Lesson 9
In the previous lesson, you learned how to use 같아요 with nouns to mean “it looks
like” or “it seems to be”.
Ex)
커피 같아요.
= It looks like coffee. / I think it is coffee.
저 사람 소연 씨 같아요.
= That person looks like So-yeon. / I think that person is So-yeon.
In the examples above, both 커피 and 소연 씨 are nouns. The usage of 같아요 is fairly simple and straightforward: just add 같아요 after the nouns.
When using 같아요 with verbs, however, the verb needs to be changed into its noun form. There are a few different ways to change a verb into a noun, but here, -는 것 form will be used. (If you studied with the Level 2 book, you learned how to use -는 것 in Lesson 19!)
- Descriptive verbs
Verb stem + -(으)ㄴ 것
Ex)
예쁘다 = to be pretty
예쁜 것 = being pretty; something pretty; the thing that is pretty
- Action verbs
[Present tense] Verb stem + -는 것
Ex)
말하다 = to talk, to speak; to say
말하는 것 = talking; what one is saying, the act of talking
[Past tense] Verb stem + -(으)ㄴ 것
Ex)
말한 것 = what one said; the fact that one talked
[Future tense] Verb stem + -(으)ㄹ 것
Ex)
말할 것 = what one will say; the fact that one will talk
How to use 같아요 with verbs
Okay! Now that you know how to change verbs into the -(으)ㄴ/는 것 noun form, we are ready to take the next step. After changing a verb into its noun form, add 같아요 after 것. It is exactly the same as using 같아요 with nouns.
-(으)ㄴ 것 같아요
= present tense for descriptive verbs / past tense for action verbs
-는 것 같아요
= present tense for action verbs
-(으)ㄹ 것 같아요
= future tense for action / descriptive verbs
What does -것 같아요 mean?
Even when 같아요 is combined with verbs, since -것 makes the verb a noun, the basic meanings and usage is the same as “Noun + 같아요”.
- “It looks like...”
- “It seems to be...”
- “To me it looks like...”
- “I think it is...”
- “I think it will...”
- “I think it was...”
Ex)
이상하다 = to be strange
이상하 + ㄴ 것 같아요 = 이상한 것 같아요.
= It seems to be strange. / I think it is strange.
눈이 오다 = to snow
눈이 오 + 는 것 같아요 = 눈이 오는 것 같아요.
= It seems to be snowing. / I think it is snowing.
눈이 오 + ㄹ 것 같아요 = 눈이 올 것 같아요.
= I think it will snow. / It seems like it will snow.
이야기하다 = to tell; to talk
이야기하 + ㄴ 것 같아요 = 이야기한 것 같아요.
= I think they told them. / It looks like they talked.
이야기하 + ㄹ 것 같아요 = 이야기할 것 같아요.
= I think they will talk. / It seems like they will talk.
이야기하 + 는 것 같아요 = 이야기하는 것 같아요.
= I think they are talking. / They seem to talk to each other.
As seen in the examples above, -것 같아요 can also be used to mean “I think” in Korean. In fact, this phrase is used so often in Korean that it is almost guaranteed you will come across it when interacting with native speakers.
Sample Sentences
여기 비싼 것 같아요.
= I think this place is expensive.
= This place looks expensive.
= This place seems to be expensive.
그런 것 같아요.
= I think so.
= It seems to be so.
= It looks like it.
* Verb = 그렇다 (irregular) = to be so; to be that way
이 영화 재미있을 것 같아요.
= I think this movie will be interesting.
= This movie looks like it will be interesting (to watch).
이 가방, 여기에서 산 것 같아요.
= This bag seems like we bought it here.
= I think I bought this bag here.
아마 안 할 것 같아요.
= I think I probably will not do it.
= It looks like we are probably not going to do it.