3 · Tense and aspect
The resulting state -아/어 있다
the state left by a completed change
After a change of state — sitting down, opening, arriving — -아/어 있다 says that the result is still there: 앉아 있어요, "she is sitting".
The stem takes the same -아 or -어 as in the polite present, and a separate 있다 follows: 앉다 → 앉아 있다, 서다 → 서 있다, 오다 → 와 있다, 남다 → 남아 있다. The two words are always written apart. Tense and politeness go on 있다: 앉아 있었어요, and 앉아 계세요 for someone you respect.
It is used with verbs that describe a change from one state to another and take no object — 앉다 (sit down), 서다 (stand, stop), 눕다 (lie down), 가다 and 오다 (be there after going or coming), 붙다 (stick), 남다 (remain), 피다 (bloom) — and very often with passive verbs: 열리다 (be opened), 닫히다 (be closed), 놓이다 (be placed), 쓰이다 (be written). 문이 열려 있어요 is "the door is open": something opened it, and it has stayed that way.
The contrast with -고 있다 is the heart of this topic. -고 있다 watches an action while it happens; -아/어 있다 looks at the state the action has left behind. 앉고 있어요 would be "she is in the middle of sitting down" — a second or two at most — while 앉아 있어요 is "she is sitting (there)". English uses "-ing" for both, which is exactly why learners pick the wrong one.
-아/어 있다 never takes an object. "The window has been opened" is 창문이 열려 있어요, with the passive 열리다; 창문을 열어 있어요 is wrong. When you want to say that someone did something and left it so, use -아/어 놓다 instead: 창문을 열어 놓았어요, "I have opened the window (and left it open)". The verbs of wearing are a special case: Korean says 입고 있다, not 입어 있다.
The form
| sit down → be sitting | 앉다 → 앉아 있어요 |
| stand → be standing | 서다 → 서 있어요 |
| come → be here | 오다 → 와 있어요 |
| be opened → be open | 열리다 → 열려 있어요 |
| honorific | 앉아 계세요 |
| past | 서 있었어요 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Use it after verbs of changing state, for the state that results.
아이가 의자에 앉아 있어요.The child is sitting on the chair.
Passive verbs take it to describe how something has been left.
창문이 열려 있어요.The window is open.
It never takes an object; with an object, use a passive verb or -아/어 놓다.
책상 위에 편지가 놓여 있어요.There is a letter lying on the desk.
It describes a state, unlike -고 있다, which describes an action in progress.
버스에서 계속 서 있었어요.I was standing the whole way on the bus.
Use 계시다 instead of 있다 for someone you respect.
사장님은 벌써 회의실에 와 계세요.The director is already in the meeting room.
A closer look
Sitting down, and being seated
Put the two side by side and the difference is plain. 지금 옷을 입고 있어요 can be "I am getting dressed", an action; 의자에 앉아 있어요 can only be "I am seated", a state. For most verbs, -고 있다 answers "what is happening?" and -아/어 있다 answers "how are things?".
This is also how Korean describes a scene in a picture or a room: 책상 위에 꽃병이 놓여 있고, 벽에는 사진이 걸려 있어요, "there is a vase on the desk, and a photo is hanging on the wall". Each thing is in the state somebody put it in, and Korean says so with a passive verb and 있다 where English simply says "there is".
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the verb is one of wearing: 입다, 신다, 쓰다, 끼다
the state of wearing is expressed with -고 있다: 모자를 쓰고 있어요.
그 아이는 노란 모자를 쓰고 있어요.That child is wearing a yellow hat.
These verbs take an object (the clothes), and -아/어 있다 does not allow one. Korean therefore lets -고 있다 cover both the act of putting on and the state of having it on.
How to spot it
- 열려 있다
- 닫혀 있다
- 앉아 있다
- 서 있다
- 켜져 있다
Example sentences
가게 문이 아직 닫혀 있어요.The shop is still closed.
벽에 지도가 붙어 있어요.There is a map on the wall.
냉장고에 우유가 조금 남아 있어요.There is a little milk left in the fridge.
불이 켜져 있어요. 누가 집에 있나 봐요.The light is on. Someone must be home.
공원에 벚꽃이 많이 피어 있었어요.There were lots of cherry blossoms out in the park.
제 동생은 아직 침대에 누워 있어요.My younger sister is still lying in bed.
8 more example sentences
교실 앞에 학생들이 서 있어요.Some students are standing in front of the classroom.
친구가 벌써 약속 장소에 와 있어요.My friend is already at the meeting place.
이 상자 안에 뭐가 들어 있어요?What is in this box?
메뉴판에 가격이 쓰여 있어요.The prices are written on the menu.
지갑이 바닥에 떨어져 있었어요.The wallet was lying on the floor.
어머니는 지금 병원에 입원해 계세요.My mother is in hospital at the moment.
에어컨이 하루 종일 켜져 있었어요.The air conditioning was on all day.
주차장 입구에 차가 한 대 세워져 있어요.There is a car parked at the entrance to the car park.
Worth knowing (1)
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Things that are in a place
Korean often describes where something is with a passive verb and 있다 instead of a plain "there is": 벽에 그림이 걸려 있어요, "a picture is hanging on the wall". It says more than 그림이 있어요: the picture has been hung and is staying there.
현관에 우산이 세워져 있어요.There is an umbrella standing in the hall.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
-아/어 있다 never takes an object, so it cannot follow 열다 (to open something). For the state of the window, use the passive verb 열리다: 창문이 열려 있어요. If what matters is that you opened it and left it open, say 창문을 열어 놓았어요.
Go itda watches the action; a/eo itda looks at what the action has left behind.
Your turn
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