Key Facts
- Hangul: 보이다 (boida)
- Meaning: to be seen
- Level: A2
- Part of speech: verb
- Stem: 보이
- Conjugation class: regular
- Grammar: The thing seen takes 이/가 (바다가 보여요); the viewer is not marked as the object.
- Usage: Very common. Pattern adjective + 아/어 보이다 means 'looks ...'.
What Does 보이다 Mean?
The first sense is visibility: 바다가 보이다 means the sea is in view. What is seen takes 이/가, and the viewer is not marked as the object. The second sense follows an adjective: 피곤해 보여요 means looks tired.
The pattern adjective + 아/어 보이다 is how Korean says looks.
Senses:
- to be seen: Something is visible: 바다가 보이다.
- to look, seem: After an adjective stem it means 'looks': 피곤해 보여요.
How Do You Pronounce 보이다?
보이다 is read as written. Before 어 the stem 보이 contracts to 보여, so the polite present is 보여요 and the past is 보였어요.
How Do You Use 보이다 in a Sentence?
창문으로 바다가 보여요.
You can see the sea from the window.
창문으로 means through the window, 바다가 is the sea as subject, and 보여요 says it can be seen.
산이 잘 보였어요.
The mountain was clearly visible.
Here 잘 means clearly, not well, and 보였어요 puts the clear view in the past.
큰 건물이 보이면 오른쪽으로 가세요.
If you see a big building, turn right.
The conditional 보이면 sets up a landmark for directions; 가세요 is the polite instruction that follows.
How Does Boida Conjugation Work?
The stem 보이 ends in ㅣ, so 아/어 endings contract it to 여: 보여요, 보였어요, 보여서. Consonant endings leave it alone (보이면). The table omits -고 싶다 for the visibility sense, which normally describes something coming into view rather than an action someone chooses.
보이다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 보여요 | ||
| Polite past | 보였어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 보일 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 보이겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 보입니다 | ||
| Formal past | 보였습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 보일 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 보여 | ||
| Casual past | 보였어 | ||
| Casual future | 보일 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 보이세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 보여서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 보이면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 보이는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 보인 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 보일 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 보여요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 보이지 않아요 |
For the visibility sense in this table, -고 싶다 is not normally used to describe the object coming into view.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 보였어요 | [보여써요] |
| Polite future | 보일 거예요 | [보일꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 보이겠어요 | [보이게써요] |
| Formal present | 보입니다 | [보임니다] |
| Formal past | 보였습니다 | [보엳씀니다] |
| Formal future | 보일 것입니다 | [보일꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 보였어 | [보여써] |
| Casual future | 보일 거야 | [보일꺼야] |
| Long negative | 보이지 않아요 | [보이지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 바다를 보여요
Correct: ✓ 바다가 보여요
Why: Learners translate see directly and use 을/를. Because 보이다 means is visible, the thing seen is its subject and takes 이/가.
What Are the Two Main Patterns of 보이다?
Place or thing plus 이/가 plus 보여요 describes a view, as in 바다가 보여요. An adjective plus 아/어 plus 보여요 describes appearance, so 피곤해 보여요 tells someone they look tired. Directions use the first pattern: 큰 건물이 보이면 오른쪽으로 가세요.
들리다 does the same job for sound: something is heard without anyone trying to listen. 느끼다 (to feel) belongs to the same group of perception verbs.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 보이다?
| Word | How to tell it from 보이다 |
|---|---|
| 보다 | 보다 is looking at something on purpose, with 을/를. |
| 보여주다 | 보여주다 is showing something to someone. |
| 들리다 | 들리다 is the hearing counterpart: sounds that can be heard. |
Checking the View from a Hotel Room
Two guests are looking through their hotel window. They compare what is visible now with what they could see the previous day.
Jisu
여기서 바다가 보여요?
Yeogiseo badaga boyeoyo?
Can you see the sea from here?
Minho
네. 어제는 잘 안 보였어요.
Ne. Eojeneun jal an boyeosseoyo.
Yes. Yesterday it wasn’t clearly visible.
Jisu
바다가 보이면 사진을 찍어요.
Badaga boimyeon sajineul jjigeoyo.
Let’s take a photo if the sea is visible.
The sea is the grammatical subject in 바다가 보여요. 보였어요 describes the earlier view, while 보이면 sets a condition for taking a photograph. The English translation can naturally say “Can you see?”, even though Korean describes what is visible.
