Key Facts
- Hangul: 길다 (gilda, 2 syllables)
- Meaning: long or lengthy
- Level: A1
- Stem: 길
- Conjugation class: ㄹ-drop
- What it takes: The thing described takes 이/가, as in 다리가 길어요.
What Does 길다 Mean?
길다 means long in length or time: 머리가 길다 is long hair. It also means lengthy, as in 이야기가 길다. The thing described takes 이/가, as in 다리가 길어요.
Do not confuse 길 (road) with 길다 (long). To say that something takes a long time, Korean usually uses 오래 걸리다 rather than 길다.
- long: Long in length or time, as in 머리가 길다.
- lengthy: Takes a long time, as in 이야기가 길다.
How Do You Pronounce 길다?
Two syllables, with no tensing in 다 because the stem ends in ㄹ. The polite past 길었어요 is said [기러써요] and the formal 깁니다 is said [김니다], with the ㄹ gone. Revised Romanization is gilda.
How Do You Use 길다 in a Sentence?
제 동생은 머리가 길어요.
My younger sibling has long hair.
A description of hair, with 이/가 on the thing described.
여름 방학은 길었어요.
The summer vacation was long.
Past tense for a vacation that lasted a long time.
긴 줄에서 한 시간 기다렸어요.
I waited an hour in a long line.
긴 puts the adjective before a noun, a long line, with the ㄹ dropped.
How Does Gilda Conjugation Work?
길다 is an ㄹ-drop adjective. The ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ, so the modifier is 긴, the formal present is 깁니다 and the honorific is 기세요. Before 어, it stays: 길어요, 길었어요. Because it describes, it cannot take -고 싶다.
The pattern behind 길다 is taught step by step in ㄹ-drop verbs and adjectives.
길다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 길어요 | ||
| Polite past | 길었어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 길 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (guess) | 길겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 깁니다 | ||
| Formal past | 길었습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 길 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 길어 | ||
| Casual past | 길었어 | ||
| Casual future | 길 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 기세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 길어서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 길면 | ||
| Present modifier | 긴 | ||
| Past modifier | 길었던 | ||
| Future modifier | 길 | ||
| Short negative | 안 길어요 | ||
| Long negative | 길지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 길어요 | [기러요] |
| Polite past | 길었어요 | [기러써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 길 거예요 | [길꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 길겠어요 | [길게써요] |
| Formal present | 깁니다 | [김니다] |
| Formal past | 길었습니다 | [기럳씀니다] |
| Formal future | 길 것입니다 | [길꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 길어 | [기러] |
| Casual past | 길었어 | [기러써] |
| Casual future | 길 거야 | [길꺼야] |
| Honorific polite | 기세요 | as written |
| Because / and then | 길어서 | [기러서] |
| If (conditional) | 길면 | as written |
| Present modifier | 긴 | as written |
| Past modifier | 길었던 | [기럳떤] |
| Future modifier | 길 | as written |
| Short negative | 안 길어요 | [안 기러요] |
| Long negative | 길지 않아요 | [길지 아나요] |
| Want to (polite) | No standard form | -고 싶다 attaches to verbs, not to descriptive words like this one. |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 길은 줄 / 길습니다
Correct: ✓ 긴 줄 / 깁니다
Why: As an ㄹ-stem, the ㄹ drops before ㄴ and ㅂ, so the modifier is 긴 and the formal form is 깁니다.
How Does 길다 Differ from Similar Words?
| Word | How to tell it from 길다 |
|---|---|
| 멀다 | Far in distance. 길다 is long in length or duration. |
| 오래 걸리다 | Taking a long time to do or reach. 길다 describes a thing or a period itself as long, such as a vacation. |
At the Salon: How Much Should Come Off?
A customer and a hairdresser discuss the length before a haircut. The customer uses the present, the past and a reason ending of 길다.
Hairdresser
머리가 많이 길어요.
Meoriga mani gireoyo.
Your hair is quite long.
Customer
전에는 더 길었어요.
Jeoneneun deo gireosseoyo.
It used to be longer.
Hairdresser
얼마나 자를까요?
Eolmana jareulkkayo?
How much should I cut off?
Customer
앞머리가 길어서 불편해요. 조금만 잘라 주세요.
