Key Facts
- Hangul: 보여주다 (boyeojuda)
- Meaning: to show
- Level: A2
- Part of speech: verb
- Stem: 보여주
- Conjugation class: regular
- Grammar: The thing shown takes 을/를 and the person takes 에게/한테 (친구에게 사진을 보여줘요).
- Usage: Humble counterpart: 보여드리다, used when showing something to someone you respect (선생님께 보여드려요).
What Does 보여주다 Mean?
The thing shown takes 을/를 and the person who sees it takes 에게 or 한테: 친구에게 사진을 보여주다. The verb is built from 보이다 and 주다.
When the viewer is someone you respect, use the humble 보여드리다, as in 선생님께 보여드려요.
How Do You Pronounce 보여주다?
The dictionary form is read as written. The stem 보여주 ends in ㅜ, so the polite present is 보여줘요 and the past 보여줬어요.
How Do You Use 보여주다 in a Sentence?
친구에게 사진을 보여줘요.
I show my friend a photo.
친구에게 marks the friend as the one who sees, and 사진을 is the photo.
동생에게 새 가방을 보여줬어요.
I showed my younger sibling my new bag.
동생에게 means to a younger sibling, and 새 가방을 is the new bag.
사진을 보여주면 좋아할 거예요.
If you show the photo, they'll like it.
보여주면 is the conditional, and the clause that follows predicts that they will like it.
How Does Boyeojuda Conjugation Work?
The stem 보여주 ends in ㅜ, so 어 endings contract with it: 보여줘요, 보여줬어요, 보여줘서. This is a regular contraction, not an irregular change. Consonant endings leave the stem alone (보여주고, 보여주면).
보여주다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 보여줘요 | ||
| Polite past | 보여줬어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 보여줄 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 보여주겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 보여줍니다 | ||
| Formal past | 보여줬습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 보여줄 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 보여줘 | ||
| Casual past | 보여줬어 | ||
| Casual future | 보여줄 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 보여주고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 보여주세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 보여줘서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 보여주면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 보여주는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 보여준 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 보여줄 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 보여줘요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 보여주지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 보여줬어요 | [보여줘써요] |
| Polite future | 보여줄 거예요 | [보여줄꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 보여주겠어요 | [보여주게써요] |
| Formal present | 보여줍니다 | [보여줌니다] |
| Formal past | 보여줬습니다 | [보여줟씀니다] |
| Formal future | 보여줄 것입니다 | [보여줄꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 보여줬어 | [보여줘써] |
| Casual future | 보여줄 거야 | [보여줄꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 보여주고 싶어요 | [보여주고 시퍼요] |
| Long negative | 보여주지 않아요 | [보여주지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 친구를 사진을 보여줘요
Correct: ✓ 친구에게 사진을 보여줘요
Why: The person who sees takes 에게/한테, and only the thing shown takes 을/를. Marking both with 를 makes the sentence ungrammatical.
How Does 보여주다 Change with the Listener?
With friends, juniors and people you treat as equals, 보여줘요 is fine. When showing something to a teacher or elder, switch to the humble 보여드려요 and mark the person with 께: 선생님께 보여드려요.
알려주다 (to tell) also marks the recipient with 에게/한테. 도와주다 (to help) uses a different pattern: the person helped takes 을/를. Sharing 주다 does not guarantee the same particles.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 보여주다?
| Word | How to tell it from 보여주다 |
|---|---|
| 보이다 | 보이다 can also mean show, but it mainly means be visible. |
| 알려주다 | 알려주다 tells or lets someone know information. |
| 가르쳐 주다 | 가르쳐 주다 teaches or explains how to do something. |
Showing a Reservation at the Counter
A guest has already shown a phone booking to another receptionist. At this counter, the staff member checks the booking and asks for a passport as well.
Receptionist
예약 화면을 보여주세요.
Yeyak hwamyeoneul boyeojuseyo.
Please show me the reservation screen.
Guest
아까 보여줬어요.
Akka boyeojwosseoyo.
I showed it a moment ago.
Receptionist
네. 여권도 보여주세요.
Ne. Yeogwondo boyeojuseyo.
Okay. Please show me your passport too.
보여주세요 is a request, while 보여줬어요 reports an earlier action. 아까 means “a moment ago” or “earlier.” 도 adds “too” to 여권. The viewer is clear from the counter situation, so the speakers can leave out “to me” and “to you.”
