Key Facts
- Hangul: 배우다 (baeuda)
- Meaning: to learn
- Level: A1
- Stem: 배우
- Conjugation class: regular
- Object marking: transitive
What Does 배우다 Mean?
Typical objects are a language or a skill, as in 한국어를 배우다 and 운전을 배우다 (to learn to drive). The thing learned takes 을/를, and the teacher is marked with 에게서, 한테서 or the respectful 께. The learner is always the subject, as in 선생님께 한국어를 배워요 (I learn Korean from my teacher).
The example sentences below show three typical goals: a language, a skill such as the piano, and new words. They also show three different forms in action: the plain polite present, the past, and the want-to form. If you can say all three with different objects you already control the core of the verb. Add 께 or 에게서 when you want to name the teacher, and your sentence will sound complete.
How Do You Pronounce 배우다?
배우다 is read as written, bae-u-da, in three syllables. ㅐ is an open "e" as in "bed", and ㅜ is a rounded "oo". In 배워요 the ㅜ glides into ㅓ, so 워 is one syllable, wo.
How Do You Use 배우다 in a Sentence?
저는 한국어를 배워요.
I am learning Korean.
배워요 with 한국어를: an ongoing study, which English renders as 'I am learning'.
어제 새 단어를 배웠어요.
I learned new words yesterday.
배웠어요 with 새 단어를 (new words) and 어제: a single completed occasion of learning.
저는 피아노를 배우고 싶어요.
I want to learn the piano.
배우고 싶어요 turns the verb into a wish, with 피아노를 as the thing to learn.
How Does Baeuda Conjugation Work?
The stem 배우 ends in ㅜ. Before 어 the ㅜ and ㅓ merge into 워, so 배우 + 어요 becomes 배워요 and the past is 배웠어요. The uncontracted 배우어요 is rarely used. Other endings leave the stem alone: 배웁니다, 배우세요, 배우는.
배우다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 배워요 | ||
| Polite past | 배웠어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 배울 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 배우겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 배웁니다 | ||
| Formal past | 배웠습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 배울 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 배워 | ||
| Casual past | 배웠어 | ||
| Casual future | 배울 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 배우고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 배우세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 배워서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 배우면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 배우는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 배운 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 배울 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 배워요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 배우지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 배웠어요 | [배워써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 배울 거예요 | [배울꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 배우겠어요 | [배우게써요] |
| Formal present | 배웁니다 | [배움니다] |
| Formal past | 배웠습니다 | [배웓씀니다] |
| Formal future | 배울 것입니다 | [배울꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 배웠어 | [배워써] |
| Casual future | 배울 거야 | [배울꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 배우고 싶어요 | [배우고 시퍼요] |
| Long negative | 배우지 않아요 | [배우지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 선생님께 한국어를 가르쳐요 (meaning 'I learn from my teacher')
Correct: ✓ 선생님께 한국어를 배워요
Why: 가르치다 means to teach, so the wrong sentence says 'I teach Korean to my teacher'. Some learners reach for 가르치다 whenever the teacher is mentioned. Remember who the subject is: the learner is the subject of 배우다, so 'I learn Korean from my teacher' is 선생님께 한국어를 배워요.
How It Differs from Similar Words
| Word | How to tell it from 배우다 |
|---|---|
| 가르치다 | 배우다 is to learn; 가르치다 is to teach. If you are the student, use 배우다. |
| 공부하다 | 배우다 stresses being taught a skill or subject; 공부하다 is the effort of studying, often on your own, such as revising for a test. |
Talking after a Piano Lesson
Two classmates talk about a new hobby after a lesson.
Jisu
요즘 뭘 배워요?
Yojeum mwol baewoyo?
What are you learning these days?
Alex
피아노를 배워요. 어제 새 곡을 배웠어요.
Pianoreul baewoyo. Eoje sae gogeul baewosseoyo.
I’m learning piano. Yesterday I learned a new piece.
Jisu
저도 배우고 싶어요.
Jeodo baeugo sipeoyo.
I want to learn too.
