2 · Tense and aspect
The ending -겠-: intention, guess
the suffix of intention and conjecture
One syllable before the ending that turns a statement into a firm intention, a guess from what you see, or a polite set phrase.
-겠- goes straight onto the stem, after a vowel or a consonant alike, with no vowel rule: 하겠어요, 먹겠어요, 가겠습니다. It can follow the past and the honorific: 했겠어요(must have done)가시겠어요?(would you like to go?) The ending after it is -어요 or, very often, the formal -습니다, because many of its uses belong to polite, careful speech.
With "I" in a statement, or "you" in a question, it expresses an intention — firmer and more deliberate than 할 거예요. 제가 하겠습니다, "I will do it", is what you say at work when you take on a task. In a question it asks politely about the other person's wishes: 뭘 드시겠어요?, "what would you like to have?".
With other subjects it is a guess based on what you see, hear or know at this moment. Looking at a dish: 맛있겠어요!, "that looks delicious". Hearing about someone's week: 힘들었겠어요, "that must have been hard". This use is everywhere in conversation, because it is how Korean shows sympathy. Compared with the 거예요 future, a guess with -겠- is more immediate — a reaction to what is in front of you rather than a forecast.
Several fixed expressions are built on it and are learnt as whole units: 알겠습니다 (understood), 모르겠어요 (I don't know — softer than 몰라요), 처음 뵙겠습니다 (how do you do, on first meeting), 잘 먹겠습니다 (said before a meal, especially one someone has cooked or is paying for), 다녀오겠습니다 (said when leaving home). English speakers often answer an instruction with 알아요 where 알겠습니다 belongs: 알아요is "I (already) know"알겠습니다is "understood"
The form
| intention | 제가 하겠습니다. |
| polite question | 뭘 드시겠어요? |
| guess from what you see | 맛있겠어요. |
| guess about the past | 힘들었겠어요. |
| set phrases | 알겠습니다, 모르겠어요 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
-겠- attaches directly to the stem, whatever sound the stem ends in.
이 일은 제가 하겠습니다.I will take care of this job.
With "I" it states a firm intention, usually in formal speech.
내일부터 일찍 오겠습니다.From tomorrow I will come in early.
About something you can see or hear, it is a guess.
와, 이 케이크 정말 맛있겠어요.Wow, this cake looks delicious.
After the past, it guesses what must have happened.
어젯밤 열두 시까지 일했어요? 피곤했겠어요.You worked until midnight last night? You must have been tired.
In a question to the listener, together with the honorific, it asks politely what they want.
주문하시겠어요?Would you like to order?
A closer look
Two futures, two attitudes
Both 하겠어요 and 할 거예요 can translate "I will do it", but they are not interchangeable. 할 거예요 reports a plan, as information: "I am going to". 하겠어요 is the decision itself, spoken as you make it, often in front of the person it concerns. That is why a new employee says 열심히 하겠습니다, "I will do my best", and not 열심히 할 거예요, which would sound like a description of their schedule.
As guesses, 비가 오겠어요 reacts to the sky you are looking at, while 비가 올 거예요 passes on a forecast or a conclusion you have reached. Weather forecasts use -겠- throughout, in formal style: 내일은 전국에 비가 오겠습니다, "tomorrow there will be rain across the country".
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the verb is 모르다 or 알다 in an answer
모르겠어요 and 알겠어요 do not mean "I will not know" or "I will know", but "I don't know" and "I see, understood".
죄송해요, 저도 잘 모르겠어요.Sorry, I'm not sure either.
Here -겠- softens the statement into a judgement made now: 모르겠어요 sounds like "I couldn't say", where 몰라요 is a flat "I don't know" and can sound curt.
How to spot it
- 제가
- 알겠습니다
- 모르겠어요
- 처음 뵙겠습니다
- -겠-
Example sentences
네, 알겠습니다.Yes, understood.
그 질문은 잘 모르겠어요.I'm not sure about that question.
처음 뵙겠습니다. 김지수입니다.How do you do? I am Kim Jisu.
하늘이 흐려요. 곧 비가 오겠어요.The sky is cloudy. It looks like rain soon.
혼자 이사했어요? 정말 힘들었겠어요.You moved house on your own? That must have been really hard.
잠시 후 회의를 시작하겠습니다.We will begin the meeting in a moment.
8 more example sentences
잘 먹겠습니다.Thank you for the meal. (said before eating)
다녀오겠습니다.I'm off now. (said when leaving home)
손님, 무엇을 드시겠어요?What would you like to have?
사진을 보니까 여행이 정말 재미있었겠어요.Judging by the photos, the trip must have been great fun.
그럼 제가 먼저 말씀드리겠습니다.Then I will speak first.
이번 달 안에 꼭 끝내겠습니다.I will definitely finish it within this month.
아이가 열이 나요? 걱정되겠어요.Your child has a temperature? You must be worried.
내일은 전국에 바람이 강하게 불겠습니다.Tomorrow there will be strong winds across the country.
Worth knowing (1)
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A softer question
Together with the honorific in a question, -겠- makes a request gentler: 잠깐 기다려 주시겠어요?, "would you mind waiting a moment?". Shop staff and receptionists use it constantly.
여기에 이름을 써 주시겠어요?Would you write your name here, please?
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
When someone has just told you what to do, 알아요 means "I know (that already)" and can sound as if you did not need telling. The answer that acknowledges an instruction is 알겠어요, or at work 알겠습니다: "understood".
With I it decides, with anything else it guesses: hagesseumnida, masitgesseoyo.
Your turn
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