Phrases for Visibility and Appearance
잘 보여요 means that something is clearly visible. 잘 안 보여요 means that it is hard to see or not clearly visible. 잘 concerns the quality of the view here. It can describe small text, a distant landmark or a screen obscured by someone's head.
안 보여요 can mean “I can’t see it” in the immediate situation. The sentence does not diagnose a problem with your eyesight. The object may simply be hidden, too far away or outside your view. Add the thing you are discussing when the listener cannot tell what you mean.
피곤해 보여요 means “You look tired” or “They look tired.” 어려워 보여요 means “It looks difficult.” The adjective contributes the property; 보이다 presents it as an impression. You are reporting how something appears, rather than claiming direct knowledge of its condition.
맛있어 보여요 means “It looks delicious.” You can say it before tasting food. Its meaning differs from saying that the food is delicious after eating it. The appearance pattern is useful precisely because you can form an impression before you have tested the thing yourself.
Where Will You Hear 보이다?
In directions, a landmark becoming visible can signal the next step. The earlier sentence about a big building tells you when to turn. 보이면 does not require deliberately searching for the building; the direction is based on it coming into view.
In a classroom or a video call, 잘 보여요? can check whether people can see the board or screen. A listener can answer 안 보여요 if it is blocked or unclear. The exchange concerns access to the view, rather than whether anyone wants to look.
In conversation about clothes or people, the appearance pattern often makes the sentence less absolute. Saying someone looks tired reports an impression, but it can still be a personal remark. The grammar does not automatically make a comment about someone's face or body welcome.
What Makes 보이다 Tricky?
Keep adjective + 아/어 보이다 spaced, as in 피곤해 보여요. The first part describes the apparent state, and 보이다 supplies “look” or “seem”. Compare that structure with 바다가 보여요, where a noun and its subject particle name the visible thing. The two uses share the same conjugated verb.
The contraction is 보이 + 어요 → 보여요. Before 면, the stem stays 보이, giving 보이면. Before a noun, 보이는 describes what is visible: 보이는 곳 is a place that can be seen. Changing the ending can therefore move from a full statement to a condition or a noun description.
The table focuses on visibility and appearance. Korean also has a “show” use of 보이다 that can take an object. For a beginner saying “show someone a photo”, the related verb 보여주다 makes that intention clear. The subject-marker rule applies to the visibility sense.
보다 and 보이다 can describe the same scene from different angles. With 보다, the person sees or watches something marked with 을/를. With visibility 보이다, the thing in view takes 이/가. English “I can see the sea” does not force you to use the same grammatical structure in Korean.
Words for Views and Impressions
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 창문 | window | 창문으로 describes a view through a window. |
| 바다 | sea | 바다가 is the subject in a visibility sentence. |
| 풍경 | scenery | Names the wider scene in a view. |
| 들리다 | to be heard | A parallel verb for sound reaching you. |
The travel vocabulary lesson gives words for places and views you may describe with 보이다.
Mini Drill: Choose the Visible Thing
- Complete “The sea is visible”: 바다____ 보여요.
- Give the polite past of 보이다.
- Give the conditional “if it is visible”.
- Use the short negative to say it is not visible.
Show drill answers
- 바다가 보여요.
- 보였어요.
- 보이면.
- 안 보여요.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 맛있어 보여요 mean you have already tasted the food?
- Does 안 보여요 always describe poor eyesight?
- Which related verb clearly means showing something to someone?
Show answers
- No. It reports that the food looks delicious.
- No. Something may be hidden, distant or unclear.
- 보여주다.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Does 피곤해 보여요 Mean?
It means you look tired. An adjective + 아/어 + 보이다 says how someone or something looks, so 피곤해 보여요 is said to a person who seems tired.
Does 보이다 Take 을/를?
For the visibility meaning taught here, what can be seen is the subject and takes 이/가 (바다가 보여요). A separate use of 보이다 means to show and can take an object; 보여주다 is also useful for that meaning.
How Do I Say the Sea Is Visible?
바다가 보여요. With the viewpoint added: 창문으로 바다가 보여요, you can see the sea from the window.
Why Is There No 'Want to' Form?
The table teaches visibility, where -고 싶다 is not normally used for the thing coming into view. Other uses of 보이다, such as deliberately showing something, have different patterns.
Which Words Are Related to 보이다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Continue with 보다 to contrast looking with being visible, and 보여주다 for showing. polite present recipe explains the contraction, the Korean verb conjugator checks other stems, and the Korean verb dictionary lists the family.