Key Facts
- Hangul: 그만두다 (geumanduda)
- Meaning: to quit; to give up (a job or school)
- Level: B1
- Stem: 그만두
- Class: regular
- Objects: transitive
- Honorific polite: 그만두세요
What Does 그만두다 Mean?
그만두다 means to quit or give up a job, school or habit: 회사를 그만두다. It is transitive: what you quit takes 을/를. For quitting smoking, Koreans usually use a different verb: 담배를 끊다.
Senses:
- to quit; to give up (a job or school). Used for leaving a job, school or habit: 회사를 그만두다.
How Do You Pronounce 그만두다?
Mostly read as written. The main changes are the past [그만둬써요] and the formal present [그만둠니다].
Read as geumanduda. Pronunciation of each form:
- 그만뒀어요 [그만둬써요]
- 그만둘 거예요 [그만둘꺼예요]
- 그만두겠어요 [그만두게써요]
- 그만둡니다 [그만둠니다]
- 그만뒀습니다 [그만둳씀니다]
- 그만둘 것입니다 [그만둘꺼심니다]
- 그만뒀어 [그만둬써]
- 그만둘 거야 [그만둘꺼야]
- 그만두고 싶어요 [그만두고 시퍼요]
- 그만두지 않아요 [그만두지 아나요]
How Do You Use 그만두다 in a Sentence?
저는 회사를 그만둬요.
I'm quitting my job.
회사를 (the company) is the object; 회사를 그만두다 is the usual way to say "quit your job". The present tense here describes a decision already made. (그만둬요)
작년에 일을 그만뒀어요.
I quit my job last year.
작년에 (last year) sets the time, and 그만뒀어요 is the contracted past. (그만뒀어요)
다음 달에 학교를 그만둘 거예요.
I'm going to quit school next month.
다음 달에 (next month) sets the time, and 그만둘 거예요 states a plan. (그만둘 거예요)
How Does Geumanduda Conjugation Work?
그만두다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 그만둬요 | ||
| Polite past | 그만뒀어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 그만둘 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 그만두겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 그만둡니다 | ||
| Formal past | 그만뒀습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 그만둘 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 그만둬 | ||
| Casual past | 그만뒀어 | ||
| Casual future | 그만둘 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 그만두고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 그만두세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 그만둬서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 그만두면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 그만두는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 그만둔 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 그만둘 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 그만둬요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 그만두지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 그만둬요 | as written |
| Polite past | 그만뒀어요 | [그만둬써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 그만둘 거예요 | [그만둘꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 그만두겠어요 | [그만두게써요] |
| Formal present | 그만둡니다 | [그만둠니다] |
| Formal past | 그만뒀습니다 | [그만둳씀니다] |
| Formal future | 그만둘 것입니다 | [그만둘꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 그만둬 | as written |
| Casual past | 그만뒀어 | [그만둬써] |
| Casual future | 그만둘 거야 | [그만둘꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 그만두고 싶어요 | [그만두고 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 그만두세요 | as written |
| Because / and then | 그만둬서 | as written |
| If (conditional) | 그만두면 | as written |
| Modifier, present | 그만두는 | as written |
| Modifier, past | 그만둔 | as written |
| Modifier, future | 그만둘 | as written |
| Short negative | 안 그만둬요 | as written |
| Long negative | 그만두지 않아요 | [그만두지 아나요] |
Is 그만두다 Regular or Irregular?
그만두다 is regular. The stem ends in 두, and 두 plus 어 contracts to 둬: 그만둬요 and 그만뒀어요.
Common Mistake with 그만두다
Wrong: ✗ 회사를 그만해요
Correct: ✓ 회사를 그만둬요
Why: Quitting a company or school uses 그만두다; 그만하다 means 'stop (an action)'.
Both verbs start with 그만 (enough), so learners swap them. 그만하다 commonly asks someone to stop an action; 그만두다 also works with a job or school as its object.
그만두다 Versus 그만하다
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 그만하다 | 그만하다 is to stop doing something right now (그만해요, "stop it"); 그만두다 also means to quit a job or school. |
| 멈추다 | 멈추다 is to stop movement; 그만두다 is to quit. |
| 포기하다 | 포기하다 is to give up on a goal; 그만두다 is to leave a job, school or habit. |
Telling a Coworker about Leaving
Jisu has heard that Alex plans to leave the company. Alex explains the timing and admits feeling worried about the decision.
Jisu
회사를 그만둘 거예요?
Hoesareul geumandul geoyeyo?
Are you going to quit your job?
Alex
네. 다음 달에 그만둘 거예요.
Ne. Daeum dare geumandul geoyeyo.
Yes. I am going to leave next month.
