a consonant the d stays: 듣고, 걷지만, 듣습니다, 듣는.
As with 비읍, there are regular verbs that look exactly the same: 받다 (to receive) → 받아요, 닫다 (to close) → 닫아요, 믿다 (to believe) → 믿어요, 얻다 (to get) → 얻어요. The regular ones are in the majority, so the safest way is to learn the irregular few: 듣다, 걷다, 묻다 in the sense of asking, 싣다 and 깨닫다.
English speakers usually meet 들어요 and 걸어요 long before the dictionary forms, and then look for 들다 and 걸다 — which are real verbs with other meanings (to lift, to hang). Learn the forms together: 듣다, 들어요, 들었어요.
The form
| before 아/어: d becomes l | 듣다 → 들어요, 걷다 → 걸어요 |
| before (으): l, and 으 stays | 들으면, 걸으세요, 들은 노래 |
| before a consonant: no change | 듣고, 걷지만, 듣습니다, 듣는 |
| past | 들었어요, 걸었어요, 물었어요 |
| regular stems | 받다 → 받아요, 닫다 → 닫아요 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Before 아 or 어, the d becomes l.
저는 아침마다 라디오를 들어요.I listen to the radio every morning.
Before an ending with (으), it becomes l too, and the 으 stays.
천천히 걸으세요.Please walk slowly.
Before an ending that starts with a consonant, the d stays.
음악을 듣고 있어요.I am listening to music.
Regular stems in 디귿 never change: 받다, 닫다, 믿다.
어제 선물을 받았어요.I got a present yesterday.
A closer look
Telling the two kinds of l apart
An l that comes from 디귿 keeps the 으 of an ending; a real 리을 drops it. That is why 걸으세요 is “please walk” (from 걷다), while 거세요 is “please hang it” or “please make the call” (from 걸다), with the l gone before s.
The same contrast separates 들으세요, “please listen”, from 드세요, which is “please hold it” from 들다 — and, far more often, “please eat”, from the honorific verb 드시다.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
-
the verb is 묻다 in the sense “to bury” or “to get on, to stain”
it is regular: 묻어요
옷에 커피가 묻었어요.I have got coffee on my clothes.
Different verbs share the spelling 묻다. Asking is irregular (물어요); burying and staining are regular (묻어요).
How to spot it
- 들어요
- 걸어요
- 물어요
- 들으면
- 걸으세요
Example sentences
이 노래 들어 봤어요?Have you heard this song?
저는 회사까지 걸어서 가요.I walk to work.
모르는 게 있으면 선생님께 물어 보세요.If there is something you do not know, ask your teacher.
주말에 공원을 한 시간쯤 걸었어요.At the weekend I walked in the park for about an hour.
제 말을 잘 들으세요.Listen to me carefully.
짐을 차에 실었어요.I loaded the luggage into the car.
8 more example sentences
이 노래를 들으면 고향 생각이 나요.Whenever I hear this song, I think of home.
길을 몰라서 지나가는 사람한테 물었어요.I did not know the way, so I asked someone passing by.
많이 걸어서 다리가 아파요.I walked a lot, so my legs hurt.
어제 들은 이야기가 정말 재미있었어요.The story I heard yesterday was really interesting.
그때 제 실수를 깨달았어요.That was when I realised my mistake.
창문을 닫아 주세요.Please close the window.
저는 그 사람 말을 믿어요.I believe what that person says.
수업 시간에 음악을 듣지 마세요.Please do not listen to music in class.
Worth knowing (1)
-
들어요 and 걸어요 have two parents
들어요 is “I listen” from 듣다, but also “I lift, I carry” from 들다; 걸어요 is “I walk” from 걷다, but also “I hang” or “I make (a call)” from 걸다. The object usually decides, and the other forms keep them apart: 듣고 but 들고, 걷고 but 걸고.
친구한테 전화를 걸어요.I am calling a friend.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
듣다 is irregular: before a vowel the d becomes l. Keeping the d would treat it like the regular verbs 받다 and 닫다, which is exactly why the mistake is tempting.
Deutda becomes deureoyo — the d turns into l before a vowel — but batda stays badayo.
Your turn
9 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.