Korean Grammar Bank

TURNING VERBS INTO NOUNS

In this lesson we will teach you how to turn Korean verbs into nouns.

You may have already studied how to create adverbs in Korean, well the pattern is a bit similar.

Let’s have a look in more details.

GENERAL RULE

In English, you can turn a verb into a noun by adding ‘~ing’ to the infinitive of a verb. For example:

  • Studying is hard.
  • I like baking. 

In Korean, you can turn a verb into a noun by adding ‘는 것’ or ‘기’ after removing ‘다’ from the infinitive of the verb. 

PATTERN

Verb without ‘다’ + 는것/ 기

Here are a few examples:

EnglishKorean
Study→ Studying 공부하다 → 공부하는 것 / 공부하기
Eat→ Eating 먹다 → 먹는 것/ 먹기
Sleep→ Sleeping 자다 → 자는 것/ 자기
Drive→ Driving 운전하다 → 운전하는 것/운전하기
Run→ Running 뛰다 → 뛰는 것/ 뛰기

Now let’s look how it is used in a sentence:

koreanenglish
공부하는 것은 어렵다.
공부하기는 어렵다.		Studying is hard
너는 먹기만 해!
너는 먹는 것만 해!		All you do is eating!
일찍 자는 것이 건강에 좋다.
일찍자기가 건강에 좋다.		Sleeping early is good for your health.
음주 후에 운전하는 것은 법으로 금지다.
음주 후에 운전하기는 법으로 금지다.		Driving after drinking is forbidden by law.
뛰는 것은 몸무게 감소에 효과적이다.
뛰기는 몸무게 감소에 효과적이다.		Running is an effective way to lose weight.

TURNING ~하다 VERBS INTO NOUNS

For ~하다 verbs, removing ‘하다’ from the verb also results in its noun. 

Here are some examples: 

ENGLISH (NOUN)  KOREAN (NOUN) 
Study    공부 (verb: 공부하다)  
Drive 운전 (verb: 운전하다) 
Buy 구매 (verb: 구매하다)  
Sell 판매 (verb: 판매하다)
Marriage (verb: Marry) 결혼 (verb: 결혼하다)

All these different forms of nouns from their verbs can be used interchangeably in general.

For example:

  • 공부하는 것은 어렵다.
  • 공부하기는 어렵다.
  • 공부는 어렵다.
  • all have the same meaning as ‘Studying is hard.’ 

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FAQs

How to turn a Korean verb into a noun?

In Korean, you can turn a verb into a noun by adding ‘는 것’ or ‘기’ after removing ‘다’ from the infinitive of the verb. 

Here are a few examples:

Eat → Eating // 먹다 → 먹는 것/ 먹기

Sleep → Sleeping // 자다 → 자는 것/ 자기 

Run → Running // 뛰다 → 뛰는 것/ 뛰기 

How to use adverbs in Korean?

The most common way of forming adverbs from adjectives in Korean is by adding ‘게/하게’ to the stem of an adjective.

‘하게’ is added to an adjective that has ‘하다’ ending in its infinitive:

Stem of an adjective + 게/하게

Examples:

어렵다  (difficult) > 어렵게 (difficultly)

쉽다 (easy) > 쉽게 (easily)

예쁘다 (beautiful) > 예쁘게  (beautifully)

—

For some adjectives that have ‘하다’ ending, ‘히’ can be added to make their adverbs as well.

In this case, the adverbs with ‘하게/히’ can be used interchangeably. 

Stem of an adjective in ‘하다’ form + 히/하게

Examples:

조용하다 (quiet)  > 조용히 (quietly) or 조용하게 (quietly)

안전하다 (safe) > 안전히 (safely) or 안전하게 (safely)

How to use adjectives in Korean?

A Korean adjective can be used in its infinitive form using the following structure:

Subject (은/는/이/가) + Infinitive Adjective

Sujin is beautiful. 수진이는 예쁘다.

My brother is smart. 내 동생은 똑똑하다.

The scenery is spectacular. 경치가 멋지다.

—

The adjectives in Korean can be used to directly describe nouns (e.g., a beautiful girl, a busy day).

In this case, the ‘다’ ending from the infinitive form is dropped, and ‘ㄴ’ consonant is added:

– If the syllable in front of ‘다’ ends with a vowel, you add ‘ㄴ’ to the vowel. 

Beautiful Sujin 예쁜 수진이 (예쁘다 -> 예쁜)

– If the syllable in front of ‘다’ ends with a consonant, you add ‘는’ after the syllable.  Delicious noodle 맛있는 국수 (맛있다 -> 맛있는)

– If the syllable in front of ‘다’ ends with ‘ㅂ’, then you remove ‘ㅂ’ and add ‘운’ after the syllable. Hot weather 더운 날씨 (덥다 -> 더운)

Is Korean SOV or SVO?

Korean is a SOV language, meaning the basic structure is:

Subject + Object + Verb

Japanese, Mongolian and Turkish are also SOV languages for example.

English is a SVO language: subject + verb + object

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You can get more free Korean lessons on our Korean Grammar Bank.

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