Essential Korean Adjectives: 60 Must-Know Words for Beginners + Free Worksheets
- My Korean Lesson
- Nov 9, 2024
- 6 min read
Updated: Oct 24
안녕하세요! Welcome to My Korean Lesson! Today, we're diving into some essential Korean adjectives that will help you describe things in everyday conversations. Today, I'll show you 60 basic Korean adjectives. But don't be overwhelmed! I'll divide sections consists of 10 words! Try to memorize each set per day.
Also to make your study easy, I’ve arranged most of the adjectives in pairs of opposites. I'll show you the meanings, present tense, and past tense conjugated forms with examples! Also, you can download the free worksheets from each section!
Korean Adjectives
So, how do we say "adjectives" in Korean? You can say 형용사. Listen and repeat!
형용사(adjectives) are words that describe the qualities or states of people, objects, and situations. In Korean, adjectives can appear at the end of a sentence and are conjugated similarly to verbs, which means they act as predicates (서술어).
Link for more adjective lessons!
☛ Weather
Korean Adjectives Set 1
Before proceeding, please download the worksheet. As you go through the lesson, you can listen and repeat words and practice writing as well!
코끼리는 커요. The elephant is big.
생쥐는 작아요. The mouse is small.
공원에 사람이 많아요. There are a lot of people in the park.
공원에 사람이 적어요. There are not many people in the park.
⚠️ 작다(to be small) and 적다(to be few/less) look so similar! So, please watch out!
뱀은 길어요. The snake is long.
이 연필은 짧아요. This pencil is short.
한라산은 높아요. Hallasan(Mt. Halla) is high.
요즘 이자율이 낮아요. Interest rates are low these days.
저희 집은 슈퍼에서 멀어요. My house is far from the supermarket.
저희 집은 학교에서 가까워요. My house is close to school.
Korean Adjectives Set 2
치타는 빨라요. The Cheetah is fast.
달팽이는 느려요. The snail is slow.
빠르다 is an irregular 르 word. It is a bit of a special grammar rule. If you want to learn the detailed conjugation rules with other 르 words, please click here.
이 도로는 넓어요. This road is wide.
이 골목길은 좁아요. This alley is narrow.
이 책은 두꺼워요. This book is thick.
이 잡지는 얇아요. This magazine is thin.
이 가방은 무거워요. This bag is heavy.
이 가방은 가벼워요. This bag is light.
어제 시험은 어려웠어요. Yesterday's test was difficult.
오늘 퀴즈는 쉬웠어요. Today's quiz was easy.
Korean Adjectives Set 3
이 문제는 너무 복잡해요. This problem is too complicated.
이건 간단한 문제예요. This is a simple problem.
"간단한" is a noun modifier conjugated form. Instead of placing it at the end of the sentence, it can describe a noun directly. If you wish to learn more, please use the links below.
여름은 더워요. Summer is hot.
겨울은 추워요. Winter is cold.
이 커피는 너무 뜨거워요. This coffee is too hot.
차가운 아이스티 주세요. Please give me a cold iced tea.
Okay. So, in Korean, there are two hot and two cold words. When you talk about air temperature(weather-wise) you will need to use 덥다 and 춥다. If you talk about other than that, use 뜨겁다 and 차갑다.
이 차는 너무 비싸요. This car is too expensive.
이 가방은 정말 싸요. This purse is really cheap.
민수 씨 방은 더러워요. Minsu's room is dirty.
지나 씨, 방이 참 깨끗하네요! Jiny, your room is really clean.
깨끗하네요 is a combination of 깨끗하다 and the exclamation ending 네요. This 네요 shows your exclamation or admiration.
Korean Adjectives Set 4
거실이 너무 어두워요. The livingroom is very dark.
거실이 정말 밝아요. The livingroom is really bright.
이 사탕은 딱딱해요. This candy is hard.
이 빵은 부드러워요. This bread is soft.
The term 힘 translates to "physical strength." Therefore, 힘이 세다 and 힘이 약하다 indicate the level of physical strength, whether it is strong or weak.
민수 씨는 힘이 세요. Minsu is strong.
철수 씨는 힘이 약해요. Cheolsu is weak.
강하다 has a broader meaning of strong and weak than 힘이 세다. It can show physical or mental strength, as well as a high ability to endure or cope with something.
이 식물은 추위에 강해요. This plant is cold-hardy.
이 식물은 더위에 약해요. This plant is sensitive to heat.
너무 시끄러워요. It's too loud.
조용하네요. It's very quiet.
Korean Adjectives Set 5
놀이동산은 재미있어요. Amusement parks are fun.
이 영화는 재미없어요. This movie is not fun.
Q: 수학 수업에 이 책이 필요해요? Do I need this book for the math class?
A: 아니요, 필요 없어요. No, it's not necessary.
Q: 교수님, 바쁘세요? Professor, are you busy?
A: 아니요, 괜찮아요. 한가해요. No, it's okay. I'm free.
바쁘세요 is formed by combining 바쁘다 with the honorific prefinal -(으)시-. When speaking to someone significantly older or of higher social status, it is necessary to include this prefinal.
뚱뚱하다 has a bit of a negative vibe. You can say 통통하다 to mean chubby or plump.
돼지는 뚱뚱해요. The pigs are fat.
저 모델은 날씬해요. That supermodel is really slender.
이 책과 저 책은 같아요. This book and the book are the same.
저와 제 친구는 생각이 많이 달라요. My friend and I have very different opinions.
In case you are curious, you can say 비슷하다 to mean "similar."
Korean Adjectives Set 6
동원 씨는 잘생겼어요. Dongwon is handsome.
이 인형은 못생겼어요. This doll is ugly.
Well, here is an interesting fact. 잘생기다(handsome) and 못생기다(ugly) are actually verbs in Korean! And, to mean the present tense you are going to use the past tense form!
The term "잘생기다" is typically used to talk about men's looks. On the other hand, "못생기다" can be applied to describe the appearance of anyone or anything, but it is limited to referring to physical attractiveness.
유나 씨는 정말 예뻐요. Yuna is really pretty.
유진 씨는 정말 귀여워요. Yujin is really cute.
예쁘다 and 귀엽다 are not opposite words! I just put them together to give you examples of the words you can use to describe appearance. You can use 못생기다 as an antonym of 예쁘다.
You can also use the negative adverb 안 in front of these adjectives you learned to show the negative meanings!
영수 씨 아들은 참 똑똑하네요. Youngsu's son is very smart.
바보는 멍청한 사람을 말해요. Babo means a stupid person.
이 가게 종업원은 참 친절해요. The worker in this store is very kind.
저 사람은 너무 불친절해요. That person is really unkind.
오늘 날씨가 참 좋아요. The weather is very nice today.
어제는 날씨가 나빴어요. The weather was bad yesterday.
Wrap-up
In this lesson, you learned about 60 basic Korean adjectives. Finally, here is a complete list of all 60 words! You can print it out and hang it on the wall for daily review!
If you liked this post, please share it with your Korean study mate and considering a small donation to improve my website. Also, don't forget to check out other free Korean vocabulary lessons on my website! 감사합니다! 🙏
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