Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 1 - My First Steps in Korean (Lessons 1 to 30) ᚛ Lesson 29 - The particle of place and destination [에]

The particle of place and destination [에]

In this course: 에

In this lesson and the following ones, we will study a series of essential particles to be able to express sentences related to space.

The 에 particle is used in many different cases. It can be used to indicate a name referring to a place in the following cases:

• Indicating a location
• Indicating a destination linked to a movement
• Expressing an action made on an object

Expressing location with 에

We have already seen in the lesson on the verb 있다 (= to exist, to have) that it is possible to use the particle 에 to express the verb "to be, to exist", in order to indicate the presence or absence of something or someone in a specific place.

In English, the particle 에 is generally translated as "to / at" or "in".

Like all particles, 에 is placed just after the place / location concerned.

고양이는 침실에 있어.
→ The cat is in the room.

산에 모기가 있어요.
→ In the mountains, there are mosquitoes.

그 카페에 사람이 많이 있습니다.
→ There are a lot of people in this cafe.

In order to express the absence of something or someone in a place, we use the opposite verb of 있다 which is 없다 (= not to exist, not to have).

민지는 교실에 없었어요.
→ Minji wasn't in the classroom.

냉장고에 아이스크림이 없어요.
→ There is no ice in the fridge.

Be careful, 에 indicates a place for which no action is described, only the presence or absence of something or someone. If we want to talk about a place in which an action takes place, it is the particle 에서, which we will see in the next chapter, that we must use.

Expressing the destination of a movement with 에

The 에 particle also indicates a place to which we are heading, it indicates the destination linked to an action, a movement.

어제 수현이가 프랑스에 돌아갔어요.
→ Yesterday Suhyeon returned to France.

친구가 우리 집에 게임기를 가져올 거야.
→ My friend will bring a game console to my house.

시장에 다녀왔어요.
→ I went to the market (and came back).

지하실에 내려왔어요.
→ I came down to the cellar.

부모님 댁에 갈 거예요.
→ I'm going to go to my parents' house.

Note: The word 댁 is used to respectfully refer to someone's house, instead of 집.

Expressing an action relating to an object

Combination of particles

Exercises

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