Key Facts
- Hangul: 보다 (boda)
- Meaning: to see/watch
- Level: A1
- Stem: 보
- Conjugation class: regular
- Object marking: transitive
What Does 보다 Mean?
The core sense is pointing your eyes at something: 영화를 보다. Two extensions are worth learning early. 시험을 보다 means to take an exam, and 텔레비전을 보다 is the ordinary way to say you watch television. In casual use 보다 can also mean to see or meet someone, but for an arranged meeting 만나다 is the safer verb. What you look at takes 을/를, as in 영화를 봐요.
Because 보다 is so flexible, context decides the meaning. With 영화 or 텔레비전 it is watching, with 시험 it is taking a test, and with a person it leans toward meeting. Learners who only know it as 'see' are often surprised when a Korean speaker uses it for an exam. When in doubt, check the object first: it tells you which sense is meant. The verb itself never changes between them, which makes it a good first verb for practising the 을/를 pattern.
How Do You Pronounce 보다?
보다 is read as written, boda. The ㅗ is a rounded "o", and the ㄷ of 다 after a vowel is lightly voiced. In the polite present the two vowels glide together, so 봐요 is one syllable plus 요, said bwa-yo.
How Do You Use 보다 in a Sentence?
저는 저녁에 영화를 봐요.
I watch a movie in the evening.
봐요 with 영화를 and the time phrase 저녁에: a habit or a current plan, with the film marked as the object.
어제 친구를 봤어요.
I saw my friend yesterday.
봤어요 with a person as the object. Here 친구를 보다 is the casual 'see/meet' sense, and 어제 places it yesterday.
이 책을 보면 알 수 있어요.
If you look at this book, you'll understand.
보면 means 'if you look at', so the book is what is looked at. The second half, 알 수 있어요, shows seeing leading to understanding.
How Does Boda Conjugation Work?
The stem 보 ends in ㅗ, so the ending takes 아, and the two vowels merge into one syllable: 보 + 아요 becomes 봐요, and the past is 봤어요. Before consonant endings the stem is left alone: 봅니다 (formal), 보는 (before a noun), 보면 (if). Nothing else is irregular.
보다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 봐요 | ||
| Polite past | 봤어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 볼 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 보겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 봅니다 | ||
| Formal past | 봤습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 볼 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 봐 | ||
| Casual past | 봤어 | ||
| Casual future | 볼 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 보고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 보세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 봐서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 보면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 보는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 본 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 볼 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 봐요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 보지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 봤어요 | [봐써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 볼 거예요 | [볼꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 보겠어요 | [보게써요] |
| Formal present | 봅니다 | [봄니다] |
| Formal past | 봤습니다 | [봗씀니다] |
| Formal future | 볼 것입니다 | [볼꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 봤어 | [봐써] |
| Casual future | 볼 거야 | [볼꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 보고 싶어요 | [보고 시퍼요] |
| Long negative | 보지 않아요 | [보지 아나요] |
Honorific and Humble Forms
The honorific polite form is 보세요, built on the special honorific verb 보시다. The humble partner is 뵙다, used when you see or meet a senior (뵙겠습니다). They point in opposite directions: 보시다 raises the other person's looking, while 뵙다 lowers your own act of meeting.
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 보어요
Correct: ✓ 봐요
Why: The stem vowel ㅗ takes 아, and 보 + 아요 contracts to 봐요 in normal speech; 보어요 is wrong. Learners who have seen many 어요 forms add 어요 here too. The vowel in 보 is ㅗ, which calls for 아; the uncontracted form with 아 still appears in writing, but 봐요 is what people say.
How It Differs from Similar Words
| Word | How to tell it from 보다 |
|---|---|
| 만나다 | 보다 is to see or look; 만나다 is to meet someone by arrangement. 보다 with a person is the casual 'see', as in seeing a friend. |
| 뵙다 | 뵙다 is the humble 'see/meet' for a senior (뵙겠습니다); the honorific of 보다 is 보시다. 뵙다 lowers you, 보시다 raises the other person, so they are not interchangeable. |
Choosing a Film for Tonight
Two friends are deciding whether to watch a film together.
Jisu
이 영화 봤어요?
I yeonghwa bwasseoyo?