Jisu
저도 작년에 일을 그만뒀어요.
Jeodo jangnyeone ireul geumandwosseoyo.
I quit my job last year too.
Alex
그만두고 싶어요. 그래도 걱정돼요.
Geumandugo sipeoyo. Geuraedo geokjeongdwaeyo.
I want to quit. Still, I am worried.
The future 그만둘 거예요 states Alex’s plan. The past 그만뒀어요 tells us that Jisu has already had the experience. 그만두고 싶어요 expresses a wish, so by itself it would not confirm a resignation. Here the earlier future statement supplies that missing information.
Everyday Combinations with 그만두다
회사를 그만두다 literally names leaving a company, but its usual English meaning is “quit your job”. The company takes 를 even though you are not closing the business. 일을 그만두다 can mean leaving work or stopping the work you were doing; the situation tells you how broad the change is.
아르바이트를 그만두다 means to quit a part-time job. 학교를 그만두다 means to leave school before completing it. It does not mean finishing the school day or graduating. For a learner reading a personal story, the object helps reveal whether the speaker is ending employment, education or another activity.
하던 일을 그만두다 means to stop what you were doing. The phrase focuses on an activity already underway. This shows why “for good” is too strong as an absolute rule: 그만두다 can describe stopping a particular task, without promising never to do that kind of thing again.
Where Will You Hear 그만두다?
Coworkers use 그만두다 to discuss resignations, and friends use it when talking about leaving a course, a club activity or a job. In a drama, 그만둬 can also be a sharp “stop it” or “forget it”. Listen to what the person is reacting to before interpreting every use as a career decision.
The noun 퇴사 means leaving a company and is common in workplace discussions. 퇴사하다 gives a more workplace-specific description than 그만두다. Neither word alone tells you the reason for leaving, so a translation should not add a dismissal, retirement or argument that the sentence never mentions.
A direct 그만두세요 asks someone to stop or quit. Although the ending is polite, the request can have serious force when the object is someone’s job. When describing your own wish, 그만두고 싶어요 leaves the decision open; 그만둘 거예요 presents it as a plan.
Why Does 두 Become 둬 in Some Forms?
그만두다 is one word, and its stem is 그만두. The combination 두 plus 어 produces 둬 in 그만둬요. An ending beginning with a consonant does not trigger that contraction: compare 그만두면, “if someone quits”, and 그만두고 싶어요, “I want to quit”. The unchanged 두 in those forms is expected.
For the future, 그만두 takes ㄹ directly because the stem ends in a vowel: 그만둘 거예요. Keep the space before 거예요, while keeping 그만둘 together. In the formal present 그만둡니다, the added ㅂ belongs to the ending; it is not a new stem consonant to carry into the other forms.
The polite present conjugation lesson explains how vowel contractions fit the regular pattern.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 퇴사 | leaving a company | The workplace noun for departure from a job. |
| 사직서 | resignation letter | The document associated with resigning. |
| 이직 | changing jobs | Focuses on moving to another job. |
| 아르바이트 | part-time job | A common object of 그만두다. |
Learn the workplace set in business Korean vocabulary.
Mini Drill: Wish, Plan or Completed Action?
- Give the polite past of 그만두다.
- Say “I want to quit” using the table.
- Give the polite future for a plan to quit.
- Write the conditional “if someone quits”.
Show drill answers
- 그만뒀어요.
- 그만두고 싶어요.
- 그만둘 거예요.
- 그만두면.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 학교를 그만두다 mean graduating?
- Which phrase confirms a plan: 그만두고 싶어요 or 그만둘 거예요?
- Does 그만두다 always mean never doing that activity again?
Show answers
- No. It means leaving school before finishing.
- 그만둘 거예요. The other phrase expresses a wish.
- No. It can mean stopping a particular activity or task.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Is the Polite Present 그만둬요?
The stem 그만두 plus the ending 어 contracts to 둬. The same contraction gives the past 그만뒀어요.
How Do I Say "Stop It"?
Say 그만해요, from 그만하다. In casual speech the short form 그만둬 can also mean "stop it", but with a job or school as its object, 그만두다 means quitting.
How Do I Say "I Quit Smoking"?
Koreans usually say 담배를 끊다 (literally "cut off cigarettes") rather than 그만두다.
Does 그만두다 Take 을/를?
Yes. What you quit takes 을/를: 회사를 그만두다 (quit your job), 학교를 그만두다 (quit school).
Which Words Are Related to 그만두다?
- 멈추다
- 포기하다
- 끝내다
- 취직하다
- Dictionary
What Should You Learn Next?
Look at 멈추다, 포기하다 and 취직하다. Test any form in the Korean verb conjugator.