Lesson 22
A verb which is often encountered in Korean is 좋다, which generally means “to be good”. However, there are a few instances where 좋다 [jo-ta] takes on the meaning of “to like”.
Ex)
한국어 좋아요. [han-gu-geo jo-a-yo.]
= I like the Korean language.
이거 좋아요. [i-geo jo-a-yo.]
= I like this.
이 가수 좋아요. [i ga-su jo-a-yo.]
= I like this singer.
Even though the verb 좋다 in these examples are used to mean “to like”, the verb, by dictionary definition, means “to be good”. In principle, the nouns (한국어, 이거, 이 가수) are subjects of the sentences.
Therefore, the particles which are hidden after the nouns are NOT object marking particles, but in fact, are subject marking particles.
한국어 좋아요.
--> 한국어를 좋아요. [han-gu-geo-reul jo-a-yo.] ( x )
--> 한국어가 좋아요. [han-gu-geo-ga jo-a-yo.] ( o )
In this sentence, you are literally saying that “Korean is good, likable, enjoyable, and preferable” FOR YOU.
The difference between 좋다 and 좋아하다
한국어 좋아해요[jo-a-hae-yo].
→ 한국어를 좋아해요. ( o )
→ 한국어가 좋아해요. ( x )
By dropping the particles, there is no difference between 좋다 and 좋아하다[jo-a-ha-da].
(1) 이 가수 좋아요.
(2) 이 가수 좋아해요.
Sentences (1) and (2) have the same meaning - “This singer is good” or “I like this singer.” To specify what is good and who likes whom, adding particles is recommended.
(3) 이 가수가 좋아요.
(4) 이 가수를 좋아요.
Sentence number (3) means that you like this singer, however, sentence number (4) is not correct because 좋다 is a descriptive verb and cannot have an object.
(5) 이 가수를 좋아해요.
(6) 이 가수가 좋아해요.
Sentence number (5) means that you like (or someone else likes) this singer; this singer is the OBJECT of your affection. The SUBJECT of sentence (6) is this singer, and the sentence is translated as “This singer likes.” Left as it is, the sentence is incomplete, and what/who this singer likes (OBJECT) needs to be added.
Descriptive verbs + 하다 combination
Conjugation
Verb stem + -아/어/여 + -하다
As in the case of 좋다 and 좋아하다, there can be many pairs of words which seem similar at first but are actually different in usage.
Ex)
(1)
싫다 [sil-ta] / 싫어요. [si-reo-yo.]
= to be unlikable; to be undesirable
싫어하다 [si-reo-ha-da] / 싫어해요. [si-reo-hae-yo.]
= to hate; to not like
(2)
예쁘다 [ye-ppeu-da] / 예뻐요. [ye-ppeo-yo.]
= to be pretty; to be cute
예뻐하다 [ye-ppeo-ha-da] / 예뻐해요. [ye-ppeo-hae-yo.]
= to consider someone pretty and treat them in such a manner
(3)
슬프다 [seul-peu-da] / 슬퍼요. [seul-peo-yo.]
= to be sad
슬퍼하다 [seul-peo-ha-da] / 슬퍼해요. [seul-peo-hae-yo.]
= to feel sad and therefore express such emotions
In order to say “don’t be sad” or “don’t hate me”, use -지 마세요 [-ji ma-se-yo] after the verb stem. However, “sad” (슬프다) and “hate” (싫다) in Korean are actually descriptive verbs, not action verbs. To use -지 마세요, descriptive verbs must be made into action verbs by adding 하다.
Ex)
Don’t be sad. = 슬퍼하지 마세요. [seul-peo-ha-ji ma-se-yo.] ( o ) 슬프지 마세요. [seul-peu-ji ma-se-yo.]( x )
Don’t hate me. = 싫어하지 마세요. [si-reo-ha-ji ma-se-yo.] ( o ) 싫지 마세요. [sil-chi ma-se-yo.] ( x )
Sample Sentences
저는 우유를 좋아해요. [jeo-neun u-yu-reul jo-a-hae-yo.]
= I like milk.
저는 우유를 안 좋아해요. [jeo-neun u-yu-reul an jo-a-hae-yo.]
= I do not like milk.
우유가 좋아요? 아니면 주스가 좋아요? [u-yu-ga jo-a-yo? ju-seu-ga jo-a-yo?]
= Do you like milk? Or do you like juice?
뭐가 제일 좋아요? [mwo-ga je-il jo-a-yo?]
= What is your favorite?
뭐를 제일 좋아해요? [mwo-reul je-il jo-a-hae-yo?]
= What do you like best?
* Here, another difference between 좋다 and 좋아하다 is that 좋다 is used to mean “to like” only about yourself, not about other people. If you want to say "Kyeong-eun likes coffee", use the verb 좋아하다.
Ex) 경은 씨는 커피를 좋아해요. [gyeong-eun ssi-neun keo-pi-reul jo-a-hae-yo.]
한국 영화 좋아하세요? [han-guk yeong-hwa jo-a-ha-se-yo?]
= Do you like Korean movies?