Korean Verb Conjugations for Past

Mastering past tense is crucial for recounting events or narrating experiences. We’ll cover the three most common past tense conjugations: -았/었어요 (-at/eosseoyo), -았/었어서 (-at/eosseoseo), and -고 싶다 (-go sipda).

1. -았/었어요 (-at/eosseoyo):

This is the standard past tense ending and is widely used in everyday conversation.

• Rules:
  • If the verb stem ends in a vowel, attach -았어요.
  • If the verb stem ends in a consonant, attach -었어요.

Examples:

1. 먹다 (meokda) – to eat
   • 먹었어요 (meogeosseoyo) – I ate.
2. 가다 (gada) – to go
   • 갔어요 (gasseoyo) – I went.

2. -았/었어서 (-at/eosseoseo):

Used to connect two related actions in the past or express the reason or cause.

• Rules:
  • If the verb stem ends in a vowel, attach -았어서.
  • If the verb stem ends in a consonant, attach -었어서.

Examples:

1. 먹다 (meokda) – to eat
   • 먹었어서 (meogeosseoseo) – Because I ate…
2. 가다 (gada) – to go
   • 갔어서 (gasseoseo) – Because I went…

3. -고 싶다 (-go sipda):

Expresses a desire or a wish regarding an action in the past.

Examples:

1. 먹다 (meokda) – to eat
   • 먹고 싶어요 (meokgo sip-eoyo) – I want to eat.
2. 가다 (gada) – to go
   • 가고 싶어요 (gago sip-eoyo) – I want to go.

Practice Sentences:

1. 공부하다 (gongbuhada) – to study
   • 공부했어요 (gongbuhaesseoyo) – I studied.
   • 공부했어서 (gongbuhaesseoseo) – Because I studied…
   • 공부하고 싶어요 (gongbu hago sip-eoyo) – I want to study.
2. 쓰다 (sseuda) – to write
   • 썼어요 (sseosseoyo) – I wrote.
   • 썼어서 (sseosseoseo) – Because I wrote…
   • 쓰고 싶어요 (ss-eugo sip-eoyo) – I want to write.
3. 마시다 (masida) – to drink
   • 마셨어요 (masyeosseoyo) – I drank.
   • 마셨어서 (masyeosseoseo) – Because I drank…
   • 마시고 싶어요 (masigo sip-eoyo) – I want to drink.