Verb Endings

Endings, added to bases, make the verb form complete. In addition to this function, they often perform another job at the same time: they tell whether or not you have come to the end of a sentence.

Any form of a verb ends a CLAUSE in Korean. Some clauses are FINAL: the verb at the end completes a sentence. Some are NON-FINAL: the verb form does not complete a sentence: in this category are the infinitive (-어), the suspective (-지), the -고 form, the as-soon-as form in -자마자, and the sequential (-(으)니(까)) ending.

The most important final endings you have learned so far are:

1. the polite-style ending -어요 which consists of the infinitive (-어, -아, etc.) + the polite particle 요, and
2. the formal-style endings in -(스)ㅂ니다 (declaratives) and -(스)ㅂ니까 (questions), etc.
   The polite-style ending typically finishes a sentence, whether it is a present-tense form (attached to a base), a past-tense form (attached to a past base), or a future-presumptive form (attached to a future base):

Plain	Honorific
해요 does	하세요 [sb esteemed] does
했어요 did	하셨어요 [sb esteemed] did
하겠어요 will do	하시겠어요 [sb esteemed] will do

When you use this ending at the end of your sentence, it implies that you are on informal, though dignified, terms with the person you are talking to.

ONE-SHAPE ENDINGS and TWO-SHAPE ENDINGS

Endings are either ONE-SHAPE ENDINGS or TWO-SHAPE ENDINGS. One-shape endings are much the same, regardless whether they are attached to a vowel base or a consonant base. Two-shape endings have one shape which attaches to vowel bases and another which attaches to consonant bases. For purposes of attaching endings, the group of vowel bases includes not only simple bases (like 가-, 서-, 기다리-, 보-, etc.) but also ALL honorific bases since each ends in -(으)시- regardless of the plain base on which it is built:

Base		Honorific base
가-	go	가시-
받-	get	받으시-

Similarly, all past bases and future bases are consonant bases, regardless of what sort of base you began with:

Base		Past base	Future base
가-	go	가(셔)ㅆ-	가(시)겠-
받-	get	받(으시)었-	받(으시)겠-

Here are all the endings you have learned, grouped according to whether they have are one-shape or two-shape.
ONE-SHAPE ENDINGS

past marker-ㅆ-suspectivesuppositive-지-지요but?-지만future-presumptiverhetor. retort-겠–잖아요고-formdictionary form-고 (싶-,있-)-다as soon as?-자 마자

TWO-SHAPE ENDINGS

	Before vowel	After vowel
honorific	-시-	-으시-
honorific polite	-세요	-으세요
sequential	-니(까)	-으니까
purposive	-러	-으러
formal decl.	-ㅂ니다	-습니다
formal imper.	-십시오	-으십시오
formal propos.	-ㅂ시다	-읍시다
formal interrog.	-ㅂ니까	-습니까
suggestions	-ㄹ까요	-을까요
consider doing	-ㄹ까 하-	-을까 하-
wanna	-ㄹ래요	-을래요
prob. future	-ㄹ 거예요	-을 거예요
immed. future	-ㄹ게요	-을게요

One special feature about two-shape endings is that some of them, like the purposive ending -(으)러 (and other endings you will learn in volume two), are attached to the EXTENDED base of L-extending bases:
노-ㄹ- play 놀러
Several peculiarities, however, must be mentioned about one-shape endings. (The past marker -ㅆ- is omitted here because it is attached to infinitives rather than directly to other bases and so does not follow the same rules.)

1. The base 잡수시- eat can abbreviate to 잡숫- before one-shape endings:

잡수시고	>	잡숫고	[sb esteemed] eats, and. . .
잡수시지만	>	잡숫지만	[sb esteemed] eats, but. . .
잡수시겠어요	>	잡숫겠어요	[sb esteemed] will eat

2. One-shape endings are attached to the EXTENDED BASES of L-extending verbs:

아-ㄹ-	know	알지만	knows, but. . .
		알고	knows, and. . .
		알겠어요	knows or will know

3. When a one-shape ending that begins with ㄷ, ㅈ, or ㄱ is attached to a consonant base that ends in ㅎ, the strings -ㅎ.ㄷ-, -ㅎ.ㅈ-, and -ㅎ.ㄱ- are pronounced-ㅌ-, -ㅊ-, and -ㅋ-:

좋-	be good	좋지	[조치]
		좋고	[조코][조코]
		좋겠-	[조켔-]

This is true also of ㄶ and ㅀ :

많-	be much/many	많지	[만치]
		많고	[만코]
		많겠-	[만켔-]
싫-	be disliked	싫지	[실치]
		싫고	[실코]
		싫겠-	[실켔-]

4. When a one-shape ending is attached to a consonant base that ends in /w/, the /w/ changes to ㅂ:

더	w- hot	덥지	[덥찌]
		덥고	[덥꼬]
		덥겠-	[덥껬-]

Were it not for the other forms (더워, 더우시- ) we would not know that such bases are different from the usual bases ending in ㅂ like 입- wear: 입지, 입고, 입겠-;
입어,입으시-. In traditional Korean grammar, the /w/-verbs are called “irregular ㅂ- verbs.”

