Korean Grammar Basic #14 – How to Use Past Tense (-았/었/였어요)

1️⃣ Introduction

Learn how to make the past tense in Korean using -았어요 / -었어요 / -였어요.

This pattern lets you talk about things you did, felt, or experienced in the past.

가다 (to go), 먹다 (to eat), 하다 (to do)

To make the past tense, we remove -다 and attach the right past ending:-았어요 / -었어요 / -했어요 depending on the vowel of the verb stem.

This is a regular rule, but you’ll also learn a few contractions that happen naturally in speech.

---

2️⃣ Grammar Explanation

🔹 았어요 / -었어요 / -였어요 (Past Tense)

• The “-다” ending is not pronounced in conversation. To make them speakable, we remove -다 and attach the right ending (-았어요 / -었어요 / -였어요) based on the last vowel in the verb stem. This is called conjugation (활용) — it changes the verb form depending on tense or context.

  
  

• You always cut it off first, then attach the new ending according to the last vowel.

Stem vowel	Ending	Example	Meaning
ㅏ or ㅗ	-았어요	가요 → 갔어요	went
Other vowels	-었어요	먹어요 → 먹었어요	ate
하다 verbs	-였어요	하였어요 → 했어요	did

Let’s see how dictionary verbs turn into past tense:

• 가다 → remove 다 

  → 가 + 았어요 → 갔어요 (ga-sseo-yo) → went

  
  

• 먹다 → remove 다 

  → 먹 + 었어요 → 먹었어요 (meo-geo-sseo-yo) → ate

  
  

• 하다 → remove 다 

  → 하 + 였어요 → 하였어요 → 했어요 (hae-sseo-yo) → did

  “하다” verbs follow the same contraction rule as before:

  하 + 였어요 → 하였어요 → 했어요 (ㅏ + ㅕ → ㅐ).

Usage

• Completed actions → “I did, I went, I ate.”

• Past events → “It was, it happened.”

• Past states or emotions → “I was happy, I was busy.”

Example Sentences

• 어제 영화를 봤어요.(eo-je yeong-hwa-reul bwa-sseo-yo) 

  → I watched a movie yesterday.

  
  

• 친구를 만났어요.(chin-gu-reul man-na-sseo-yo) 

  → I met my friend.

  
  

• 어제 한국어를 공부했어요.(eo-je han-gu-geo-reul gong-bu-hae-sseo-yo) 

  → I studied Korean yesterday.

  
  

• 아침을 먹었어요.(a-chi-meul meo-geo-sseo-yo) 

  → I ate breakfast.

  
  

• 어제 집에 있었어요.(eo-je ji-be i-sseo-sseo-yo) 

  → I was at home yesterday.

---

3️⃣ Mini Practice

Fill in the blanks.

1️⃣ 어제 친구를 만나______.

(I met my friend yesterday.)

2️⃣ 아침에 밥을 먹______.

(I ate breakfast in the morning.)

3️⃣ 한국어를 공부______.

(I studied Korean.)

4️⃣ 주말에 운동______.

(I did exercise on the weekend.)

5️⃣ 어제 영화 보______.

(I watched a movie yesterday.)

Answers

1️⃣ 만났어요 → from 만나(다), last vowel ㅏ → add -았어요 → 만났어요.

2️⃣ 먹었어요 → from 먹(다), vowel not ㅏ/ㅗ → add -었어요 → 먹었어요.

3️⃣ 공부했어요 → from 공부하(다), contraction 하였어요 → 했어요.

4️⃣ 운동했어요 → from 운동하(다) +  contraction 하였어요 → 했어요.

5️⃣ 봤어요 → from 보(다) + 았어요 → 보았어요 → contraction 봤어요.

• For ㅏ/ㅗ verbs → use -았어요,

• For others → use -었어요,

• For 하다 verbs → use -했어요 (하 + 였어요 → 했어요).

---

Vocabulary Check

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
보다	(bo-da)	to see / watch
만나다	(man-na-da)	to meet
공부하다	(gong-bu-ha-da)	to study
먹다	(meok-da)	to eat
운동하다	(un-dong-ha-da)	to exercise
있다	(it-da)	to be / exist

---

Summary

Grammar	Function	Example	Meaning
-았어요	Past tense (ㅏ/ㅗ verbs)	갔어요	went
-었어요	Past tense (other vowels)	먹었어요	ate
-였어요	Past tense (하다 verbs)	공부했어요	studied

• Remove -다 before adding the tense ending.

• “하다” verbs use the special contraction 하였어요 → 했어요.

  
  

---

📂 Download Practice File

Review and complete more examples in your free worksheet:

📥 Download your “-았어요 / -었어요 / -였어요 ” Grammar Practice Sheet

🎓 Learn More with Soona

Want to learn Korean grammar step by step with personalized feedback? 💬

Book a 1:1 Online Lesson with Soona

Want to understand Korean conjugation deeply? 🌸

Join Soona’s 1:1 Online Korean Lessons to master real conversation and pronunciation step by step.

Book Lesson