The question asks about an ongoing activity, so 배워요 is natural. Alex's next sentence switches to 배웠어요 for yesterday's lesson. Jisu uses 배우고 싶어요 for a wish. Learning a new piece yesterday does not necessarily mean mastering it; the sentence reports what the lesson covered.
Useful Combinations with 배우다
운전을 배우다 means to learn to drive. 피아노를 배우다 means to learn piano. The objects name the skill or instrument, and Korean does not need a separate verb meaning “play” inside this learning pattern. A language works the same way: 한국어를 배우다 identifies Korean as the subject learned.
보고 배우다 means to learn by watching. The learner observes someone else's actions and learns from them, perhaps while cooking or doing a task at work. It is a literal combination, not an idiom about eyesight. A teacher is one possible source of learning, but the verb also fits demonstrations, books and experience.
한 수 배우다 literally means to learn one move, as in a game. More broadly, it means to learn something from someone else's skill or expertise. A speaker may use it modestly after meeting a capable opponent or seeing a better way to do something. It does not mean enrolling in exactly one lesson.
Where Will You Hear 배워요?
At a language exchange, 한국어를 배워요 tells the other person what you are learning. In an introductory conversation, the verb can describe a hobby class as readily as schoolwork. It does not promise fluency or expertise, so you can use it while you are still at the beginning.
A teacher may ask what students learned in the previous lesson. 배웠어요 reports material already introduced; practising it afterward is 연습하다, and revisiting it is 복습하다. These are different activities. You can have learned a pattern in class and still need practice before using it easily in conversation.
When naming a respected teacher as the source, 께 is appropriate. That respect marker belongs to the teacher, while the verb still describes the learner's action. If you are talking about your own learning, ordinary 배워요 is enough; 배우세요 honors the person who learns, rather than automatically honoring the teacher.
Vocabulary for a Lesson and What Follows It
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 가르치다 | to teach | The teacher supplies the instruction. |
| 연습하다 | to practise | Repeats a skill to improve performance. |
| 복습하다 | to review | Returns to material already learned. |
| 수업 | class / lesson | Names the teaching session rather than the learning action. |
The classroom vocabulary lesson gives you words for lessons and teachers. For the dialogue's instrument names, continue with musical instruments.
What Makes the Spelling Tricky?
배워요 has 워 because ㅜ meets 어. 배우면 and 배우는 keep 우 because their endings do not trigger that contraction. In the wish 배우고 싶어요, keep 배우고 and 싶어요 separate. The noun 배우 also means “actor”, but in 배우다 the syllables 배우 are the verb stem; the rest of the sentence tells you which word you are seeing.
Mini Drill: from 배우 to 배워
- Give the normal polite present of 배우다.
- Change that form to the polite past.
- Complete “if you learn”: 배우다 → ____.
- Choose the learner's verb: 가르치다 or 배우다.
Show drill answers
- 배워요.
- 배웠어요.
- 배우면. The 우 remains here.
- 배우다. 가르치다 describes teaching.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 배웠어요 guarantee that someone has mastered the skill?
- Which word means revisiting material already learned?
- In 선생님께 한국어를 배워요, who receives the respect expressed by 께?
Show answers
- No. It reports learning, without promising mastery.
- 복습하다.
- The teacher, who is the source of the learning.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say 'I Want to Learn the Piano'?
Use 배우고 싶어요: 저는 피아노를 배우고 싶어요.
Why Is It 배워요 and Not 배우어요?
ㅜ followed by 어 contracts into 워, so the normal form is 배워요; 배우어요 is grammatical but rarely used.
Who Is Marked with 께?
The teacher, when you want to be respectful: 선생님께 한국어를 배워요.
Is 배우다 the Same as 공부하다?
Not quite. 공부하다 is the act of studying, often on your own, while 배우다 stresses learning from a teacher, a class or another source. For a skill like driving or the piano, 배우다 is the natural verb.
Which Words Are Related to 배우다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Look at 가르치다 as the mirror image, and 복습하다 for going over what you have learned.
Look at 가르치다 as the mirror image, and 복습하다 for going over what you have learned; 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.