Korean Plain Style 해라체: Meaning, Rules and Examples

What you'll learn

• Form 해라체 statements, questions, commands and suggestions.
• Know who can use it, and who must never be addressed with it.
• Tell 해라체 from casual 해체 (banmal) and from polite 해요체.
• Recognise it in writing, and in indirect quotes such as 간다고 했어요.

Before you start: you should know the polite ending -아요/어요 and how to find a verb stem. Time: about 30 minutes. This site places the topic at level B1, which is an editorial estimate. The official TOPIK information is published at topik.go.kr.

What Does the Korean Plain Style 해라체 Mean?

해라체 is one of the traditional Korean speech levels. The name comes from its own command form: 해라 is the 해라체 command of 하다, "Do it!" The level has no polite ending, so it does not show respect to the listener (the subject honorific -(으)시- can still appear, as in 할아버지께서 오신다). It does not try to show closeness either. That neutral tone is why it fits two very different places: talking down to a child, and writing for readers you cannot see.

Korean grammar books list it with the "formal" group (격식체) along with 하십시오체, 하오체 and 하게체. In this system, formal means the endings are fixed and structured, not that they are polite. 해라체 is the plainest of the four. For all seven levels, see the seven Korean speech levels, and for the group it belongs to, see Korean formal speech.

You meet 해라체 in four places.

A First Example

Listen to each sentence at normal speed, then slowly.

1. 밥 먹었니? (bap meogeonni?) "Did you eat? (to a child)"

Pronunciation of the verb: 먹었니 is read [머건니]. The ㅆ is read as [ㄷ], and then the ㄷ turns into [ㄴ] before the ㄴ of 니.

2. 빨리 와라. (ppalli wara.) "Come quickly."

Pronunciation: [빨리 와라]. Nothing changes. The command is 오다 plus 아라: 오 + 아라 merges to 와라.

The first sentence is a question to a child, and the second is a command to someone younger or junior. Neither would be safe to say to your teacher.

How Does the Korean Plain Style 해라체 Work?

해라체 has one ending for each sentence type. Statements also depend on the word class: verbs, adjectives and 이다 each behave a little differently.

1. Statements: a verb stem takes -ㄴ다 after a vowel and -는다 after a consonant. An adjective or 이다 takes plain -다. The past is -았다 or -었다.
2. Questions: add -니 or -냐 to the stem. The past is -았니/었니 or -았냐/었냐.
3. Commands: add -아라 or -어라 by the last vowel, and use -지 마라 for "don't".
4. Suggestions: add -자 to the stem.

Pattern Table

Commands and suggestions need an action, so adjectives and 이다 have no form for them.

Statements: -ㄴ다 and -는다

The present statement is the form this site covers in its lesson on plain present -는다/ㄴ다, and the past is covered in plain past -았다/었다. In short:

• 간다 (ganda) "go": 가 ends in a vowel, so add ㄴ다.
• 먹는다 (meongneunda) "eat": 먹 ends in a consonant, so add 는다.
• 산다 (sanda) "live": 살 is an ㄹ-stem, so the ㄹ drops and ㄴ다 is added.
• 크다 (keuda) "big": adjectives just keep the dictionary form.

학교에 간다. (hakgyoe ganda.) "I go to school." Pronunciation: [학꾜에 간다].

Questions: -니 and -냐

-니 is the softer question and the usual choice when speaking to a child. -냐 is blunter and sounds rougher, often heard between close friends. Both attach to the stem, and neither needs a different form for verbs and adjectives.

숙제 했니? (sukje haenni?) "Did you do your homework?" Pronunciation: [숙쩨 핸니]. The ㅆ of 했 becomes [ㄷ], then [ㄴ] before 니.

A question word such as 뭐 or 어디 changes the tone. 뭐 하니? (mwo hani?) "What are you doing?" is a wh-question, so it usually ends with a gentle fall or a rise-fall rather than a sharp rise.

Commands: -아라, -어라 and -지 마라

The command follows the same vowel rule as the polite ending.

먹지 마라. (meokji mara.) "Don't eat it." Pronunciation: [먹찌 마라].

Suggestions and Realisations: -자 and -구나

The suggestion ending -자 is shared with casual speech: 우리 같이 가자 (uri gachi gaja) "Let's go together." The ending -구나 (verbs: -는구나) shows that the speaker has just noticed something: 눈이 오는구나 (nuni oneunguna) "Oh, it is snowing." Pronunciation: [누니 오는구나].

Worked Example: Building a Sentence in 해라체

Goal: ask a young child, "Did you eat?"

1. Choose the verb. 먹다 (to eat). The stem is 먹.
2. Add the past. 먹 + 었 = 먹었.
3. Add the plain question ending. 먹었 + 니 = 먹었니?
4. Add the object. 밥 (rice, a meal).

Result: 밥 먹었니? (bap meogeonni?) "Did you eat?" The object particle is often dropped in a short question like this.

Now compare three styles for the same question, so the choice is visible.

How Is 해라체 Different from Similar Forms?

Learners most often confuse 해라체 with casual 해체 (banmal), because both lack -요 and both can be rude. They are not the same, and the endings differ.

In writing, 해라체 is the default for books and articles because it does not address a person. In speech, a friend uses 해체, and a stranger needs 해요체. See how to make banmal casual speech for the 해체 forms.

