What Is the ㄹ Irregular in Korean?
The ㄹ irregular, also called the ㄹ drop, is a rule for stems that end in ㄹ. When the next ending starts with ㄴ, ㅂ or ㅅ, the stem's ㄹ disappears. The stem is the word minus 다, so the stem of 살다 is 살. Before -ㅂ니다 the stem becomes 사, and 사 + ㅂ니다 = 삽니다 (samnida). Before 아요 the ㄹ stays: 살아요 (sarayo).
The sound ㄹ is lost only before those three sounds. That is why the class hides in the polite present: 살아요, 알아요 and 만들어요 all look regular, and the change shows up in the formal style, in the form before a noun, and in the honorific request. The step-by-step lesson is Korean ㄹ irregular verbs. Now the words.
Which Words Are ㄹ Irregular?
This site's verb dictionary list has 26 ㄹ-drop entries: 20 verbs and 6 adjectives. Many are among the first verbs a learner needs: 살다, 알다, 만들다, 팔다, 놀다, 열다 and 울다. Each table shows the polite present, the formal present and the forms before a noun, plus the if form for adjectives.
Which ㄹ Verbs Are Common?
Twenty verbs belong to the class. The last three columns show three places where the ㄹ drops: the formal ending -ㅂ니다, the present form before a noun (-는) and the past form before a noun (-(으)ㄴ).
| Dictionary form | Meaning | Polite present | Formal present | Before a noun (present) | Before a noun (past) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 살다 | live | 살아요 | 삽니다 | 사는 | 산 |
| 알다 | know | 알아요 | 압니다 | 아는 | 안 |
| 만들다 | make | 만들어요 | 만듭니다 | 만드는 | 만든 |
| 팔다 | sell | 팔아요 | 팝니다 | 파는 | 판 |
| 놀다 | play | 놀아요 | 놉니다 | 노는 | 논 |
| 열다 | open | 열어요 | 엽니다 | 여는 | 연 |
| 울다 | cry | 울어요 | 웁니다 | 우는 | 운 |
| 들다 | hold, lift | 들어요 | 듭니다 | 드는 | 든 |
| 벌다 | earn | 벌어요 | 법니다 | 버는 | 번 |
| 늘다 | increase | 늘어요 | 늡니다 | 느는 | 는 |
| 줄다 | decrease | 줄어요 | 줍니다 | 주는 | 준 |
| 밀다 | push | 밀어요 | 밉니다 | 미는 | 민 |
| 끌다 | drag | 끌어요 | 끕니다 | 끄는 | 끈 |
| 돌다 | turn, spin | 돌아요 | 돕니다 | 도는 | 돈 |
| 흔들다 | shake | 흔들어요 | 흔듭니다 | 흔드는 | 흔든 |
| 풀다 | untie, solve | 풀어요 | 풉니다 | 푸는 | 푼 |
| 썰다 | slice | 썰어요 | 썹니다 | 써는 | 썬 |
| 불다 | blow | 불어요 | 붑니다 | 부는 | 분 |
| 날다 | fly | 날아요 | 납니다 | 나는 | 난 |
| 졸다 | doze | 졸아요 | 좁니다 | 조는 | 존 |
One clash is worth knowing. 들다 (to hold) and 듣다 (to listen) share the polite present 들어요, because the ㄷ of 듣다 turns into ㄹ. They separate in other forms: 들다 is 듭니다 and 드는, while 듣다 is 듣습니다 and 듣는. Context decides in the polite present, as in 가방을 들어요 (I carry the bag) and 음악을 들어요 (I listen to music).
Which ㄹ Adjectives Are Common?
