Korean Grammar: Korean Particles Explained

A Korean particle is a small ending on a noun. It tells you that noun's job: topic, subject, object, place, time, or "also." Hanuri Foundations teaches this core set in one short lesson. This page stays with each particle longer, then adds the ones you meet next.

What Korean particles are

A particle is not a separate word the way English "to" or "at" is. It attaches to the noun:

Read that as three pieces. 저 is "I." 는 marks it as the topic, the person this sentence is about. 김치 is kimchi. 를 marks it as the object, the thing being eaten. 먹어요 is the polite present of 먹다, "eat," and it stays at the end.

These six cover most basic sentences:

Why Korean uses them

English lines the sentence up as subject, verb, object: "I eat kimchi." Korean puts the nouns first and the verb last: "I kimchi eat." That English line is only a map of the order. You would not say it out loud. Because the verb comes last, word order by itself does not show who did what. The particle does.

Train your ear for the ending. When you catch the last word, you often catch the whole idea. Then look at the little syllable glued to each noun. That syllable is the particle.

Consonant or vowel

Several particles come in a pair. Choose from the last syllable of the noun, not from the English spelling. A final consonant there is called a batchim. No batchim means the syllable ends in a vowel.

• Final consonant: 책 takes 은, 이, 을. 책은, 책이, 책을.
• Final vowel: 저 takes 는 and 를. 저는, 저를. The subject form is 제가, not 저가.

김치 ends in the vowel ㅣ, so the object form is 김치를, with 를. 물 ends in the consonant ㄹ, so it is 물을, with 을.

은/는, the topic

은/는 means "as for this." It sets what the sentence is about. Korean also uses it when two things are being compared.

저 ends in a vowel, so the topic form is 저는. 학생 ends in a consonant, so the topic form is 학생은. In 저는 학생이에요, only 저 takes the topic particle. 이에요 is the polite "am / is" after a noun that ends in a consonant. After a vowel, that ending is 예요, as in 의사예요. It is a verb ending, not a particle. Polite speech covers 해요, 합니다, and 반말.

저 is the polite "I." With friends and family people say 나, so the same sentence becomes 나는 학생이야, where 이야 is the casual ending. In fast speech 나는 shortens to 난.

이/가, the subject

이/가 marks the grammatical subject: the noun that does or is something, especially when that noun is the new piece of information.

Three pronouns change shape with 가:

• 저 + 가 → 제가 (I, polite)
• 나 + 가 → 내가 (I, casual)
• 누구 + 가 → 누가 (who)

은/는 or 이/가

Both can sit on the person or thing you would call the subject in English. They do different work. 은/는 sets the topic, or a contrast. 이/가 points at the noun that is the new information, the thing that is or does something.

Weather, existence, and who or what questions often take 가. Introductions and contrasts often take 는. 저는 학생이에요 is the ordinary way to say you are a student. 제가 학생이에요 answers "who is the student?" The longer lesson on that choice is 은/는 vs 이/가.

을/를, the object

을/를 marks what the verb acts on. Consonant takes 을. Vowel takes 를.

If you can ask "drink what?" or "read what?", that noun takes 을/를. The topic can stay in the sentence too: 저는 커피를 마셔요.

에 and 에서

에 marks a destination, a time, or the place where something is. 에서 marks the place where an action happens, and it also means "from." The trip and the action use different particles.

The noun can stay the same. 학교에 가요 is the trip to school. 학교에 있어요 is where something is. 학교에서 공부해요 is the action at school. 학교에서 왔어요 is the place you came from. 에 vs 에서 stays on this pair, including time words and 살다.

Two details save a lot of confusion. First, clock times and days take 에: 세 시에, 월요일에, 주말에. Words that already mean a point in time, such as 어제, 오늘, 내일, and 지금, normally go without it: 내일 만나요. Second, 살다 (to live) works with both 서울에 살아요 and 서울에서 살아요. Textbooks start with 에, and either one is natural.

도, also

도 means also or too. It replaces 은/는, 이/가, or 을/를. It does not sit on top of those three. It does follow 에 and 에서: 학교에도, 카페에서도.

저도 is the whole unit. 저는도 and 커피를도 are not Korean. 커피도 replaces 커피를 when "also" is the point.

의, possession

의 makes one noun belong to another, like English 's or of.

In careful speech 의 is "ui." In conversation it often sounds like 에, so 친구의 책 can sound like 친구에 책. In writing, keep 의, or drop it: 친구 책.

와/과, and, with

와/과 joins two nouns. One use is and. The other is with. A vowel takes 와. A consonant takes 과. Spoken Korean also uses 하고, or 랑 after a vowel and 이랑 after a consonant.

A few more particles

Once the core six feel familiar, these are the next ones you meet. Each one still attaches to the noun.

에게, 한테, 께: to a person

에게 is the neutral "to someone." 한테 is the same idea in speech. 께 is the honorific form, for a teacher, a guest, or anyone you are showing respect.

으로/로: direction or means

로 follows a vowel or ㄹ. 으로 follows any other consonant. Use it for a direction, or for the way you do something.

만, 부터, 까지: only, from, until

만 means only. 부터 marks where something starts, and 까지 marks where it ends, in time or in place.

When particles disappear

In casual speech Korean often drops 은/는, 이/가, and 을/를, and sometimes 에, when the meaning is already clear. You will hear this all the time, so it helps to recognize it.

Keep the particles while you learn. They are what make a sentence readable in writing, and dropping 은/는 or 이/가 can also remove a contrast you meant to make.

One sentence, piece by piece

• 저 + 도: I, and the "also." 도 takes the place of 는.
• 카페 + 에서: the studying happens at the café, so this is 에서, not 에.
• 한국어 + 를: Korean is the object of "study." 한국어 ends in a vowel, so 를.
• 공부해요: 공부하다 in polite present. The verb is last.

Move one particle and the sentence says something else. 카페에 가요 is "I go to a café." 카페에서 공부해요 is "I study at a café." The noun can stay. The particle is the meaning.

Mistakes to fix early

• Stacking 도 on 은/는, 이/가, or 을/를. Say 저도 and 커피도. Leave 저는도 and 커피를도 out. 도 can follow 에 and 에서, as in 학교에도 and 카페에서도.
• Choosing the form from the romanization. 커피 looks like it ends in a consonant in English. In Hangul it ends in a vowel, so it is 커피를 and 커피는.
• Using 에 for an action. 도서관에서 읽어요 is "I read at the library." 도서관에 가요 is "I go to the library."
• Using 에서 for a destination. 학교에 가요 is the trip. 학교에서 공부해요 is what you do after you arrive.
• Adding 에 to 어제, 오늘, 내일, or 지금. Say 내일 만나요, and keep 에 for times such as 세 시에.
• Putting the verb where English puts it. The verb still has to come last: 먹어요, 가요, 공부해요.

Check yourself

Open the answer after you pick. The fix is in the note.

Korean particles: quick answers

Practice in Hanuri

This page is the long explanation. In the app, Foundations keeps the core set short on purpose, then asks you to choose the particle. Open Core particles for 은/는, 이/가, 을/를, 에, 에서, and 도. Open How Korean sentences work if the verb-final shape is still new.

When a real sentence is unclear, select the phrase and ask Hanuri to name the particle in place. That is the same grammar, on the sentence you actually met. See how phrase analysis and Ask work, or read what the name Hanuri means.