Hello to all my future Korean language masters! I hope you’ve got your learning hats on and your funny bones ready because today we’re diving into the multifaceted world of “-겠다” in Korean.
Now you might be thinking, “Oh no, not another grammar point! Can’t I just learn ‘안녕하세요’ and ‘김치’ and be done with it?” Well, my friend, as tempting as that might be, the answer is a firm but gentle, “아니요” (No).
Fear not, though! With “-겠다,” you’ll be stepping into the future… literally! The “-겠다” form is often used to express the future tense in Korean. But hold onto your 고양이 (cats), because it’s not just about the future. This grammar form can also express conjecture, assumption, and even intention. Intriguing, right?
Let me tell you, learning “-겠다” is like getting a Swiss army knife for your Korean language tool kit. It’s versatile, it’s useful, and it can even help you impress your friends or that cute Korean barista at your local coffee shop. So, stick with me, and let’s explore the many uses of “-겠다.” Onwards to the future… and beyond!
Conjugation
VERB STEM + 겠다
- Take a verb i.e. 가다
- Drop “다” i.e. 가
- Add 겠다 i.e. 가겠다 (Would go)
- 먹다 –> 먹 + 겠다 –> 먹겠다 (Would eat)
- 사다 –> 사 + 겠다 –> 사겠다 (Would buy)
- 주다 –> 주 + 겠다 –> 주겠다 (Would give)
- 보다 –> 보 + 겠다–> 보겠다 (Would see)
Understanding the meaning of “겠다”
At its most basic level, “-겠다” is a verb ending that is often used to express the intention or assumption. It’s like saying “would” or “must” in English. It can be used in various situations.
Conjecture or Assumption
When “-겠다” is used this way, it expresses a speaker’s assumption or prediction about a situation. It carries a nuance of sympathizing with the other person. It conveys the meaning that you are thinking about the other person and worrying about the situation they have to endure or be in.
- 오늘은 춥겠어요. – It must be cold today.
- 많이 아프겠어요. – That must hurt a lot.
However, it doesn’t have to be a negative experience.
- 엄정 좋겠어요. – That must be great/You must be very pleased.
In this example, you are conveying the meaning of how you understand that something must be great for the other person. Maybe they got a promotion at work or passed their last exam. This structure just conveys that you understand or see how happy or not happy they might be.
Intention
Here, “-겠다” is used to express a decision or intention that the speaker has made. It emphasizes the intention of doing something.
- 한국어를 배울 거예요. – I will learn Korean.
This sentence translates to “I will learn Korean” and carries a stronger intention that 한국어를 배울게요.
- 한국어를 배우겠어요. – I must learn Korean/I will learn Korean.
This sentence emphasizes the intention to learn and is close to “I must”.
Questioning capability or someone’s actions
This suffix can also be used when you want to question someone and ask for their opinion.
- 혼자 괜찮겠어요? – Will you be ok by yourself?
Here there is a reason why you might think they won’t be ok by themselves, maybe you are leaving an employee in a restaurant by themselves and want to make sure they can handle the situation so you ask “혼자 괜찮겠어요?”.
- 유나는 거기 가겠어요? – Would Yu-na go there?
Here you are questioning whether Yu-na would make a decision to go somewhere. It could be somewhere Yu-na doesn’t like to go or rarely goes. There is a reason or a high chance she wouldn’t go there and so you can ask this question in that situation.
VERB + 아/어여야겠어요
In previous lesson, we have introduced -아/어/여야 되다 which you can review here.
Here, we will combine this structure with “겠어요”.
When the subject of the sentence is “I”, the structure 아/어여야겠어요 is more commonly used than just “겠어요” on its own.
This pattern is used to express a speaker’s determination or intention to do something, or sometimes a necessity or obligation. It is formed with the verb stem (V), the appropriate verb ending (-아/-어), and the expression -야겠다.
- Verb Stem (V): This is the base form of the verb you’re using. For example, if you want to say “I have to go”, the verb stem would be 가다 (to go).
- -아/-어: This is a verb ending that attaches to the verb stem and follows the usual rules.
- -야겠다: This part of the phrase expresses the speaker’s determination, necessity, or intention.
So, if we combine these elements to express “I have to go” or “I think I should go“, it would be “가야겠다” in Korean.
Let’s look at a few more examples:
- 공부해야 돼요. – I have to study.
- 공부해야겠어요. – I should study.
- 자야 돼요. – I have to sleep.
- 자야겠어요. – I should sleep.
Remember, this form is quite subjective and conveys the speaker’s viewpoint or feeling about an action that should take place. Therefore, it’s often used for expressing personal plans, determinations, or realizations.
Fixed expressions
Descriptive Verb + 죽겠어요.
죽겠어요 comes from the word “죽다” which means “to die”. There are a lot of expressions you can say using this combination.
- 힘들어 죽겠어요 – It’s so difficult I could die.
- 피곤해 죽겠어요. – I’m so tired I could die.
- 배고파 죽겠어요. – I’m so hungry I could die.
As you can see from these examples, you are emphasizing the fact that you are way too tired or hungry or something is way too difficult. You can often hear these phrases in Korean drama so watch out for these expressions.
Wrap up
And that’s a wrap on our lesson for “겠어요”, the ever-so-useful Korean verb ending for expressing future intentions, predictions, decisions, and more!
Before we end, we’d love to hear from you! How about you share a sentence using “겠어요” in the comments section? It could be your plan for the day, a prediction about your favorite K-drama, or just a random decision. It’s all good practice!
Thank you for sticking with us until the end of this session. Until next time, happy learning and 화이팅! Don’t forget, the future ‘겠어요’ is in your hands. 😉