Six adjectives belong to the class: 길다, 달다, 멀다, 힘들다, 둥글다 and 가늘다. They drop the ㄹ before ㄴ, so the form before a noun is 긴, 단, 먼, 힘든, 둥근 and 가는.
| Dictionary form | Meaning | Polite present | Formal present | If (-(으)면) | Before a noun (present) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 길다 | be long | 길어요 | 깁니다 | 길면 | 긴 |
| 달다 | be sweet | 달아요 | 답니다 | 달면 | 단 |
| 멀다 | be far | 멀어요 | 멉니다 | 멀면 | 먼 |
| 힘들다 | be hard, tiring | 힘들어요 | 힘듭니다 | 힘들면 | 힘든 |
| 둥글다 | be round | 둥글어요 | 둥급니다 | 둥글면 | 둥근 |
| 가늘다 | be thin (narrow) | 가늘어요 | 가늡니다 | 가늘면 | 가는 |
Examples in sentences: 이 길은 멀어요 (this road is far) and 힘든 하루였어요 (it was a hard day). The audio for the adjective forms is below.
Which Endings Drop the ㄹ?
Endings that start with ㄴ, ㅂ or ㅅ drop it, and endings that start with 아/어 or another consonant keep it. Endings written with (으) lose their 으 after ㄹ first, so -(으)니까 behaves as a ㄴ ending and drops the ㄹ, while -(으)면 behaves as a ㅁ ending and keeps it. The table shows 12 common endings with 살다 and 만들다, so you can see the whole pattern at once.
| Ending | 살다 (live) | 만들다 (make) | ㄹ |
|---|---|---|---|
| -ㅂ니다 (formal) | 삽니다 | 만듭니다 | drops |
| -(으)세요 (honorific) | 사세요 | 만드세요 | drops |
| -는 (modifier) | 사는 | 만드는 | drops |
| -(으)ㄴ (past modifier) | 산 | 만든 | drops |
| -(으)니까 (because) | 사니까 | 만드니까 | drops |
| -ㄴ다 (plain present, writing) | 산다 | 만든다 | drops |
| -아요/어요 (polite present) | 살아요 | 만들어요 | stays |
| -아서/어서 (because, so) | 살아서 | 만들어서 | stays |
| -고 (and) | 살고 | 만들고 | stays |
| -지만 (but) | 살지만 | 만들지만 | stays |
| -(으)면 (if) | 살면 | 만들면 | stays |
| -(으)ㄹ 거예요 (future) | 살 거예요 | 만들 거예요 | stays (absorbed) |
A memory aid: the trigger ㄴ starts -는, -(으)ㄴ, -(으)니까 and -ㄴ다, the trigger ㅂ starts -ㅂ니다, and the trigger ㅅ starts -(으)세요 and -(으)십시오 (사십시오). The meaning and use of the formal style are in formal conjugation, and noun-modifying forms are in noun-modifying forms. One more rule explains why 살면 has no 으.
Why Do ㄹ Stems Skip the 으?
ㄹ stems skip the linking 으 because ㄹ stems behave like vowel stems for endings that begin with 으. Korean endings such as -(으)면, -(으)ㄹ 거예요 and -(으)ㄹ까요 add 으 only after a consonant stem, so 먹 + 으면 gives 먹으면. A stem ending in ㄹ takes the short form: 살면, not 살으면.
| Ending | Consonant stem 먹다 | ㄹ stem 살다 | ㄹ stem 만들다 |
|---|---|---|---|
| -(으)면 | 먹으면 | 살면 | 만들면 |
| -(으)ㄹ 거예요 | 먹을 거예요 | 살 거예요 | 만들 거예요 |
| -(으)ㄹ까요 | 먹을까요 | 살까요 | 만들까요 |
The 으 skip rule is one line: after an ㄹ stem, leave out 으. In -(으)ㄹ endings, the stem's ㄹ and the ending's ㄹ merge into one. The forms 살으면 and 살을 거예요 are errors. Beyond the skipped 으, learners must avoid one false friend.
Which Stems Only Look Like ㄹ Stems?
