Korean Grammar Bank

QUOTING IN KOREAN

Whether you need to recount a conversation, report on some past events or quote someone, you will find all sentence structures necessary in this lesson for past, present and future tenses.

QUOTING SOMEONE IN THE PAST TENSE

Whether recounting a conversation or reporting past statements, understanding how to accurately quote in the past tense is essential for effective communication.

The first sentence structure to quote someone in the past tense:

PATTERN #1

S + O + V in past tense + ᄊ다고 (말)했어요

koreanenglish
그는 숙제를 끝냈다고 했어요.He said he finished the homework.
누나는 저번주에 친구를 방문했다고 했어요.My sister said she visited her friend last week.
View More Examples:
koreanenglish
엄마는 시장이 이미 문을 닫았다고 했어요.My mother said the market was already closed.
그는 그녀를 몰에서 보았다고 말했어요.He said he saw her at the mall.
그녀는 교통체증이 심했다고 했어요.She said there was heavy traffic.

The second structure is the following. You can use either sentence structure interchangeably, as they both convey the same meaning

PATTERN #2

S + O + V in past tense (+ᄊ) 데요

koreanenglish
그는 숙제를 끝냈데요.He said he finished the homework.
누나는 저번주에 친구를 방문했데요.My sister said she visited her friend last week.
View More Examples:
koreanenglish
엄마는 시장이 이미 문을 닫았데요.My mother said the market was already closed.
그는 그녀를 몰에서 보았데요.He said he saw her at the mall.
그녀가 교통체증이 심했데요.She said there was heavy traffic.

QUOTING SOMEONE IN THE PRESENT TENSE

Reporting on an event or recounting a conversation in the present tense in Korean requires the same sentence structure as above, with a slight change:

PATTERN #1

S + O + V in present tense (+ᄂ*) ~다고 해요

koreanenglish
그는 숙제를 끝낸다고 해요.He says he is finishing the homework.
누나는 친구를 방문한다고 해요.My sister says she is visiting a friend.
View More Examples:
koreanenglish
엄마는 시장이 문을 닫는다고 해요.My mother says the market is closing.
그는 그녀를 몰에서 본다고 해요.He says he is seeing her at the mall.
그녀는 교통체증이 심하다고 해요.She says the traffic is heavy.

The second sentence structure to convey the same meaning is as follow:

PATTERN #2

S + O + V in present tense (+ᄂ) 데요

koreanenglish
그는 숙제를 끝낸데요.He says he is finishing the homework.
누나는 친구를 방문한데요.My sister says she is visiting a friend.
View More Examples:
koreanenglish
엄마는 시장이 문을 닫는데요.My mother says the market is closing.
그는 그녀를 몰에서 본데요.He says he is seeing her at the mall.
그녀는 교통체증이 심하데요.She says the traffic is heavy.

QUOTING SOMEONE IN THE FUTURE TENSE

Quoting someone in future tense can use both present and past tense.

PATTERN #1

S + O + V in present tense (+ᄅ) 것이라고 해요 / 했어요

Let’s see how both past and present can be used in a quoted sentence for future tense:

koreanenglish
그는숙제를끝낼것 이라고 했어요.He said he would finish his homework.
그는숙제를 끝낼것이라고 해요.He says he will finish his homework.
View More Examples:
koreanenglish
누나는친구를 방문할 것이라고 했어요.My sister said she would visit a friend.
누나는친구를 방문할것이라고 해요.My sister says she will visit a friend.
koreanenglish
엄마는시장이문을 닫을것이라고 했어요.My mother said the market would close.
엄마는시장이문을 닫을것이라고 해요.My mother says the market will close.
koreanenglish
엄마는시장이문을 닫을것이라고 했어요.My mother said the market would close.
엄마는시장이문을 닫을것이라고 해요.My mother says the market will close.

The second sentence structure is as follow, and can also be used for past and present:

PATTERN #2

S + O + V in present tense (+ᄅ) 것이래요 / 것이랬어요.

koreanenglish
그는숙제를끝낼것 이랬어요.He said he would finish his homework.
그는숙제를 끝낼것이래요.He says he will finish his homework.
View More Examples:
koreanenglish
누나는친구를 방문할 것이랬어요.My sister said she would visit a friend.
누나는친구를 방문할 것이래요.My sister says she will visit a friend.
koreanenglish
엄마는시장이문을 닫을 것이랬어요.My mother said the market would close.
엄마는시장이문을 닫을 것이래요.My mother says the market will close.
koreanenglish
그는그녀를몰에서 볼것이랬어요.He said he would see her at the mall.
그는그녀를몰에서 볼것이래요.He says he will see her at the mall.

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FAQs

How to quote someone in the past in Korean?

To quote someone in the past tense in Korean you can use the sentence structure:

S + O + V in past tense + ᄊ다고 (말)했어요

그는 숙제를 끝냈다고 했어요. He said he finished the homework.

You could also use this sentence structure interchangeably:

S + O + V in past tense (+ᄊ) 데요

그는 숙제를 끝냈데요. He said he finished the homework.

How to quote someone in the present?

To quote someone in the present you can use the following sentence:

S + O + V in present tense (+ᄂ*) ~다고 해요

누나는 친구를 방문한다고 해요. My sister says she is visiting a friend.

You can also use this second sentence structure to convey the same message:

S + O + V in present tense (+ᄂ) 데요

누나는 친구를 방문한데요. My sister says she is visiting a friend.

How to express simultaneous states in Korean?

To express simultaneous states in Korean you can use the sentence structure: Verb + (으)면서 as well as the sentence structure Verb + 는 도중에.

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Learn more about simultaneous actions in Korean here.

How to express hope in Korean?

Some sentence structures to express hope in Korean:

Verb + 기를 바라다 and Verb + 는 것을 바라다

Another sentence structure would be

Subject + Object+ Verb + ᄊ으면 좋겠다

ᄊ으면 implies a conditional wish or hope (“if”).

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Check out sentence examples in our free lesson here.

How to express certainty in Korean?

In Korean, following expression can be used to express certainty on an event or an action.

Verb + 다고/ᄅ 것이라고

A verb conjugated with 다고/ ᄅ것 이라고 is often followed by a verb “생각한다” or “확신한다” which means “think” and “be sure”, respectively.

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Learn more about certainty in Korean here.

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