Markers with 가다: 에 가다 vs. 에서 가다 vs. 을/를 가다 Grammar

In Korean, "에 가다," "에서 가다," and "을/를 가다" all involve the verb '가다' (to go), but each expression has distinct meanings and usages. This blog post will explain and compare these expressions to help foreign learners understand their differences.

<Table of Contents>

1. 에 가다

2. 에서 가다

3. 을/를 가다

4. Wrap-up & Worksheet

1. 에 가다

에 is the destination marker that shows the destination. You attach 에 directly to a noun that is related to a place. So, it is also called the place marker. "에 가다" is used when indicating movement toward a specific place.

저는 학교에 갔어요.

I went to school.

친구 집에 갔어요.

I went to my friend's house.

↪ As you probably know... we can omit "저는 (I)" in Korean when it is included in context.

준수는 회사에 가요.

Junsu goes to work.

친구가 도서관에 가요.

My friend is going to the library.

2. 에서 가다

에서 is another place marker. Usually, it shows where an action takes place. However, it can also show where the movement begins. It highlights where the person is coming from. "에서 가다" emphasizes the starting point or the place from which someone is leaving.

저는 학교에서 갔어요.

I went from school. (I left the school.) -School is my departing place.

저는 집에서 회사에 갔어요.

I left home and went to work.

3. 을/를 가다

을/를 are the object markers. "을/를 가다" is combined with nouns that indicate actions, such as 'travel, sightseeing, hiking', and indicates moving toward the purpose of the action.

여행을 갔어요.

I went to travel.

구경을 가요.

Let's go sightseeing.

민지 씨는 등산을 갔어요.

Minji went hiking.

"을/를 가다" can be attached to some place nouns like "에 가다." It is used more restrictively. In this case, it is typically employed when referring to visiting or experiencing a specific location or activity.

저는 학교에 가요. I go to school.

↪ The focus is on the place.

저는 학교를 가요. I go to school.

↪ The focus is on "study," the purpose of school.

4 Wrap-up & Worksheet

Let's review what you learned! I'll show you the comparisons using the charts.

에 가다	에서 가다
destination	departure place
수영장에 갔어요. I went to the swimming pool.	수영장에서 갔어요. I went from the swimming pool.

에 가다	을/를 가다
simple place-destination	purpose of action/destination of purpose
백화점에 갔어요. I went to the department store. (-simply talking about destination.)	백화점을 갔어요. I went to the department store. (focus on the purpose-shopping)

Here is the free Korean worksheet for you to practice what you've learned! Make sure to come back to the lesson and check your answers!

가다 with various markers - My Korean Lesson.pdf

Download PDF • 291KB

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