Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 4 - Intermediate Korean #1 (Lessons 91 to 120) ᚛ Lesson 95 - To try in Korean, to have the chance to [-아/어 보다]
To try in Korean, to have the chance to [-아/어 보다]
The use of -아/어 보다
In Korean, to express the fact that we try or that we have the chance to do something, we use the verb
보다 in the following manner:
[Action verb conjugated to the present tense casual style] 보다
The verb 보다 can then be conjugated as desired depending on what we want to say.
- 먹다 → 먹어 보다
- 가다 → 가 보다
- 하다 → 해 보다
Be careful, the conjugated form -아/어 보다 does mean "to try" in the sense of having had the chance to do something, of having had the experience of doing something, as in "I have already tried eating kimchi.", and not in the sense of making an effort to try to achieve something, as in "I am trying to pass my exams.", where there is no opportunity or experience involved, but simply an effort.
Literally, 보다 means "to see". The -아/어 보다 form could therefore be translated as "I … and I see (what happens)".
Be careful, the verb 물어보다 (= to ask) already has the 보다 form built into the verb 묻다 (= to ask), without a space.
한국에 가 봤어요?
→ Have you ever tried going to Korea (and seen what it’s like)?
→ Have you ever had the chance to go to Korea?
→ Have you ever been to Korea?
이거 먹어 봐. 진짜 맛있어.
→ Try this (and see what it's like). It's really good.
그 신발 신어 보고 싶어.
→ I want to try on those shoes (and see how they fit me).
입어 보셔도 돼요.
→ You may try it on (this piece of clothing).
민지한테 전화해 봐.
→ Try calling Minji.
내 말을 들어 봐.
→ Listen to me. (Lit: Listen to my words.)
질문이 있으면 물어보세요.
→ If you have any questions, please ask.
To have never tried - 못
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Summary table of structure
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Exercises
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Particles are omnipresent in Korean. They indicate the role of words in a sentence, nuance meaning, and make it possible to understand who does what, where, how, and why.
Particles are also often the aspect that causes the most difficulty for Korean learners. In grammar books, they are usually presented in the middle of long sentences, with complex vocabulary, without being clearly highlighted.
With Korean Particles, we made the opposite choice:
taking the time to explain each particle, one by one, using very simple sentences, accessible even to beginners.
