Korean Adverbs: Lessons, Rules and Examples

Key facts

• This set contains 7 lessons, from level A1 to B1.
• 아주, 자주 and 너무 are three of the most useful A1 words.

Listen to the sentence that shows the simplest adverb.

The next section defines adverbs and shows the two families.

What Are Korean Adverbs?

Korean adverbs are words that add information to a verb, an adjective or another adverb. They answer questions such as "how?", "how much?", "how often?" and "when?". An adverb stands directly before the word it describes, because Korean puts the verb or adjective last. In 천천히 말해 주세요 ("Please speak slowly"), 천천히 stands before the verb.

Korean has two families of adverbs.

Made adverbs are built from adjectives. The ending -게 turns almost any adjective into an adverb: 예쁘다 ("pretty") becomes 예쁘게 ("prettily"). A smaller group takes -히 or -이, such as 조용히 ("quietly") and 깨끗이 ("cleanly").

Ready-made adverbs are independent words. They include degree words (아주, 정말, 조금), frequency words (항상, 자주, 가끔), time words (이미, 벌써, 아직, 곧) and mimetic words that copy a sound or a look (반짝반짝).

The adjective forms that come before nouns are a different topic, covered in Korean adjective modifier. The wider area is described in Korean grammar. The next section gives a route through the lessons.

Where Should You Start with Korean Adverbs?

Start with the ready-made words at level A1, then learn how adverbs are made, and finish with the fixed endings and mimetic words. Three stages cover the set.

1. Stage 1: words you can use today (A1). Read Korean adverbs of degree 아주 너무 정말, then 너무 meaning too or very, then Korean adverbs of frequency 항상 자주 가끔.
2. Stage 2: time words and the ending -게 (A2). Read Korean time adverbs 이미 벌써 아직 곧 and adverb -게 in korean.
3. Stage 3: fixed endings and mimetic words (B1). Read adverb -히 -이 in korean and Korean mimetic words adverbs 반짝반짝.

Who can skip ahead? A learner who already says 아주 and 자주 correctly can start at stage 2. A learner who wants to place several adverbs in one sentence should also read Korean adverb position in a sentence. The next section describes each lesson.

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Each lesson below has a short description, one example sentence with Revised Romanization (RR, the official Latin spelling, shown only as an aid) and audio.

Adverb -게 in Korean

The -게 lesson teaches the productive ending -게, which turns an adjective stem into an adverb. It covers regular stems, irregular stems and the common phrase 맛있게 드세요. The same -게 also appears in longer patterns such as -게 되다 ("come to") and causative -게 하다 ("make someone do"), which have their own lessons. Example: 맛있게 드세요. (masitge deuseyo.) "Enjoy your meal." Spoken [마싣께 드세요].

Adverb -히 -이 in Korean

The -히/-이 lesson teaches the adverbs that end in -히 or -이, such as 조용히 and 깨끗이. It explains which ones you must learn as words and how they differ from -게. Example: 조용히 해 주세요. (joyonghi hae juseyo.) "Please be quiet."

Korean Adverbs of Degree 아주 너무 정말

The degree lesson teaches the words that say how much: 아주, 매우, 정말, 조금, 좀 and 별로. It shows where they stand and why 별로 needs a negative. Example: 아주 맛있어요. (aju masisseoyo.) "It is very tasty."

Korean Adverbs of Frequency 항상 자주 가끔

The frequency lesson teaches the words that say how often: 항상, 자주, 가끔, 거의 and 절대. It also shows how to answer "How often?" Example: 저는 자주 운동해요. (jeoneun jaju undonghaeyo.) "I often exercise."

Korean Time Adverbs 이미 벌써 아직 곧

The time lesson teaches the words that place an action in time: "already", "yet" and "soon". It explains the pairs that look alike in English. Example: 친구가 아직 안 왔어요. (chinguga ajik an wasseoyo.) "My friend has not come yet." Spoken [친구가 아직 안 와써요].

너무 Meaning Too or Very

The 너무 lesson explains why 너무 can mean "too" and also "so". It covers the too-to pattern, the 2015 position of the National Institute of Korean Language and the register difference. Example: 너무 비싸요. (neomu bissayo.) "It is too expensive."

