ㄷ Irregular Verbs in Korean: Rule, List and Look-Alikes

What Is the ㄷ Irregular in Korean?

The ㄷ irregular is a small class of verbs whose stem-final ㄷ changes to ㄹ when an ending that starts with a vowel follows. The stem is the verb minus 다, so the stem of 듣다 is 듣. Add 어요 and the ㄷ becomes ㄹ: 들 + 어요 = 들어요 (deureoyo). Before a consonant, the ㄷ stays: 듣고 (listen and), 듣습니다 (formal), 듣지만 (listen but).

The class contains only verbs, no adjectives, and it is small: 6 words in the site's verb dictionary. The triggers are the same as for the ㅂ class: any ending that begins with a vowel, including the 으 of -(으)면 and -(으)세요.

The lesson Korean ㄷ irregular verbs explains the rule step by step, with the modifier forms (듣는 / 들은 / 들을), five everyday sentences and an 8-item practice set. Next comes the list of verbs that follow it.

Which Verbs Are ㄷ Irregular?

Six verbs in the site's verb dictionary are ㄷ irregular: 듣다, 걷다, 묻다, 알아듣다, 깨닫다 and 싣다. The table gives each word's meaning, polite present, polite past and -(으)면 form, and the because form (-아서/어서).

Three patterns help memory. First, 알아듣다 is 알아 + 듣다 ("know and hear"), so it follows 듣다 exactly: 알아들어요. Second, the vowel after the changed stem follows ordinary vowel harmony, so 깨닫다 gives 깨달아요 (달 has ㅏ) and 싣다 gives 실어요 (the vowel ㅣ takes 어). Third, the changed stem has the same 들, 걸, 물 shape in every vowel-initial ending, so once you know 들어요 you also know 들으면, 들었어요 and 들은.

A short sentence for each shows the verbs at work.

All six are action verbs, and most take an object with 을/를, as in 음악을 들어요. A ㄷ irregular verb is often used with another verb: 걸어서 가요 (go on foot) uses the -어서 form of 걷다. The question of which look-alikes are not irregular comes next.

Which ㄷ Verbs Are Regular?

Regular ㄷ verbs keep their ㄷ before every ending: 닫다 (to close) gives 닫아요, never 달아요. Four common ones are 닫다, 받다, 믿다 and 얻다. They look the same as the irregular verbs, because their stems also end in ㄷ, so the class membership is learned as a short list.

No spelling clue separates the two groups, so check any new -ㄷ다 verb against the list of six. In the polite present, the liaison rule links the ㄷ to the next syllable in speech: 닫아요 is read [다다요], and 받아요 is [바다요]. The page regular verbs that look irregular collects these traps for all classes. One more trap involves identical spellings.

Which ㄷ Verbs Have Homographs to Watch For?

Some ㄷ verbs share their spelling with a regular verb that means something else. The meaning decides which one is meant: 묻다 meaning "to ask" is irregular, while 묻다 meaning "to bury" is regular. The same split exists for 걷다. A homograph is a word with the same spelling and a different meaning.

Example: 길을 물어요 means "I ask the way", and 땅에 묻어요 means "I bury it in the ground". Context almost always tells which word you hear. If you are unsure, the meaning "walk" or "ask" signals the irregular verb. The last section shows where these verbs appear in context.

Where Do the ㄷ Verbs Appear in Context?

The ㄷ verbs belong to everyday movement and communication, so you will meet them early. 걷다 appears with the other movement words in Korean transport verbs, and the other classes are on the Korean irregular verbs hub.

Dictionary pages list every form of a word, with audio and example sentences:

• 듣다 (to listen/hear): deutda conjugation
• 걷다 (to walk): geotda conjugation
• 알아듣다 (to understand by hearing): aradeutda conjugation
• 묻다 (to ask): mutda conjugation
• 깨닫다 (to realize): kkaedatda conjugation
• 싣다 (to load; to carry cargo): sitda conjugation

A ㄷ irregular verb is easiest to keep when you say it in a sentence, so repeat the four sentences above, then try your own with 듣다 and 걷다.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 닫다 a ㄷ irregular verb? No. 닫다 (to close) is regular. It keeps the ㄷ before every ending: 닫아요, 닫았어요, 닫으면. Other regular -ㄷ다 verbs are 받다, 믿다 and 얻다. Only the short list of ㄷ irregular verbs, such as 듣다, 걷다 and 묻다 (ask), turn ㄷ into ㄹ before a vowel.

Which ㄷ irregular verbs are the most common? The most common are 듣다 (to listen, to hear), 걷다 (to walk) and 묻다 (to ask). They appear in the first weeks of lessons on daily routines. 깨닫다 (to realize), 싣다 (to load) and 알아듣다 (to understand by hearing) are less frequent but follow the same rule.

What is the past tense of 듣다? The polite past of 듣다 is 들었어요. First the ㄷ becomes ㄹ before the vowel ending: 들. Then 었 is added because the stem vowel is ㅡ, and 어요 follows: 들었어요. The formal past is 들었습니다 and the casual past is 들었어. The form 듣었어요 is a common error.

Why do some ㄷ verbs stay regular? The spelling of the dictionary form does not show the group. Both 듣다 and 닫다 end in ㄷ, but 듣다 is irregular and 닫다 is regular. Learn the short list of common ㄷ irregular verbs, treat other -ㄷ다 verbs as regular, and check a new or rare verb, such as 긷다, in a dictionary.

Does ㄷ change to ㄹ before consonants? No. The change happens only before an ending that starts with a vowel. Before a consonant the stem keeps its ㄷ: 듣고 (listen and), 듣지만 (listen but), 듣습니다 (formal) and 듣는 (the verb before a noun). The 으 of -(으)면 counts as a vowel, so it gives 들으면.