5. When a one-shape ending is attached to a consonant base that ends in ㄹ, theㄹ changes to ㄷ:

들-	hear	듣지	[드찌]
		듣고	[드꼬]
		듣겠-	[드껬-]

Notice the difference between the behavior of these bases and the L-extending vowel bases: 드-ㄹ- lift; cost has the forms 들지, 들고, 들겠-. The infinitives are the same; both 드-ㄹ- and 들- come out as 들어.

6. The usual automatic sound changes take place when a base ending in a consonant attaches an ending shape that begins with a consonant. First, if the base ends in a consonant or cluster other than ㅂ, ㄷ, ㄱ, ㅁ, ㄴ, ㄹ, in pronouncing the resulting form you reduce the consonant or cluster to one of those: ㅄ and ㅍ are treated like ㅂ ; ㄲ and usually ㄺ are treated like ㄱ; ㄻ is treated like ㅁ; ㄵ is treated likeㄴ; ㅅ, ㅆ, ㅈ, and ㅊ are all treated like ㄷ.

Next, there are a number of automatic adjustments between the syllable-final consonant at the end of the base and the syllable-beginning consonant at the start of the ending.

A. Voiceless consonants are doubled (reinforced) after a voiceless consonant, so that

-ㅂㄷ-	is pronounced	[ㅂㄸ]
-ㅂㅈ-		[ㅂㅉ]
-ㅂㅅ-		[ㅂㅆ]
-ㅂㄱ-		[ㅂㄲ]
-ㄱㄷ-		[ㄱㄸ]
-ㄱㅈ-		[ㄱㅉ]
-ㄱㅅ-		[ㄱㅆ]

However, -ㄱ.ㄱ- comes out just [ㄲ] (since you don’t get the same consonant repeated more than once).

Note that sequences like -ㄷㄱ- and -ㄷㅈ- can come out like [ㄲ] and [ㅉ], e.g. 받고 [바꼬] receives, and. . . and 받지요 [바찌요] Of course I receive it!

B. After verb-base final ㅁ or ㄴ (or an ㄹ that is reduced from a cluster ? simple ㄹ changes to ㄷ), you reinforce (= double) a ㄷ, ㅈ, ㅅ, or ㄱ that begins an ending. Since the Korean spelling does not show this doubling, you should be especially mindful of this:

신-	wears [on feet]	신지	[신찌]
		신고	[신꼬]
		신겠-	[신껬-]

Below is a chart of the major verb endings you have learned so far with some representative bases (‘—–‘ means the form is odd or does not exist):

Representative Bases and Endings

-(스)ㅂ니다	-지요	-(으)ㄹ래요	-(으)니까	-(으)니까
-이- 하- 되- 피- 젊- 다르- 놓- 끝내- 왔- 걸- 오겠- 추- 맞- 어리- 빗- 아프- 예쁘- 무거w- 누w- 나(ㅅ)-	-입니다 합니다 됩니다 핍니다 젊습니다 다릅니다 놓습니다 끝냅니다 왔습니다 걷습니다 오겠습니다 싫습니다 춥니다 맞습니다 어립니다 빗습니다 아픕니다 예쁩니다 무겁습니다 눕습니다 낫습니다	-이지요 하지요 되지요 피지요 젊지요 다르지요 놓지요 끝내지요 왔지요 걷지요 오겠지요 싫지요 추지요 맞지요 어리지요 빗지요 아프지요 예쁘지요 무겁지요 눕지요 낫지요	—– 할래요 할래요 —– —– —– 놓을래요 끝낼래요 —– 걸을래요 —– —– 출래요 —– —– 빗을래요 —– —– —– 누울래요 나을래요	-이니까 하니까 되니까 피니까 젊으니까 다르니까 놓으니까 끝내니까 왔으니까 걸으니까 오겠으니까 싫으니까 추니까 맞으니까 어리니까 빗으니까 아프니까 예쁘니까 무거우니까 누우니까 나으니까