1 · Tense and aspect
The past tense -았/었-
the past tense marker
One syllable between the stem and the ending makes any verb or adjective past: 가요 becomes 갔어요.
The past is made by putting -았- or -었- between the stem and the ending. The choice follows the same vowel rule as the polite present: if the last syllable of the stem has the vowel a or o, it is -았- (살다 → 살았어요, 좋다 → 좋았어요); with any other vowel it is -었- (먹다 → 먹었어요, 읽다 → 읽었어요); and every 하다 verb becomes 했어요. The polite ending after it is always -어요, even after 았: 살았어요, never 살았아요.
Where the stem ends in a vowel, the vowels merge exactly as they do in the present, so the quickest way to the past is through the polite present form: give the syllable before 요 a final ss and end with 어요. 가요 → 갔어요, 와요 → 왔어요, 마셔요 → 마셨어요, 배워요 → 배웠어요, 해요 → 했어요, 돼요 → 됐어요.
The copula follows the sound before it: 학생이었어요 after a consonant, 의사였어요 after a vowel, where 이었 shrinks to 였. Its negative is 아니었어요, and 있다 and 없다 are regular: 있었어요, 없었어요. In formal speech the past ends in -습니다: 갔습니다, 먹었습니다, 학생이었습니다.
One Korean past covers both the English simple past and most of the present perfect. 밥 먹었어요? is "have you eaten?", 숙제 다 했어요 is "I have done all my homework", and 어제 했어요 is "I did it yesterday" — the same form each time. The surprise runs the other way with verbs of change: 결혼했어요 is "I am married" (the wedding has happened), and 늦었어요 is "I am late". An English speaker who says 결혼해요 for "I am married" has announced a wedding.
The form
| vowel a or o in the stem | 가다 → 갔어요, 보다 → 봤어요 |
| any other vowel | 먹다 → 먹었어요, 마시다 → 마셨어요 |
| 하다 verbs | 일하다 → 일했어요 |
| the copula, after a consonant / a vowel | 학생이었어요 / 의사였어요 |
| formal speech | 갔습니다, 먹었습니다 |
| negative | 안 갔어요, 못 먹었어요 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
A stem whose last vowel is a or o takes -았-.
어제 친구를 만났어요.I met a friend yesterday.
Every other stem takes -었-, and every 하다 verb becomes 했-.
지난주에 한국어를 공부했어요.I studied Korean last week.
The copula is 이었어요 after a consonant and 였어요 after a vowel.
그때 저는 대학생이었어요.At that time I was a university student.
When -고 joins two actions, the past usually stands only on the last verb.
어제 영화를 보고 저녁을 먹었어요.Yesterday I saw a film and had dinner.
Verbs of change use the past for a state that still holds.
형은 벌써 결혼했어요.My older brother is already married.
A closer look
One past for "did" and "have done"
English draws a line between "I ate" and "I have eaten"; Korean does not. Whether an action is linked to now is left to the context and to adverbs: 벌써 (already), 이미 (already, a little more formal), 방금 (just now), 아직 (still, yet). 방금 도착했어요 is "I have just arrived", and the verb is the same past as in 어제 도착했어요, "I arrived yesterday".
"Not yet" is the one place where English speakers reliably go wrong. It takes the past negative: 아직 안 먹었어요, "I haven't eaten yet". 아직 안 먹어요 exists, but it means "I'm not eating yet" — a statement about now or the next few minutes, not about what has happened so far.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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the verb names a change or a quality that has come about — 결혼하다 (to marry), 늦다 (to be late), 닮다 (to resemble), 잘생기다 (to be good-looking)
the past form describes the present state: 닮았어요 is "takes after", 잘생겼어요 "is good-looking", 결혼했어요 "is married".
동생은 아버지를 많이 닮았어요.My younger brother looks a lot like our father.
Korean treats these as something that has happened — the face has turned out a certain way, the wedding has taken place — and the past reports the finished change. The present form describes the change itself, often as a plan.
How to spot it
- 어제
- 지난주
- 작년
- 아까
- 그때
- -았/었-
Example sentences
어제 비가 많이 왔어요.It rained a lot yesterday.
아까 커피를 마셨어요.I had a coffee a little while ago.
주말에 뭐 했어요?What did you do at the weekend?
이 책은 정말 재미있었어요.This book was really interesting.
저는 고등학생 때 축구 선수였어요.At secondary school I was a football player.
지난달에 이사했습니다.I moved house last month.
8 more example sentences
작년에 부산에 처음 갔어요.Last year I went to Busan for the first time.
어제는 너무 피곤했어요.I was very tired yesterday.
방금 집에 도착했어요.I have just got home.
그 식당은 사람이 많았어요.That restaurant was very busy.
아직 점심을 안 먹었어요.I haven't had lunch yet.
어렸을 때 제 꿈은 의사였어요.When I was little, my dream was to be a doctor.
파티에 친구가 열 명쯤 왔어요.About ten friends came to the party.
회의는 세 시에 끝났습니다.The meeting ended at three o'clock.
Worth knowing (1)
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The long forms in print
In print you will meet the uncontracted forms 하였다 for 했다 and 되었다 for 됐다. They mean exactly the same; the long forms look more careful, and newspapers and official notices prefer them.
회의는 오후 두 시에 시작되었습니다.The meeting began at two in the afternoon.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
Korean has no "did" to signal the past, so it is tempting to let the time word do the work. It cannot: 어제 does not make the verb past, and 사요 next to it sounds like a slip. The past has to be in the verb — 샀어요, which is 사요 with a final ss added.
Past = polite present plus ss: gayo becomes gasseoyo, haeyo becomes haesseoyo.
Your turn
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