KEY TO KOREAN (키 투 코리얀)

Subject Marker (~이)/(~가)

In Lesson 1 you learned about simple Korean particles. To review, you learned that:
~는(neun) or ~은 (eun) are used to indicate the subject (or main person/thing) in a sentence.
~를 (reul) or ~을 (eul) are used to indicate the object in a sentence.

For example, in this sentence:
“I ate a hamburger”
“I” is the subject of the sentence “Hamburger” is the object “Eat” is the verb .
In this Lesson, you will learn about the particles ~이(i)/가 (ga) and specifically how it can compare with ~는(neun)/은(eun). In all situations,

~이 is attached to nouns in which the last letter is a consonant (like ~은) and ~가 is attached to nouns in which the last letter is a vowel (like ~는).

For example:

책(chaek) ends in a consonant (ㄱ'k'), so “~이(i)” is added: "책이 (chaek-i)"

소파 (so-pa) ends in a vowel ('a'ㅏ), so “~가(ga)” is added: "소파가.(sopa-ga)"

But, in what situations should we use ~이(i)/가(ga)? Before we get to that, I would like to teach you how to use the word “있다(it-da)” in sentences.

Let’s get started ~
있다(it-da) : To have (the word)

“있다(it-da)” has many meanings. To a beginner of Korean, we can simplify and generalize these meanings into two forms or usages:
있다 = to have
있다 = to be at a location

Let’s talk about the first usage, “to have.” In English, “to have” is a verb that can act on an object.
For example:
I have a pen
I have a car

This usage of 있다 (it-da) in Korean is an adjective. This is hard for a learner to wrap their head around. At this point, this is important to you for one reason. You learned in Lesson 1 that sentences with adjectives cannot act on an object. Thus, you cannot have a word with the particle ~을(eul)/를(reul) attached to it if the predicating word in a sentence is an adjective (because ~을/를 indicates an object in a sentence). If this weren’t the case, we could do the following to make the sentence

“I have a pen:”
I 는(neun) pen을(eul) 있다(it-da)
나는 (na-neun) + 펜을(pen-eul) + 있다(it-da)
나는 펜을 있다 = I have a pen
However, the sentence above is INCORRECT .
있다(it-da) is an adjective and cannot act on an object like this. Therefore, the use of ~을(eul) on “펜(pen)” is incorrect.

To get around this, we can attach
~이(i)/가(ga) to the object instead of ~을(eul)/를(reul) in sentences with 있다(it-da).
This is one usage of the particle ~이/가;
that is, to indicate the thing that a person “has” in sentences with “있다.”

Look at the following example sentences:

나는(na-neun) 펜이(pen-i) 있다 (it-da)= I have a pen
Informal : 나는(na-neun) 펜이(pen-i) 있어 (isseo)
Formal : 저는(jeo-neun) 펜이(pen-i) 있어요(isseoyo)

나는 차가 있다 = I have a car
Informal: 나는(na-neun) 차가(cha-ga) 있어(isseo)
Formal : 저는(jeo-neun) 차가(cha-ga) 있어요 (isseyo)
나는(na-neun) 잡지가(jabji-ga) 있다(it-da) = I have a magazine
Informal : 나는(na-neun) 잡지가(jabji-ga) 있어(isseo)
Formal :저는(jeo-neun) 잡지가(jabji-ga) 있어요(isseyo)

나는(na-neun) 가방이(kabang-i) 있다(it-da) = I have a backpack
Informal :나는(na-neun) 가방이(kabang-i) 있어(isseo)
Formal : 저는(jeo-neun) 가방이(kabang-i) 있어요(isseoyo)

Again, note that ~이(i)/가(ga) is being used to indicate the object instead of ~을(eul)/를(reul)
Remember that the example sentences provided in these lessons are not conjugated. While conjugations are provided (one formal and one informal) in below each example sentence, the grammar within these conjugations is too complicated for you to understand right now. For now, focus on what is being presented in these first four lessons before you start worrying about conjugating sentences and using honorifics.

"있다: To be at a location"
있다 (it-da) can also be used to indicate that something/someone is “at a location.”

