Adjectives Are Verbs in Korean
One of the most important differences between Korean and English grammar is that Korean adjectives are verbs. They are called descriptive verbs (형용사), as opposed to action verbs (동사).
In English, you need the verb "to be" to connect an adjective to a subject:
- The weather is hot.
In Korean, the adjective itself acts as the verb:
- 날씨가 덥다. (Weather-subject hot.) -- No "to be" needed.
All Korean verbs -- both action and descriptive -- end in ~다 in their dictionary form.
| Type |
Korean |
Dictionary Form |
Meaning |
| Action verb |
먹다 |
먹 + 다 |
to eat |
| Action verb |
가다 |
가 + 다 |
to go |
| Descriptive verb |
크다 |
크 + 다 |
to be big |
| Descriptive verb |
좋다 |
좋 + 다 |
to be good |
The part before ~다 is the verb stem, which is used for conjugation.
Common Descriptive Verbs
Size and Quality
| Korean |
Stem |
Meaning |
Opposite |
| 크다 |
크 |
to be big |
작다 (small) |
| 작다 |
작 |
to be small |
크다 (big) |
| 좋다 |
좋 |
to be good |
나쁘다 (bad) |
| 나쁘다 |
나쁘 |
to be bad |
좋다 (good) |
Weather
| Korean |
Stem |
Meaning |
Opposite |
| 덥다 |
덥 |
to be hot |
춥다 (cold) |
| 춥다 |
춥 |
to be cold |
덥다 (hot) |
Food and Appearance
| Korean |
Stem |
Meaning |
| 맛있다 |
맛있 |
to be delicious |
| 맛없다 |
맛없 |
to be not delicious |
| 예쁘다 |
예쁘 |
to be pretty |
| 멋있다 |
멋있 |
to be cool/stylish |
Interest and Price
| Korean |
Stem |
Meaning |
Opposite |
| 재미있다 |
재미있 |
to be fun |
재미없다 (boring) |
| 비싸다 |
비싸 |
to be expensive |
싸다 (cheap) |
| 싸다 |
싸 |
to be cheap |
비싸다 (expensive) |
Basic Sentence Patterns
Pattern 1: Subject + Descriptive Verb
| Korean |
English |
| 날씨가 좋다. |
The weather is good. |
| 방이 크다. |
The room is big. |
| 물이 차다. |
The water is cold. |
Pattern 2: Topic + Descriptive Verb
| Korean |
English |
| 한국어는 재미있다. |
Korean is fun. |
| 이 영화는 좋다. |
This movie is good. |
| 그 가방은 비싸다. |
That bag is expensive. |
Pattern 3: Demonstrative + Noun + Descriptive Verb
| Korean |
English |
| 이 음식은 맛있다. |
This food is delicious. |
| 그 꽃은 예쁘다. |
That flower is pretty. |
| 저 건물은 크다. |
That building (over there) is big. |
Descriptive Verbs vs Action Verbs
| Feature |
Action Verb (동사) |
Descriptive Verb (형용사) |
| Function |
Describes actions |
Describes states/qualities |
| Object (을/를) |
Can take objects |
Cannot take objects |
| Example |
밥을 먹다 (eat rice) |
날씨가 덥다 (weather is hot) |
| Progressive (~고 있다) |
Available |
Generally not used |
Key difference: You cannot say 날씨가 덥다를 (X). Descriptive verbs describe a state, not an action performed on something.
Compound Descriptive Verbs with 있다/없다
Several common adjectives are built with 있다 (to exist) and 없다 (to not exist):
| Compound |
Breakdown |
Meaning |
| 맛있다 |
taste + exists |
delicious |
| 맛없다 |
taste + not exist |
not delicious |
| 재미있다 |
fun + exists |
fun/interesting |
| 재미없다 |
fun + not exist |
boring |
| 멋있다 |
style + exists |
cool/stylish |
| 멋없다 |
style + not exist |
uncool |
Practice
Describe these items using the appropriate descriptive verb:
- 이 책은 ___. (This book is fun.)
- 오늘 날씨가 ___. (Today the weather is hot.)
- 이 커피는 ___. (This coffee is delicious.)
- 그 옷은 ___. (Those clothes are expensive.)