Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 5 - Intermediate Korean #2 (Lessons 121 to 150) ᚛ Lesson 130 - Using causative verbs in Korean

Using causative verbs in Korean

In the previous lesson, we learned how to create causative verbs from regular verbs. Let’s now see how to use them in sentences.

Causative verbs in initial sentences without a direct object

To properly understand the use of causative verbs, we need to set up certain sentence patterns.

Let’s take the following two sentences:

• The baby eats.
• The mother feeds the baby.

In the first sentence, "the baby" is the subject of the sentence, whereas in the second, "the baby" is the direct object. This is the same in Korean, and the appropriate particles will therefore have to be used.

아기가 먹어요.
→ The baby eats.
아기 is the subject of the verb 먹다.

어머니가 아기를 먹여요.
→ The mother feeds the baby.
아기 is the direct object of the verb 먹이다, while 어머니 becomes the subject.

We can deduce the following relationship:
[Noun 1]이/가 [Verb] → [Noun 2]이/가 [Noun 1]을/를 [Causative verb]

그 아이는 연을 날렸어.
→ That child flew a kite.

그분은 저를 살려 주셨어요.
→ That person saved my life.

민지 좀 깨워. 학교에 늦겠다.
→ Wake Minji up. She’ll be late for school.

퍼즐은 다 맞췄나?
→ Have you finished putting the puzzle together?

밥을 반절이나 남겼어요.
→ I left half of my meal uneaten.

모기가 전염병을 옮겼어요.
→ The mosquito spread the infectious disease.

Causative verbs in initial sentences with a direct object

Causative verbs in sentences with implicit possession

Exercises

Podcasts in Korean specially designed for beginners, to learn Korean by really listening to it from the very beginning.

You’re starting to learn Korean (or you already know the basics), but as soon as you listen to spoken Korean, everything suddenly feels too fast?
The words blend together, the pronunciation escapes you, and you feel like “real Korean” is very different from what you learned in textbooks.

That’s normal!
Listening comprehension is the most difficult part for all beginners.

Learn more

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