{"id":79547,"date":"2020-10-15T00:52:04","date_gmt":"2020-10-15T04:52:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/korean-sentence-structure\/"},"modified":"2025-02-04T04:50:33","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T09:50:33","slug":"korean-sentence-structure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/korean\/korean-sentence-structure\/","title":{"rendered":"Korean Sentence Structure and Word Order Patterns"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a Korean language learner<\/a>, you\u2019re constantly working towards making your own sentences properly. Well, it’s time to level up your power to do so.<\/p>\n

The basic Korean sentence structures are Subject-Object-Verb (SOV), Subject-Verb (SV) and Subject-Adjective (SA)<\/strong>. This means that a regular Korean sentence will look something like “I pizza ate” instead of “I ate pizza.”<\/p>\n

We’ll go over these in detail, plus show you how to use Korean particles, like topic, subject and object markers.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]
\n<\/p>\n

Most Important Korean Sentence Structures<\/h2>\n

Subject-Object-Verb (SOV)<\/h3>\n

Most Korean sentences<\/strong> are made with the Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) pattern<\/strong>. This means you introduce the subject first, followed by the object and then finally, the verb.<\/p>\n

The first half of the Korean sentence introduces the cast of characters (subject and object), and the second half tells you the thing (verb) that happens between them. That\u2019s the essence of an SOV sentence pattern.<\/p>\n

English, on the other hand, is Subject-Verb-Object (SVO)<\/strong>. This puts English speakers at a disadvantage who are used to thinking that \u201cshe drank milk,\u201d instead of \u201cshe milk drank.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t
Subject<\/th>Object<\/th>Verb<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\uc800\ub294 (I)<\/td>\ud55c\uad6d\uc5b4\ub97c (Korean)<\/td>\uacf5\ubd80\ud574\uc694 (study)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\uadf8\ub140\uac00 (She)<\/td>\ubb38\uc744 (the door)<\/td>\ub2eb\uc558\uc5b4\uc694 (closed)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\uc800\ub294 (I)<\/td>\ucc45\uc744 (book)<\/td>\uc77d\uace0 \uc788\uc5b4\uc694 (am reading)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Subject-Verb (SV)<\/h3>\n

Sometimes, the sentence doesn\u2019t need an object to be meaningful. This kind of sentence results in a Subject-Verb (SV) pattern. These types of sentences are even simpler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t
Subject<\/th>Verb<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\ud560\uc544\ubc84\uc9c0\uac00 (Grandfather)<\/td>\uc624\uc168\uc5b4\uc694 (came)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\uc5c4\ub9c8\ub294 (Mom)<\/td>\uc6b8\uc5c8\uc5b4\uc694 (cried)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\uadf8\ub140\uac00 (She)<\/td>\ub4e4\uc5c8\uc5b4\uc694 (heard)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Subject-Adjective (SA)<\/h3>\n

Sometimes, a sentence only has a subject and an adjective which results in the Subject-Adjective (SA) pattern. In Korean, adjectives behave like verbs<\/a> in terms of their placement and conjugation.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t
Subject<\/th>Adjective<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
\uc800\ub294 (I)<\/td>\ubc14\ube60\uc694 (busy)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\ub0a0\uc528\uac00 (The weather)<\/td>\ub354\uc6cc\uc694 (hot)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
\uc601\ud654\uac00 (The movie)<\/td>\uae38\uc5c8\uc5b4\uc694 (long)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n

Korean Particles: Markers and Indicators<\/h2>\n

In the Korean sentences you\u2019re studying, you might have noticed that there are characters that come immediately after the nouns<\/strong>.\u00a0These are Korean particles.\u00a0<\/strong>They look like this: \uc740, \ub294, \uc774, \uac00, \uc744 and \ub97c.<\/p>\n

Korean particles tell you something about the noun that immediately precedes them. These little helpers tell you what the different parts of a sentence are all about<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In reality, there are a lot of Korean particles. About 20 are commonly used. Here, we\u2019ll be talking about three that are critical in sentence structure.<\/p>\n

6 Most Common Types of Korean Particles<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n