Which Things Do People Commonly 보여주다?
사진을 보여주다 is to show a photograph, and 화면을 보여주다 is to show a screen. The screen may be on a phone or computer. The verb does not say whether you send a file, hold up a phone, or turn a monitor around; the situation supplies that detail.
신분증을 보여주다 means to show identification. You can hear a request for this at an entrance or service counter. It asks to see the document, rather than necessarily to keep it. A passport is 여권, and a reservation is 예약. These nouns make the same verb useful during travel.
실력을 보여주다 means to show your ability. Nothing needs to be held in your hand: a performance or a good result lets others see what you can do. 본보기를 보여주다 means to set an example. Here “show” concerns conduct that others can follow, rather than a picture or object.
Who Is Respected: the Viewer or the Person Showing?
보여주세요 can be a polite request to the person doing the showing. 보여드려요 is the humble choice when you show something to a respected viewer. These forms handle two different roles, so choose by who is acting and who receives the action.
A teacher asking a student for a drawing can use 보여주세요. A student showing a drawing to the teacher can use 보여드려요. In the second case, 께 marks the respected recipient. The humble verb lowers the speaker’s action relative to that recipient; it does not mean the picture is especially valuable.
The earlier advice about a teacher or elder applies when that person is the viewer. Simply having an older listener does not make every use of 보여주다 humble. If you tell an older colleague that you showed a photo to your own younger sibling, the recipient is still your sibling.
What Makes the Spelling and Contraction Tricky?
보여줘요 contains two stages: 보여 is already part of the dictionary form, and the final 주 contracts with 어 to give 줘. Keep the first part intact when changing the tense. The past is 보여줬어요, with the past marker in the final part, rather than on 보다 at the beginning.
보여주다 is a dictionary word and can be written together as on this page. In a request, 보여주세요 is also written together. A separate expression such as 가르쳐 주다 has its own spacing pattern; seeing 주다 in both does not mean you should split every longer verb in the same place.
Short and long negatives keep the whole verb together: 안 보여줘요 and 보여주지 않아요. The first has a space after 안. Both mean that someone does not show something. They differ from not being able to see it: a thing can be visible even if nobody deliberately presents it.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 화면 | screen | What a receptionist may ask you to turn toward them. |
| 사진 | photo | A common object of 보여주다. |
| 신분증 | identification | A document you may need to show at an entrance. |
| 여권 | passport | A specific identification document used for travel. |
Find more phone and screen words in Korean technology vocabulary, and travel documents in airport vocabulary.
Can 보여주다 Mean Teach?
Showing can be part of teaching: a person demonstrates a movement so another person can copy it. 보여주다 focuses on making the action visible. 가르쳐 주다 focuses on teaching the skill or explaining it. A demonstration may do both, but showing a finished drawing does not itself promise a drawing lesson.
Mini Drill: Choose the Showing Form
- Give the polite past of 보여주다.
- Ask politely: “Please show me.”
- Fill the recipient marker: 친구___ 사진을 보여줘요.
- Choose the humble verb for showing something to your teacher.
Show drill answers
- 보여줬어요.
- 보여주세요.
- 친구에게, or 친구한테 in everyday speech.
- 보여드리다; 선생님께 보여드려요.
Quick Self-Test
- What takes 을/를: the viewer or the thing shown?
- Does 화면을 보여주다 necessarily mean send a file?
- What is the difference between 보여주세요 and 보여드려요?
Show answers
- The thing shown.
- No. It can mean turning or holding up a screen.
- The first requests an action; the second humbly describes showing something to a respected viewer.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say Show the Photo to a Friend?
친구에게 사진을 보여줘요. The friend takes 에게 (한테 in speech) and the photo takes 을.
What Is the Humble Form?
보여드리다, used when showing something to a person you respect.
Which Particle Marks the Viewer?
에게, or 한테 in speech. For someone you respect, use 께 with the humble verb: 선생님께 보여드려요.
What Is the past Tense?
보여줬어요 in the polite style; the formal past is 보여줬습니다.
Which Words Are Related to 보여주다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Go on to 보이다 and 보다 to see the family of seeing, then 알려주다. polite present recipe explains the contraction, the Korean verb conjugator tests other stems, and the Korean verb dictionary lists the rest. For the humble forms, read honorific and humble verbs.