Ammeoriga gireoseo bulpyeonhaeyo. Jogeumman jalla juseyo.
My bangs are long, so they get in the way. Please trim just a little.
앞머리 means bangs or a fringe. The customer names the part that causes trouble rather than describing all the hair again. 조금만 means “just a little”, so the request limits how much the hairdresser should cut. 길어서 connects the length to its practical consequence.
Which Combinations with 길다 Are Useful?
긴 머리 means long hair, and 긴 소매 means long sleeves. These describe the length of an object, not its distance from the speaker. With clothes, 길다 may simply describe the cut; it does not automatically mean the item is too large. 너무 길어요 adds the idea that the length is excessive for the situation.
긴 이야기 is a long story. 말이 길다 describes someone speaking at length, often when an explanation needs shortening. The literal meaning concerns the length of the talk; in conversation it can gently introduce an apology for going on too long. It does not describe the speaker's physical voice.
밤이 길다 describes a long night. This can be literal, as in winter, or express how slowly the night seems to pass. A long night and a long journey both allow 길다, but the adjective does not tell you whether the experience was pleasant. The surrounding sentence supplies that feeling.
Where Will You Hear 길다?
In a clothing shop, 길어요 often concerns sleeves or trouser legs. At a salon, it concerns hair. In both settings the listener needs the noun: “long” alone does not say which part needs changing. If you point at a sleeve, the noun can be omitted once the shared context is clear.
In everyday complaints, a queue, meeting or explanation can be long. A queue can be physically long even if it moves quickly. 긴 줄 therefore does not tell you exactly how long you will wait. Use 오래 걸리다 when the point is how much time an activity takes.
길다 is neutral in register. 길어요 fits a polite description; 깁니다 appears in formal explanations. The honorific 기세요 in the table is a grammatical form for a respected subject, not an instruction meaning “please be long”. For an ordinary description of your own hair, 길어요 is the useful choice.
Why Is 긴 Present Rather than Past?
긴 describes something that is long now: 긴 줄 is a long line. With this adjective, the ㄴ modifier does not mean that the line used to be long. 길었던 looks back at an earlier state, so it needs a past context. This differs from action verbs whose completed-action modifier also uses ㄴ.
Keep ㄹ in 길면, “if it is long”, and 길어서, “because it is long”. The rule is not to remove every final ㄹ whenever you add an ending. Compare those forms with 긴 and 깁니다: the following ending determines the change.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 길이 | length | Use the noun when discussing a measurement. |
| 소매 | sleeve | A common thing to describe as long in a shop. |
| 짧다 | to be short | The opposite for length or duration. |
| 멀다 | to be far | Describes distance to a place. |
The measurement vocabulary lesson gives the wider set for size and dimensions.
A long route can have a nearby destination if it winds around obstacles. 길다 describes the route itself; 멀다 describes the distance. The adjectives answer different questions even when a journey makes both relevant.
Mini Drill: Keep or Drop ㄹ?
- Put 길다 before 줄 to say “a long line”.
- Change 길어요 into the formal present.
- Give the conditional meaning “if it is long”.
- Give the polite past meaning “it was long”.
Show drill answers
- 긴 줄. Drop ㄹ before the adjective modifier ㄴ.
- 깁니다. Drop ㄹ before ㅂ.
- 길면. Keep the stem's ㄹ.
- 길었어요. Keep ㄹ before 어.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 긴 줄 tell you the exact waiting time?
- Which describes a distant station: 길다 or 멀다?
- What does 앞머리 refer to in the salon dialogue?
Show answers
- No. It describes the line's length.
- 멀다.
- Bangs or a fringe.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is the Modifier Form of 길다?
It is 긴, as in 긴 줄.
What Is the Formal Present?
It is 깁니다, with the ㄹ dropped before ㅂ.
Is 길다 the Same as 길?
No. 길 means road; 길다 means long.
Can 길다 Take -고 싶다?
No. -고 싶다 attaches to verbs, not to descriptive words like this one.
Which Words Are Related to 길다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Learn its opposite 짧다, then 멀다, 넓다 and 높다 for more size adjectives. To test another form of 길다 ('long'), open the Korean verb conjugator, or browse the Korean verb dictionary.