Key Facts
- Hangul: 앉다 (anda)
- Meaning: to sit
- Level: A1
- Stem: 앉
- Conjugation class: regular
- Object marking: intransitive
What Does 앉다 Mean?
The usual pairing is 의자에 앉다, where the seat is a place marked by 에. 앉다 is intransitive and never takes an object. A very common use is the polite request 앉으세요 (please sit). When you want to describe the state of sitting rather than the act, use 앉아 있다.
Think of the pair 앉다 and 일어나다 as the two halves of a short story: someone sits, someone gets up. Because 앉다 only marks movement into a seat, the phrase 앉아 있다 is the natural way to describe how a person is sitting right now. When you speak to a guest, 앉으세요 is the courteous choice and also the one you will hear most in shops, offices and homes. The place after 에 can be any seat: a chair, the floor or a bench.
How Do You Pronounce 앉다?
The dictionary form is read [안따]: the cluster ㄵ is reduced to ㄴ before a consonant, and the following ㄷ becomes tense. Before a vowel both letters are heard, with ㅈ moving to the next syllable, so 앉아요 sounds like [안자요] and 앉으세요 like [안즈세요].
How Do You Use 앉다 in a Sentence?
여기 앉아요.
Sit here.
앉아요 with 여기 (here) gives a short invitation, 'Sit here.' The place word stands alone, with no particle.
우리는 의자에 앉았어요.
We sat on the chairs.
앉았어요 with 우리는 as subject and 의자에 as the seat. This is the 에 pattern that the mistake below warns about.
여기에 앉으면 잘 보여요.
If you sit here, you can see well.
앉으면 sets up a condition, and 잘 보여요 names the reward: a good view. It is a natural way to recommend a seat.
How Does Anda Conjugation Work?
앉 ends in a two-consonant cluster but is fully regular: 앉 + 아요 gives 앉아요, 앉 + 았어요 gives 앉았어요, and 앉 + 으면 gives 앉으면. The dictionary form is pronounced [안따], because only one consonant of the cluster is heard before 다.
앉다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 앉아요 | ||
| Polite past | 앉았어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 앉을 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 앉겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 앉습니다 | ||
| Formal past | 앉았습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 앉을 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 앉아 | ||
| Casual past | 앉았어 | ||
| Casual future | 앉을 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 앉고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 앉으세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 앉아서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 앉으면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 앉는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 앉은 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 앉을 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 앉아요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 앉지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 앉아요 | [안자요] |
| Polite past | 앉았어요 | [안자써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 앉을 거예요 | [안즐꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 앉겠어요 | [안께써요] |
| Formal present | 앉습니다 | [안씀니다] |
| Formal past | 앉았습니다 | [안잗씀니다] |
| Formal future | 앉을 것입니다 | [안즐꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 앉아 | [안자] |
| Casual past | 앉았어 | [안자써] |
| Casual future | 앉을 거야 | [안즐꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 앉고 싶어요 | [안꼬 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 앉으세요 | [안즈세요] |
| Because / and then | 앉아서 | [안자서] |
| If (conditional) | 앉으면 | [안즈면] |
| Present modifier | 앉는 | [안는] |
| Past modifier | 앉은 | [안즌] |
| Future modifier | 앉을 | [안즐] |
| Short negative | 안 앉아요 | [안 안자요] |
| Long negative | 앉지 않아요 | [안찌 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 의자를 앉아요
Correct: ✓ 의자에 앉아요
Why: 앉다 takes no direct object, so the seat is marked with 에, not 을/를. English says 'sit on a chair', so learners treat the chair as an object and add 를. Korean treats the seat as a location, which takes 에, because 앉다 has no object slot at all.
How It Differs from Similar Words
| Word | How to tell it from 앉다 |
|---|---|
| 서다 | 앉다 is to sit down; 서다 is to stand. To get up from a seat, use 일어나다 or 일어서다. |
| 앉아 있다 | 앉다 is the act of sitting down; 앉아 있다 describes the state of being seated. Say 앉았어요 to report that someone sat down, and 앉아 있다 for 'is sitting'. |
Choosing a Seat at a Café
Two friends choose between an empty table and seats by the window.
Mina
여기 앉아요.
Yeogi anjayo.
Let’s sit here.
