Korean Time Adverbs 이미 벌써 아직 곧: Meaning, Rules and Examples

What you'll learn

• Say "already", "still", "not yet" and "soon" with the right Korean word.
• Match each adverb to the correct verb form, especially 아직 안 + past.
• Hear the difference between 이미 and 벌써.
• Answer a short question with 아직요 or 벌써요?

Prerequisites: the past tense past tense -았/었- and the short negative 안 from 안 negation in korean. Time: about 15 minutes.

Key facts

• A time adverb is a word that places an action or state relative to now or to another event.
• It stands before the verb, after the subject if there is one.
• 이미 and 벌써 go with finished events, 아직 goes with "still" or "not yet", and 곧 goes with the near future.
• Korean says "not yet" with 아직 + 안 + a past verb.
• 벌써 adds surprise. 이미 is neutral.

Listen to the two model sentences for this lesson.

The next section defines the four main words and adds three related ones.

What Do Korean Time Adverbs 이미 벌써 아직 곧 Mean?

Korean time adverbs describe when an action happens, compared with now. An adverb is a word that describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb. A time adverb answers the question "when, relative to now?", and it does not name a clock time. That job belongs to words such as 세 시 and to the time particle in time particle 에.

A First Example

Both sentences use the same verb, 왔어요, in the past tense. The first is a yes/no question and rises at the end. The next section explains why the second one also uses the past.

How Do Time Adverbs Work with Tense?

Each time adverb prefers one kind of verb form, and the match is the main rule. The adverb always stands before the verb, and the verb carries the tense and the polite ending.

The pair 아직 안 + past needs a closer look. In English, "has not come yet" is a present-perfect idea. Korean has no present perfect, so it uses the past tense of the verb with 안: 아직 안 왔어요. The past marks that the event has not happened up to now. If the speaker wants to say that something is still not possible, the negative 못 replaces 안: 아직 못 갔어요 means "I have not been able to go yet". The two negatives are compared in 안 vs 못.

The future after 곧 follows the usual pattern: 곧 도착할 거예요 [곧또차칼꺼예요] means "I will arrive soon", and it is built with the pattern in future tense -(으)ㄹ 거예요.

The next section builds one sentence step by step.

Worked Example: Building 친구가 아직 안 왔어요

To say "My friend has not come yet", start from the plain sentence and add the time word in five steps.

1. Write the plain sentence. 친구가 와요 means "My friend comes."
2. Make it negative. 안 goes before the verb: 친구가 안 와요.
3. Make it past. The past of 와요 is 왔어요, so the sentence becomes 친구가 안 왔어요 ("My friend did not come").
4. Add "yet". 아직 stands before 안: 친구가 아직 안 왔어요.
5. Check the order. The subject comes first, the time adverb next, then the negative, then the verb.

You'll know it worked when 아직 sits directly before 안 with nothing between them, and the verb ends in the past form 왔어요. To change the meaning to "My friend is already here", replace the negative phrase: 친구가 벌써 왔어요. For more on where adverbs go, see Korean adverb position in a sentence.

The next section compares the two words for "already".

How Are 이미 and 벌써 Different?

Both words mean "already", but 벌써 adds surprise about timing and 이미 does not. 이미 states that something was settled before now. 벌써 says that something happened sooner, or that time passed faster, than the speaker expected.

The word 아직 is the opposite of both. It describes something that has not yet changed. Two close relatives need a note. 아직도 is a stronger "still" that often carries surprise or complaint: 아직도 비가 와요 means "It is still raining". 여전히 also means "still", but it is more formal and describes a state that has stayed the same: 여전히 바빠요 means "I am still busy".

The word 곧 has its own contrast. 곧 means "soon, in a short time" and looks forward. 이따가 means "later today" and looks to a point later in the same day. 곧 도착해요 means the arrival is near, and 이따가 만나요 means "See you later."

What this lesson does not cover. It does not cover the full set of time expressions such as 어제 and 내일, or the particle 에 with times. Those belong to the lessons on time words and particles.

An honest limit. The boundary between 이미 and 벌써 is soft, and many sentences accept both. The surprise reading of 벌써 is a tendency, not a rule, and context decides.

The next section covers short answers and related words.

Edge Cases: 방금, 금방, 먼저 and Short Answers

Four details help learners sound natural.

방금 looks back and 금방 can look either way. 방금 왔어요 means "I just arrived", and the verb is in the past. 금방 갈게요 means "I will be right there", and the verb points forward. 금방 can also mean "just now" in the past, as in 금방 나갔어요, so the verb tense tells you the direction.

먼저 means "first" or "ahead". 먼저 갈게요 means "I will go ahead", and learners hear it when leaving a group. It does not mean "already".

Short answers keep only the adverb. To the question 밥 먹었어요? ("Have you eaten?"), the answers are 이미 먹었어요 ("I already ate") or just 아직요 ("Not yet"). In everyday speech 아직요 sounds like [아징뇨]: an ㄴ sound is added before 요 after a consonant, and the ㄱ then turns into [ㅇ] before it. A listener who is surprised can ask 벌써요? ("Already?").

아직 can mean "still" and "not yet". The difference is the verb. 아직 자요 ("still asleep") has a positive verb and 아직 안 왔어요 ("not yet") has a negative one.

The next section collects the errors that appear most often.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make with Time Adverbs?

Learners make seven predictable mistakes. Each one has a reason and a fix.