Stems whose final cluster has ㄹ plus another consonant are not ㄹ stems and do not drop. 넓다 (to be wide), 짧다 (to be short), 읽다 (to read), 젊다 (to be young) and 삶다 (to boil) all contain ㄹ in the final cluster. They behave like consonant stems, so the formal ending is -습니다, not -ㅂ니다.
| Dictionary form | Meaning | Formal present | If (-(으)면) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 넓다 | be wide | 넓습니다 | 넓으면 |
| 짧다 | be short | 짧습니다 | 짧으면 |
| 읽다 | read | 읽습니다 | 읽으면 |
| 젊다 | be young | 젊습니다 | 젊으면 |
| 삶다 | boil | 삶습니다 | 삶으면 |
Spoken forms differ from spellings for these words: 넓다 is [널따], 짧다 [짤따], 읽다 [익따], 젊다 [점따] and 삶다 [삼따]. In 넓다 and 짧다 the ㄹ is the sound that is spoken, while in 읽다, 젊다 and 삶다 the other consonant is spoken. For conjugation, use the rule of thumb: if the stem ends in a single ㄹ, it is a ㄹ-drop word; if the ㄹ sits with another consonant in a cluster, it behaves like a consonant stem. The page regular verbs that look irregular collects these traps. Finally, the label itself.
Is the ㄹ Drop a Regular Rule?
In Korean school grammar (학교문법), the ㄹ drop (ㄹ 탈락) is a regular rule, because it applies to every stem that ends in a single ㄹ. English-language learner materials and this site list it with the irregular classes. The forms are the same in every book, so the label does not change what you say. The label note is repeated on the main Korean irregular verbs hub.
Dictionary pages list every form of a word, with audio and example sentences:
- 팔다 (to sell): palda conjugation
- 알다 (to know): alda conjugation
- 살다 (to live): salda conjugation
- 열다 (to open): yeolda conjugation
- 들다 (to hold, to lift): deulda conjugation
- 만들다 (to make): mandeulda conjugation
- 울다 (to cry): ulda conjugation
- 놀다 (to play): nolda conjugation
A ㄹ irregular word is easiest to learn in the formal and modifier forms, so practise 삽니다, 사는, 만드는 and 아세요 aloud until the missing ㄹ feels natural.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is 살다 삽니다 but 살아요? The ㄹ drops only before the sounds ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ. The formal ending -ㅂ니다 starts with ㅂ, so 살 becomes 사 and the result is 삽니다. The polite ending 아요 starts with a vowel, which does not trigger the drop, so the ㄹ stays: 살아요. Both forms are correct and standard.
Is 넓다 an ㄹ irregular word? No. 넓다 (to be wide) ends in the cluster ㄼ, so it behaves like a consonant stem and keeps its ㄹ. The formal form is 넓습니다 [널씀니다], not 넙니다, and the if form is 넓으면. The same holds for 짧다, 읽다, 젊다 and 삶다. Only stems that end in a single ㄹ drop it.
How do I use ㄹ words before a noun? Verbs drop the ㄹ and add 는: 사는 (living), 만드는 (making), 노는 (playing), as in 만드는 사람 (the person who makes). Adjectives drop the ㄹ and add ㄴ: 긴 (long), 먼 (far), 단 (sweet). The future modifier keeps the ㄹ: 살 and 만들. These forms are taught in the modifier lessons.
Is the ㄹ drop an irregular? In Korean school grammar it is a regular rule, because it applies to every stem ending in a single ㄹ. Learner books often list it with the irregular classes, since the polite-present recipe does not predict it. The forms are identical in every book, so the label changes nothing in what you say.
Which ㄹ words should a beginner learn first? Start with 살다, 알다, 만들다, 팔다, 놀다, 열다 and 울다, plus the adjectives 길다 and 멀다. They are common in the first weeks of lessons on home, work and daily routines. Learn their formal forms (삽니다, 압니다, 만듭니다) early, because that is where the ㄹ disappears.