In Lesson 1 you learned about the particle ~에 (e) in Korean. You learned that this particle is used to indicate the place and/or time of something in a sentence. Therefore, “~에” is often used in sentences with “있다” to indicate the location of something/someone.
For example:
I am at school

If we wanted to write this sentence with Korean structure and particles,
we would write:
I는(neun) school에(e) am at
나는 (na-neun) + 학교에(hak-kyo-e) + 있다(it-da)
This is irrelevant to you now, but when 있다(it-da) is used like this, it is again seen as an adjective. This is confusing, but or now, try to ignore it. I begin to discuss this more in Lesson 5 when I discuss the conjugations of 있다(it-da).
나는 (na-neun)학교에(hak-kyo-e) 있다 (it-da) =
I am at school
Informal:나는(na-neun) 학교에(hak-kyo-e) 있어 (isseo)
Formal :저는(jeo-neun) 학교에(hak-kyo-e) 있어요(isseoyo)
Another example:
나는(na-neun) 캐나다에(kaenada-e) 있다 (it-da)=
I am in Canada
Informal :나는(na-neun) 캐나다에(kaenada-e) 있어(isseo)
Formal: 저는(jeo-neun) 캐나다에(kaenada-e) 있어요(isseoyo)
Notice the very big difference in meaning between the following sentences, and the role that particles have in each case. Because 있다 (it-da) has two different meanings, changing the particles in a sentence can drastically change the meaning.
For example:
나는(na-neun) 학교가(hak-kyo-ga) 있다(it-da) =
I have a school
– this could make sense, but in most situations, you would probably want to say:
나는(na-neun) 학교에(hak-kyo-e) 있다(it-da) =
I am at school
나는(na-neun) 잡지가(jab-ji-ga) 있다(it-da) =
I have a magazine
나는(na-neun) 잡지에(jab-ji-e) 있다 (it-da)=
I am at the magazine (this doesn’t make sense)
We can also use position words to indicate specifically where someone/something is with respect to another noun.
The most common position words are:
안 (an) = inside
위(wi) = on top
밑 (mit)= below
옆 (yeop)= beside
뒤 (dwi) = behind
앞 (ap)= in front
These words are placed after a noun to indicate where an object is with respect to that noun. The particle “~에(e)” is then attached directly to the position words.
For example:
학교(hak-kyo) 앞에(ap-e) = in front of the school
사람(sa-ram) 뒤에 (dwi-e)= behind the person
집(jib) 옆에(yeop-e) = beside the house
저(jeo) 건물에(geun-mul-e) = behind that building These constructions can now act as the location in a sentence:
나는(na-neun)학교에( hak-kyo-e) 있다(it-da) = I am at school
나는(na-neun) 학교(hak-kyo 앞에(ap-e) 있다(it-da) =
I am in-front of the school
Informal :나는(na-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 앞에(ap-e)
있어 (isseo)
Formal :저는(jeo-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 앞에(ap-e)
있어요 (isseoyo)
Let’s make some more sentences:
나는(na-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 뒤에(dwi-e) 있다(it-da) = I am behind the school
informal:나는(na-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 뒤에(dwi-e)
있어 (isseo)
formal: 저는(jeo-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 뒤에(dwi-e)
있어요 (isseyo)
나는(na-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 옆에(yeop-e) 있다(it-da) = I am beside the school
Informal :나는(na-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 옆에(yeop-e) 있어 (isseo)
Formal 저는(jeo-neun) 학교(hak-kyo) 옆에(yeop-e)
있어요(isseoyo)
고양이는(ko-yang-i-neun) 의자(eui-ja) 밑에(mit-e)
있다 (it-da) = The cat is under the chair
Informal :고양이는(koyangi-neun) 의자(euija) 밑에(mit-e) 있어(isseo)
Formal: 고양이는(koyangi-neun) 의자(euija) 밑에(mit-e) 있어요 (isseoyo)
나는(na-neun) 캐나다에(kaenada-e) 있다(it-da) =
I am in Canada
Informal : 나는(na-neun) 캐나다에(kaenada-e) 있어(isseo)
Formal: 저는(jeo-neun) 캐나다에(kaenada-e) 있어요(isseoyo)

You have learned that ~이(i)/가(ga) can be attached to nouns in sentences to indicate the object that a person “has.” ~이/가 can also be used to indicate the subject of a sentence, similar to ~는(neun)/은(eun).

What’s the difference? Get ready to embark on the most confusing grammatical principle to foreign learners of Korean. So difficult and confusing, I wish I could teach you this concept in the future Lessons . Unfortunately, you will see ~이/가 used in almost every sentence and please familiarize yourself with it.