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Learn the expressions
Learn in small steps
Study the examples, close them and check your recall. You can revisit any group.
Compare present and past for two familiar actions. Use the past form for yesterday.
View example table
| Written cue / context | Korean expression |
|---|---|
| 가요 | 갔어요 |
| 자요 | 잤어요 |
Complete: 어제 도서관에 ___.
See the complete reference
| Dictionary form | Usual action | Yesterday’s action |
|---|---|---|
| 가다 | 가요 | 갔어요 |
| 먹다 | 먹어요 | 먹었어요 |
| 자다 | 자요 | 잤어요 |
| 일하다 | 일해요 | 일했어요 |
| 공부하다 | 공부해요 | 공부했어요 |
| 읽다 | 읽어요 | 읽었어요 |
| 마시다 | 마셔요 | 마셨어요 |
A stem whose last vowel is ㅏ or ㅗ normally takes -았어요; others normally take -었어요. 하다 becomes 했어요. 가+았어요 contracts to 갔어요 and 자+았어요 to 잤어요. Practice the table first instead of trying every irregular form.