Have you seen this film?
Alex
아니요. 오늘 볼 거예요.
Aniyo. Oneul bol geoyeyo.
No. I’m going to watch it today.
Jisu
저도 보고 싶어요. 같이 봐요.
Jeodo bogo sipeoyo. Gachi bwayo.
I want to see it too. Let’s watch it together.
봤어요 asks about a past viewing, 볼 거예요 gives a plan, and 보고 싶어요 expresses a wish. The final 같이 봐요 is an invitation. With 영화 already established, the speakers do not need to repeat it in every line. The object still matters for interpreting 보고 싶어요: here it means wanting to watch the film.
Common Expressions with 보다
보고 싶어요 has two familiar readings. With a film or a place, it means “I want to see it”. When the person you want to see is someone you miss, it can mean “I miss you” or “I miss them”. Korean uses the wish to see the person to express that feeling; it does not need a separate object meaning “longing”.
장을 보다 means to shop for groceries or everyday provisions. 장 here is connected with shopping and the market, so a literal translation like “see the market” misses the action. Buying ingredients for dinner fits this phrase. Shopping for clothes is more naturally described with shopping or buying vocabulary, rather than assuming 장 covers every purchase.
시험을 보다 means to take an exam. Korean describes the examinee's activity with 보다, even though English does not say “see an exam”. The noun supplies this meaning. A sentence about a television program and one about a test can use exactly the same conjugated verb with very different English translations.
Where Will You Hear 보세요?
A teacher pointing to a diagram may use 보세요 to direct your attention. A shop assistant can use the same form when showing an item. In both situations the other person is doing the looking. 뵙다 belongs to respectful meetings with people, so it is not the replacement to use when someone looks at a product or a board.
In entertainment talk, 드라마를 보다 means to watch a drama. In a message between friends, seeing or meeting someone can also use 보다. Context tells you whether the speaker means looking at an image, watching a program or spending time with a person. Naming the object prevents ambiguity when the conversation changes topic.
Words for Watching, Appearing and Meeting
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 보이다 | to be visible / be seen | Describes what comes into view. |
| 만나다 | to meet | Makes the meeting sense explicit. |
| 영화 | film | A common object of 보다. |
| 드라마 | television drama | Also takes 를 with 보다. |
The movies and TV vocabulary lesson gives you program words to use with 봐요 and 봤어요. Keep the difference between an action and visibility clear: choosing to look is 보다, while something being visible is 보이다.
Mini Drill: 보 Becomes 봐
- Make 보 polite present.
- Say “watched” in the polite past.
- Give the future plan “will watch”.
- Complete the polite instruction “please look”: 보다 → ____.
Show drill answers
- 봐요, from 보 + 아요.
- 봤어요.
- 볼 거예요, with a space before 거예요.
- 보세요. The stem remains 보 before the honorific ending.
Quick Self-Test
- What activity does 장을 보다 describe?
- Can 보고 싶어요 express missing a person?
- Which verb describes meeting a senior humbly: 보시다 or 뵙다?
Show answers
- Shopping for groceries or everyday provisions.
- Yes. The person and context supply that reading.
- 뵙다. 보시다 honors the person who looks or watches.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does 보다 Mean 'Take a Test'?
Yes. 시험을 보다 is the set expression for sitting an exam, and 시험 takes 을/를 like any object of 보다.
How Do I Politely Tell Someone to Look?
Use the honorific polite form 보세요, built on the honorific verb 보시다. A teacher pointing at the board would use it.
Which Particle Goes with What I Watch?
The thing seen or watched takes 을/를, as in 영화를 봐요.
How Do I Say 'If You Look at This'?
Use 보면. The example 이 책을 보면 알 수 있어요 means 'If you look at this book, you'll understand.'
Is 뵙다 Just a More Polite 보다?
Not quite. 뵙다 is humble and only for seeing or meeting a senior, while 보다 covers every ordinary look or watch.
Which Words Are Related to 보다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Next, compare 보다 with 만나다 to separate looking from meeting, then read how 뵙다 works for seniors.
Next, compare 보다 with 만나다 to separate looking from meeting, then read how 뵙다 works for seniors; 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; see also honorific and humble verbs.