Alex
저는 창가에 앉고 싶어요.
Jeoneun changgae ango sipeoyo.
I want to sit by the window.
Mina
좋아요. 그럼 창가에 앉아요.
Joayo. Geureom changgae anjayo.
Okay. Then let’s sit by the window.
Alex
네, 먼저 앉으세요.
Ne, meonjeo anjeuseyo.
Sure. Please sit down first.
The first 앉아요 is a suggestion between companions. Alex then uses 앉고 싶어요 to express a preference, and 앉으세요 invites the other person to sit first. The same verb can suggest an action, express a wish or make a courteous request. The endings and the situation tell you which job it is doing.
Sitting down, Staying Seated and Choosing a Seat
앉아 있다 describes remaining seated after sitting down. The space matters: 앉아 and 있다 are separate words. A photograph of people already in chairs calls for that state expression, while an instruction to take a seat calls for 앉다. The past 앉았어요 can also imply that the person is seated now when the context makes that clear.
A seat normally takes 에, as in 의자에 앉다. You can also name a position rather than a piece of furniture: 창가에 앉다 means to sit by the window, and 옆에 앉다 means to sit beside someone or something. The listener needs context to know whose side is meant. At a café, pointing to the chair can supply it.
마주 앉다 means to sit facing each other. The word 마주 supplies the face-to-face arrangement; 앉다 itself only names the sitting action. 나란히 앉다 means to sit side by side. These are literal, useful combinations for describing a restaurant table, a classroom photograph or two people on a bench.
Where Will You Hear 앉으세요?
A doctor, host or office receptionist may say 앉으세요 when inviting a visitor to sit. Adding 먼저, “first”, lets someone take a seat before you do. The request is polite without needing a special replacement verb. 앉아 is a casual instruction for someone you already speak casually to; it can sound abrupt to a stranger.
In a classroom, 모두 앉으세요 asks everyone to sit down. 모두 means everyone, and the verb does not acquire a plural ending. At home or in a floor-seating restaurant, the seat may be a cushion or the floor. The verb does not require a Western-style chair.
Words That Help You Describe the Seat
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 의자 | chair | The furniture: 의자에 앉다. |
| 자리 | seat / place | A spot someone can occupy, even without a chair. |
| 창가 | area by a window | Gives a seating preference in a café or restaurant. |
| 일어서다 | to stand up | Describes rising from a seated position. |
The classroom word lesson teaches furniture and room words you can use with seating instructions. 자리 is especially useful when choosing where to sit; 의자 identifies the actual chair.
Mini Drill: Preserve the Spelling 앉
- Make the polite past of 앉다.
- Complete “sit on a chair”: 의자____ 앉아요.
- Give the polite request “please sit down”.
- Which spelling belongs before a vowel: 앉아요 or 안아요?
Show drill answers
- 앉았어요.
- 에: 의자에 앉아요.
- 앉으세요.
- 앉아요. Keep ㄵ in the spelling; 안아요 belongs to 안다, “to hug”.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 앉아 있다 describe taking a seat or remaining seated?
- Which phrase means sitting face to face: 마주 앉다 or 나란히 앉다?
- Must a person be sitting on a chair for 앉다 to fit?
Show answers
- Remaining seated.
- 마주 앉다. 나란히 앉다 means sitting side by side.
- No. A person can sit on the floor, a cushion or another surface.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Tell Someone to Sit?
Use 앉으세요 (please sit down). It is the standard polite request you will hear from hosts, doctors and shop staff.
Can 앉다 Take 를?
No. 앉다 is intransitive. The seat or place takes 에, as in 의자에 앉아요.
How Do I Say 'Is Sitting' Rather than 'Sat Down'?
Use 앉아 있다. Plain 앉았어요 means the act of sitting down happened.
What Does 앉으면 Mean in 여기에 앉으면 잘 보여요?
It means 'if you sit', and the sentence 여기에 앉으면 잘 보여요 says the view is good from that seat.
Which Words Are Related to 앉다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Continue with 서다 and 일어나다 so that you can describe the full cycle of sitting and standing.
Continue with 서다 and 일어나다 so that you can describe the full cycle of sitting and standing; the rule behind this page is in polite present recipe, and any form can be checked in the Korean verb conjugator, the full list is in the Korean verb dictionary.