TOPIK I Grammar · Ch.5 Tense, Progress & States 03

TOPIK I Grammar · Ch.5 Tense, Progress & States 03

'-고 있다 vs -아/어 있다' - Action in Motion vs a Still Picture

"She's sitting down" - is she in the middle of lowering herself into the chair, or already settled there? English lets one sentence mean both. Korean splits the two readings into two forms.

Key point -고 있다 = an action in motion, like English "is ~ing": 먹고 있어요 (= is eating). -아/어 있다 = a resulting state, a still picture after the action ended: 앉아 있어요 (= is seated).

How to use it

-고 있다 is your English progressive, near enough one-to-one: attach 고 있어요 to any verb stem and the action is rolling right now - 공부하고 있어요, 기다리고 있어요. This form will carry most of your daily sentences.

-아/어 있다 covers what English hides in adjectives and short phrases: "the door is open," "he is seated," "she is lying down." English doesn't mark these as verb forms at all - which is exactly why learners miss that Korean does. The action finished; its result is still on display. It works with verbs where a result can linger without an object: 앉다 → 앉아 있어요, 서다 → 서 있어요, 눕다 → 누워 있어요, 열리다 → 열려 있어요. One famous exception to hold onto: clothing verbs use -고 있다 for both readings - 입고 있어요 means "is putting on" and "is wearing."

At a glance

Sentence	Type	English feel
밥을 먹고 있어요	motion	is eating
음악을 듣고 있어요	motion	is listening
의자에 앉아 있어요	still picture	is seated
문이 열려 있어요	still picture	is open
침대에 누워 있어요	still picture	is lying down
코트를 입고 있어요	both!	is putting on / is wearing

Examples

지금 저녁을 만들고 있어요. I'm making dinner right now. - Action in progress → 고 있어요.

아기가 침대에 누워 있어요. The baby is lying on the bed. - Settled there; a still picture → 어 있어요.

칠판에 이름이 쓰여 있어요. A name is written on the blackboard. - English says "is written"; Korean says the name was written and is still in that state.

Common mistakes

❌ 동생이 텔레비전을 봐 있어요. → ⭕ 동생이 텔레비전을 보고 있어요. Verbs that take an object (을/를) don't combine with -아/어 있다 - an ongoing action is always -고 있다. -아/어 있다 is saved for the still state left after a movement ends.

❌ 할아버지가 벤치에 앉고 있어요. → ⭕ 벤치에 앉아 있어요. 앉고 있어요 describes the moment he is still lowering himself onto the bench - a strange half-second to describe. For the normal "he's sitting there," the state form 앉아 있어요 is the one you want.

Quick check

Fill each blank with -고 있어요 or -아/어 있어요.
1. 지금 숙제를 하(      ).
2. 음식이 아직 많이 남(      ). 같이 드세요.
3. 고양이가 소파 위에 앉(      ).

Show answers

1. 고 있어요 (the action is happening now)   2. 아 있어요 (the food is left; the result continues)   3. 아 있어요 (the state after sitting down)

💡 Study tip - Run the video test. Picture the sentence as a clip: if the frame shows movement (먹고, 듣고, 기다리고), it's -고 있다. If the clip would look identical to a photograph (앉아, 누워, 열려), it's -아/어 있다. Practice by describing one photo a day - photos can only contain still-picture forms, so they force the rare pattern out of you.