The nuance of each choice matters. Grammar books group 해라체 with formal levels, but it is not a polite level. A 해라체 command to your teacher is rude, however carefully you pronounce it.

When Do You Use It, and When Not?

Writing. Newspapers, textbooks, novels, encyclopedias, essays and personal diaries mostly use -다. The example sentence in a Korean grammar book is nearly always in 해라체 as well.

Speaking down. Parents, grandparents and teachers use -니 and -아라 with young children. A child can also be addressed with a softer storytelling ending, -단다, as in 엄마는 네가 좋단다 (eommaneun nega jotanda) "Mom likes you", pronounced [엄마는 네가 조탄다]. This form is a variant that adults use when talking to children.

Indirect quotes. When you report what someone said, the quoting ending is built on the 해라체 form. This is why learners must know it even if they never use it to speak.

비가 왔다고 했어요. (biga watdago haesseoyo.) "He said it rained." Pronunciation: [비가 왇따고 해써요]. In this sentence, the 해라체 form 왔다 sits inside a polite sentence.

Not for adults you meet. Do not use 해라체 with adult strangers, colleagues, in-laws or anyone older. Even between friends, many people choose 해체 instead, because 해라체 questions in -냐 can sound rough.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make?

1. Using -아/어라 to an adult. 빨리 와라 to a teacher or a coworker is rude. Use 오세요 or 와 주세요 instead.
2. Mixing -다 with -요 in one text. An essay in 해라체 should not suddenly end a sentence with 했어요. Pick one style for a whole text.
3. Writing -ㄴ다 on an adjective. 예쁜다 is wrong. Adjectives keep -다: 예쁘다.
4. Confusing 해라체 with 해체. 먹었다 (plain) and 먹었어 (casual) are different. The first belongs in writing, and the second belongs in talk with friends.
5. Using 해라체 in a polite message. A message to an older person ends in -요 or -습니다, not -다.
6. Forgetting the ㄹ rule. 살는다 is wrong. Say 산다.

Practice and Answers

Try all four items before you read the answers. Each answer has audio.

1. Choose the form. A parent asks a child "Did you eat?" 먹었니? or 드셨어요?
2. Fix the error. A student writes to a professor: 교수님, 내일 오겠니?
3. Translate. "Come quickly."
4. Write your own. Write one diary line in 해라체 about what you did today.

Answer Key

1. 먹었니? (meogeonni?) Pronunciation: [머건니]. 드셨어요 is the honorific form for an older person, so it does not fit a child.

2. 교수님, 내일 오시겠어요? (gyosunim, naeil osigesseoyo?) Pronunciation: [교수님 내일 오시게써요]. A professor needs the polite -요 ending and the honorific -(으)시-. A 해라체 question is not acceptable here.

3. 빨리 와라. (ppalli wara.) Pronunciation: [빨리 와라]. 오 + 아라 merges to 와라.

4. Sample answer: 오늘은 학교에 갔다. (oneureun hakgyoe gatda.) "Today I went to school." Pronunciation: [오느른 학꾜에 갇따]. Any past sentence ending in -았다/-었다 is right.

If a sentence went wrong, check the listener first. A child or a text can take 해라체, but an adult you must respect cannot.

Next Lessons and Where to Go from Here

The next two lessons are plain present -는다/ㄴ다 and plain past -았다/었다, which teach the written statement forms in full. For the group this level belongs to, read when to use formal speech in Korean.

This page uses Revised Romanization only as a learning aid. The Hangul is the reference. To remember the idea in one line: 해라체 is the plain level, with -다 for statements, -니 for questions, -아/어라 for commands and -자 for suggestions, and it is for children, juniors and print.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is 해라체 in Korean?

해라체 is the plain speech level. It uses -다 for statements, -니 or -냐 for questions, -아/어라 for commands and -자 for suggestions. It has no polite ending and is used to children, to clearly younger people and in writing such as diaries, news and books.

When Can I Use 해라체?

Use it when you write for readers in general, as in a diary or an essay, and when you speak to a young child. Do not use it with adult strangers, coworkers or anyone older. A learner is safest using it in writing and in exercises, not in conversation.

How Is 해라체 Different from Banmal (해체)?

Banmal ends in -아/어, as in 먹어 and 먹었어, and is spoken between friends. 해라체 ends in -다, -니 or -아/어라, as in 먹는다, 먹었니 and 먹어라, and is also the standard written style. Both are impolite to a superior.

How Do I Form a 해라체 Command?

Add -아라 or -어라 to the stem by its last vowel: 가라, 와라, 먹어라, 해라. For "don't", use -지 마라, as in 먹지 마라. Commands need action verbs, so adjectives and 이다 have no command form. Never use a command with an adult you respect.

Why Do Indirect Quotes Use 해라체 Endings?

The quoting endings are built on the plain forms. 간다 becomes 간다고 해요, 갔다 becomes 갔다고 해요, 가라 becomes 가라고 해요 and 가자 becomes 가자고 해요. A question 가니? becomes 가냐고 해요. Learning 해라체 helps you read and build reported speech.

Is 해라체 Rude?

It depends on the listener. To a young child or in print it is normal. To an adult you must respect it is rude, even though grammar books group it with the formal levels. Formal here means a fixed pattern of endings, not politeness.

Save This to Pinterest