Learners often use 아직 with a positive past verb for "already". Actually 아직 means "yet" or "still". Wrong: 아직 먹었어요 for "I already ate". Right: 이미 먹었어요. Fix: for "already" use 이미 or 벌써.

Learners often drop 안 from "not yet". Actually "not yet" needs a negative. Wrong: 아직 왔어요 for "He has not come yet". Right: 아직 안 왔어요. Fix: pair 아직 with 안 + past.

Learners often use 곧 for "just now". Actually 곧 means "soon" and looks forward; with a past verb it means "soon after", not "just now". Wrong: 곧 왔어요 for "I just arrived". Right: 방금 왔어요. Fix: use 방금 for the recent past.

Learners often use 벌써 for "soon". Actually 벌써 means "already, earlier than expected", not "soon". Wrong: 벌써 갈 거예요 for "I will go soon". Right: 곧 갈 거예요. Fix: choose 곧 for a future that is near.

Learners often use 이미 when they are surprised. Actually 이미 sounds flat. Weak: 이미 왔어요? for "You are here already?" Better: 벌써 왔어요? Fix: choose 벌써 for surprise.

Learners often treat 먼저 as "already". Actually it means "first". Wrong: 먼저 먹었어요 for "I already ate". Right: 이미 먹었어요. Fix: use 먼저 for order, as in 먼저 먹었어요 ("I ate first").

Learners often put the adverb after the verb. Actually the adverb stands before it. Wrong: 왔어요 벌써. Right: 벌써 왔어요. Fix: end the sentence with the verb.

Practice turns these rules into habits, as the next section shows.

Practice and Answers

Complete the four tasks, then compare your answers with the key.

Task 1: choose the word. Fill the gap with 이미, 벌써, 아직 or 곧.

1. 친구가 ___ 안 왔어요. (He has not come yet.)
2. 수업이 ___ 끝나요. (Class ends soon.)
3. ___ 겨울이에요. (It is winter already, with surprise.)
4. 저는 ___ 학생이에요. (I am still a student.)

Task 2: fix the error. Each sentence has one mistake. Rewrite it correctly.

1. 숙제를 아직 했어요. (The meaning is "I already did my homework".)
2. 곧 왔어요. (The meaning is "I just arrived".)
3. 왔어요 벌써?

Task 3: translate. Write in Korean: "You are here already?" and "I have not eaten yet."

Task 4: write your own. Answer the question 밥 먹었어요? in two ways: once with 이미 and once with 아직.

Answer key

1. (1) 아직 (2) 곧 (3) 벌써 (4) 아직.
2. (1) 숙제를 이미 했어요 (or 벌써 했어요) (2) 방금 왔어요 (3) 벌써 왔어요?
3. 벌써 왔어요? 아직 안 먹었어요.
4. Sample answers: 이미 먹었어요. 아직 안 먹었어요. Any answer with 이미 for "already" and 아직 안 + past for "not yet" is correct.

If task 1 was correct, you have the main four words. If task 2 was hard, return to the section on tense. The next section points you to the lessons that follow.

Next Lessons after Korean Time Adverbs 이미 벌써 아직 곧

After Korean time adverbs 이미 벌써 아직 곧, learn the productive ending that turns adjectives into adverbs in adverb -게 in korean. To review the words that say how often something happens, return to Korean adverbs of frequency 항상 자주 가끔, and for a degree word see 너무 meaning too or very.

The parent page, Korean adverbs, lists every lesson in this set in learning order. For past forms of negatives, see negative past tense in korean.

This lesson covers the main time adverbs in the polite present and past. It does not cover time words with particles or formal written time expressions. About this page. Last updated 2026-10-09. The Korean text and spoken forms on this page were generated with AI assistance. Romanization follows the Revised Romanization of Korean and is shown only as a learning aid.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do Korean time adverbs 이미, 벌써, 아직 and 곧 mean? 이미 and 벌써 mean "already", 아직 means "still" or "not yet", and 곧 means "soon". 이미 먹었어요 means "I already ate", 아직 안 왔어요 means "He has not come yet", and 곧 도착해요 means "I will arrive soon". They stand before the verb and place the event relative to now.

How do I use time adverbs with verbs? Put the adverb before the verb and match the tense. 이미 and 벌써 go with the past or a finished state, as in 벌써 왔어요. 아직 goes with a negative past for "not yet", as in 아직 안 왔어요, or with a present state for "still", as in 아직 자요. 곧 goes with the present or future.

What is the most common mistake with time adverbs? The most common mistake is using 아직 with a positive past verb when you mean "already", as in 아직 먹었어요. For "already" use 이미 or 벌써: 이미 먹었어요. A second mistake is using 곧 to mean "just now", as in 곧 왔어요 for "I just arrived". 곧 means "soon", so use 방금 for "just now": 방금 왔어요.

How are 이미 and 벌써 different? Both mean "already", but 벌써 adds surprise that something happened early or that time has passed. 벌써 왔어요? means "You are here already?", and 벌써 겨울이에요 means "It is winter already." 이미 is neutral and states that something was settled before now, as in 이미 알아요, "I already know."

Do I use time adverbs in speech, writing or both? Both. 벌써, 아직 and 곧 are everyday spoken words. 이미 appears in speech and is common in writing. 아직도 and 여전히 sound a little more emphatic, and 여전히 is typical of writing. In short answers, speakers often drop the verb and keep the adverb: 아직요 means "Not yet" and 벌써요? means "Already?"

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