TOPIK I Grammar · Ch.2 Starting Verb Sentences 01

TOPIK I Grammar · Ch.2 Starting Verb Sentences 01

'-습니다 vs -아요/어요' - Korea's Two Polite Speech Levels

Now we start real verb sentences. Every Korean verb's dictionary form ends in 다 - 가다 (= to go), 먹다 (= to eat). To actually speak, you replace that ending (the last part of the verb). Here are the two polite ways to do it.

Key point Both endings are polite. -습니다/-ㅂ니다 is formal - news, presentations, announcements. -아요/어요 is everyday polite - the style you'll speak in daily life. For TOPIK I, make -아요/어요 your home base.

How to use it

In English, politeness lives in your word choice - "Good morning, everyone" versus "hey." The grammar stays the same. In Korean, politeness is built into the verb ending itself: the same act of going is 갑니다 on the news and 가요 over coffee. You're not choosing different words; you're choosing a different ending.

The formal ending follows a simple rule: -ㅂ니다 after a vowel stem (가다 → 갑니다), -습니다 after a consonant stem (먹다 → 먹습니다). One exception you can already see in the table: stems ending in ㄹ drop it and take -ㅂ니다 - 살다 → 삽니다. The everyday ending follows the verb's last vowel: if it's ㅏ or ㅗ, add -아요 (살다 → 살아요); otherwise add -어요 (먹다 → 먹어요). Verbs ending in 하다 always become 해요.

At a glance

Dictionary form	Formal -습니다	Everyday -아요/어요
가다 (go)	갑니다	가요
먹다 (eat)	먹습니다	먹어요
살다 (live)	삽니다	살아요
보다 (see)	봅니다	봐요
공부하다 (study)	공부합니다	공부해요

Notice 보다 → 봐요: when the stem vowel and 아/어 meet, they often contract. You'll absorb these contractions naturally as you come across more verbs.

Examples

저는 한국어를 공부합니다. I study Korean. - Formal; the vowel stem 공부하 takes -ㅂ니다.

아침에 빵을 먹어요. I eat bread in the morning. - Everyday polite; the stem vowel of 먹다 is ㅓ, so -어요.

어디에 갑니까? Where are you going? - Formal questions end in -ㅂ니까.

Common mistakes

❌ 먹다 → 먹아요 → ⭕ 먹어요 The choice follows the stem's last vowel. 먹 has ㅓ - not ㅏ or ㅗ - so it takes -어요. Check the vowel, not your instinct.

❌ 가다 → 가습니다 → ⭕ 갑니다 After a vowel stem the formal ending is -ㅂ니다, not -습니다 - and the ㅂ tucks under the stem as its final consonant: 가 + ㅂ니다 = 갑니다.

Quick check

Complete each pair with the missing form - formal and everyday polite of the same verb.

1. 보다 → (      ) / 봐요
2. 읽다 → 읽습니다 / (      )
3. 일하다 → (      ) / 일해요

Show answers

1. 봅니다 (vowel stem + -ㅂ니다)   2. 읽어요 (ㅣ is not ㅏ/ㅗ → -어요)   3. 일합니다 (하다 → formal 합니다)

💡 Study tip - Learn every new verb as a pair. From today, never memorize just 먹다 - memorize 먹다, 먹어요 together, said out loud. The dictionary form is what you'll find in vocabulary lists; the 요-form is what you'll actually say. Storing them together means you never conjugate from scratch mid-sentence.