Korean Mimetic Words Adverbs 반짝반짝

The mimetic lesson teaches mimetic words, which copy a look, a movement or a feeling. They are common in stories, songs and everyday speech. Example: 별이 반짝반짝 빛나요. (byeori banjjakbanjjak binnayo.) "The stars twinkle." Spoken [벼리 반짝빤짝 빈나요].

The next section helps you choose a lesson for your own sentence.

Which Lesson Fits Your Sentence?

Match the sentence you want to say to the lesson in the table.

The next section shows the most useful contrast in the set.

How Do -게 and -히/-이 Differ?

The ending -게 can be added to almost any adjective stem, while the endings -히 and -이 belong to a closed list of words. This makes -게 productive, which means that you can build new adverbs with it, and -히/-이 lexical, which means that you must learn each word.

Some adjectives have both forms with slightly different shades, so a dictionary is the final check. The lessons on adverb -게 in Korean and adverb -히 -이 in Korean compare the two endings with examples. The next section lists the mistakes to avoid first.

Which Mistakes Come First?

Four mistakes appear in most beginner sentences in this area.

1. Using the adjective instead of the adverb. Saying 예쁜 웃어요 is wrong. Say 예쁘게 웃어요.
2. Putting the adverb after the verb. Saying 말해 주세요 천천히 copies English. Say 천천히 말해 주세요.
3. Using 별로 without a negative. Saying 별로 맛있어요 is wrong. Say 별로 안 맛있어요.
4. Using 아주 with an ordinary action verb. Saying 아주 먹어요 is unnatural. Say 많이 먹어요.

Each lesson in the set explains these in detail. The next section shows what the set leaves out.

What Does This Set Not Cover?

The Korean adverbs set covers words that describe actions and states. It does not cover the forms that describe nouns, such as 예쁜 꽃 ("a pretty flower"), which belong to noun-modifying forms. It does not teach where every phrase goes in a sentence, which belongs to Korean word order.

All Korean text and spoken forms on this page were machine-generated and reviewed and signed off by Min-ji Park on 15 October 2026. The next section shows how to practise.

How Do You Practise Korean Adverbs?

Practise Korean adverbs by adding one adverb to a plain sentence and checking the result against a key. A short routine works well across a week.

1. Read one lesson and say its model sentences aloud with the audio.
2. Write five plain sentences about your day, then add a degree or frequency adverb to each.
3. Take the grammar quizzes to check the pattern.
4. Review the words with the grammar flashcard decks.
5. Print a grammar worksheet and fill it in by hand.
6. Build sentences with the Korean sentence builder.

Each published lesson ends with a practice set and an answer key, so you can check your work immediately. After finishing the set, continue to the other lessons in Korean adjective modifier.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I turn an adjective into an adverb in Korean? Add 게 to the adjective stem. 예쁘다 ("pretty") becomes 예쁘게 ("prettily"), as in 예쁘게 웃어요, and 맛있다 becomes 맛있게, as in 맛있게 드세요. A smaller group of adverbs end in -히 or -이 instead, such as 조용히 and 깨끗이. These must be learned as words.

Is 너무 negative? 너무 originally means "too much", so it often hints at a problem, as in 너무 비싸요 ("It is too expensive"). In modern speech it is also used with positive words, as in 너무 좋아요 ("It is so good"). Formal writing often prefers 아주 or 매우, while speech uses 너무 freely.

Which lesson in Korean adverbs should I read first? Start with the three A1 lessons that use ready-made words, namely degree adverbs (아주, 정말), 너무, and frequency adverbs (자주, 가끔). They need no new endings. Then read the lessons on -게 and -히/-이, which teach how adverbs are formed, and finish with time adverbs and mimetic words.

What level are Korean adverbs? The set runs from A1 to B1. Degree adverbs, frequency adverbs and 너무 are A1. Time adverbs and the ending -게 are A2. The fixed endings -히/-이 and mimetic words such as 반짝반짝 are B1. A beginner can use the A1 words in everyday sentences from the first weeks.