rel="nofollow" href="#ulink_88123952-eee0-5947-b512-13061786c0c2">25. For quick reference, here are some examples:
예쁘다 yeppeuda (to be beautiful) > 예뻐지다 yeppeojida or 예쁘게 되다 yeppeuge doeda (to become beautiful)
작다 jakda (to be small) > 작아지다 jagajida or 작게 되다 jakge doeda (to become small)
조용하다 joyonghada (to be quiet) > 조용해지다 joyonghaejida or 조용하게 되다 joyonghage doeda (to become quiet)
Causatives
If you’re an active rather than a passive type and found all that talk of having things happen to you to be unpleasant, you’ll enjoy this next part a bit more. This is how to make causative sentences in Korean. In the passive voice, “The child was dressed by the mother”; in the causative voice, “The mother dressed the child.”
Just to make things interesting, Korean uses almost exactly the same particles for this as it does for passives. They are 이, 히, 리, and 기. For causatives you also sometimes need 우 and 추.
Just to make it even more fun, the particles sometimes follow the same rules as passives and sometimes not. There are many more exceptions with causative verbs as well.
Again, let’s start with the general rules and then move on to exceptions.
■ 이 follows verbs ending in vowels, ㄱ, and ㅎ.
보다 boda (to see) > 보이다 bo-ida (to show)
먹다 meokda (to eat) > 먹이다 meogida (to feed)
끓다 kkeulta (to be boiling) > 끓이다 kkeulida (to boil [something])
죽다 jukda (to die) > 죽이다 jugida (to kill)
■ 히 follows ㅂ.
입다 ipda (to wear) > 입히다 iphida (to clothe or to cover)
눕다 nupda (to lie down) > 눕히다 nuphida (to lay [something/someone] down)
■ 리, again, follows ㄹ.
알다 alda (to know) > 알리다 allida (to let something be known)
살다 salda (to live) > 살리다 salida (to save [someone’s life])
울다 ulda (to cry) > 울리다 ullida (to make [someone] cry)
■ 기 follows ㅅ and ㅁ.
숨다 sumda (to hide [oneself]) > 숨기다 sumgida (to hide [something])
남다 namda (to remain) > 남기다 namgida (to leave)
웃다 utda (to smile) > 웃기다 utgida (to make [someone] smile or laugh)
벗다 beotda (to take off [someone’s clothes]) > 벗기다 beotgida (to take off [someone’s clothes])
■ 우 isn’t actually 우, but rather 이우. It follows verbs ending in vowels.
타다 tada (to ride/to burn) > 태우다 taeuda (to give a ride/to burn something)
자다 jada (to sleep) > 재우다 jaeuda (to put to sleep)
서다 seoda (to stand) > 세우다 seuda (to park)
깨다 kkaeda (to wake up) > 깨우다 kkaeuda (to wake up [someone])
■ 추 follows ㅈ.
낮다 natda (to be low) > 낮추다 natchuda (to lower)
늦다 neutda (to be late) > 늦추다 neutchuda (to delay)
맞다 matda (to be right) > 맞추다 matchuda (to fit, to make right)
Here are a few common exceptions:
읽다 ilkda (to read) > 읽히다 ilkhida (to be read)
앉다 anda (to sit) > 앉히다 anchida (to make someone sit)
맡다 matda (to assume, to be in charge) > 맡기다 matgida (to entrust)
Like its partner 게 되다 ge doeda, you can use 게 하다 ge hada to make someone do something or to make something become a certain way. It’s the active version of 게 되다 ge doeda. See page 205 for how to use 게 하다 ge hada.
Certain other causatives are based on the verb 나다 nada. When changed to causative form, this becomes 내다 naeda. That’s true for all variations of 나다 and 내다.
나다 nada (to happen) > 내다 naeda (to make/pay)
끝나다 kkeutnada (to be finished) > 끝내다 kkeutnaeda (to finish)
힘나다 himnada (to gain strength) > 힘내다 himnaeda (to strengthen oneself)
알아내다 aranaeda (to discover)
그 일이 벌써 끝났어요. geu iri beolsseo kkeutnasseoyo. The work is already finished. (passive)
그 일을 벌써 끝냈어요. Geu ireul beolsseo kkeutnaesseoyo. I’ve already finished the work. (causative)
Note that the subject of the sentence changes: for 나다 verbs, the subject will always be whatever was done or whatever happened; for 내다 verbs, the subject should be the person that did the action.
해내다 haenaeda to accomplish (see page 31)
해결해 내다 haegyeolhae naeda to find a solution
2 Grammar Points
Agreement
First of all, most of the time you won’t need any special grammar lessons to agree with people in Korean. 응, 네, 예, 그래(요), 당연하죠, 그렇군요/그렇구나, eung, ne, ye, geu-rae(yo), dang-yeon-ha-jyo, geu-reo-kun-nyo/geu-reo-ku-na and 맞아(요) ma-ja(yo) are all very common ways of saying “Yeah, uh huh, you’re right, absolutely, I agree.”
However, should you want to agree in a slightly more spectacular fashion, see below:
민수가 오늘도 늦었어요?
Min-su-ga o-neul-do neu-jeo-seo-yo?
Was Minsu late today as well?
늦고 말고요. 민수는 일 때문에
