-요
Politeness Marker
-요 is a polite sentence ending. It's the most common way to make your speech respectful in daily Korean.
How It Works
The -요 ending is one of the most important concepts in Korean. It signals politeness and respect towards the listener and is used to end statements, questions, and commands in a style known as 해요체 (the '-yo' style).
Levels of Politeness
Korean speech has several politeness levels. -요 fits into the 'standard' or 'informal polite' level. It's the perfect balance for everyday situations.
- Formal Polite: Uses -ㅂ/습니다. Found in news broadcasts, presentations, and the military. It's very respectful but can sound stiff in casual conversations.
- Informal Polite (Standard): Uses -요. This is your go-to for most daily interactions with people you don't know well, or who are older or senior to you.
- Informal Casual: Uses endings like -아/어. Used only with close friends of the same age or younger, and family. Using this with a stranger is considered rude.
How It Works
-요 attaches to the end of a conjugated verb or adjective. The actual form of the word before -요 changes based on the verb/adjective stem. For example, 가다 (to go) becomes 가요, and 먹다 (to eat) becomes 먹어요.
This lesson explains the concept and purpose of -요. To learn the specific rules for how to change verbs and adjectives to attach -요, you must study basic verb conjugation, particularly the -아/어 ending, which forms the base for -요.
Examples (4)
- 학생이에요.
I am a student.
Word by Word: student-am.
The polite ending -요 is attached to the verb 이다 (to be).
- 이거 뭐예요?
What is this?
Word by Word: this what-is?
- 지금 가요.
I'm going now.
Word by Word: now go.
- 고마워요.
Thank you.
This is the standard polite way to say thank you. It's less formal than 감사합니다 but more common in daily conversation.
Common Mistakes
Dropping -요 when speaking to elders, strangers, or in professional settings.
Different Meaning(To a store clerk) 이거 얼마야?Better(To a store clerk) 이거 얼마예요?Dropping the -요 ending makes the sentence casual (반말), which is rude to use with strangers or people older than you. Always use -요 unless you are very close with someone of the same age or younger.
Learn This First
To use 요, you first need to understand informal endings like 아/어/여.
Related Patterns
- -ㅂ/습니다Formal Polite Ending
This is the formal polite ending. -요 is standard polite (less formal), while -ㅂ/습니다 is used in more formal situations like presentations or news broadcasts.
- Basic verb conjugation
To use -요, you must first conjugate the verb or adjective stem. This topic covers the fundamental rules you need before you can attach endings like -요.
- Honorific forms
While -요 makes a sentence polite towards the listener, honorifics (like adding -시-) show respect towards the person you are talking about. They are often used together in polite speech.