Heundeulda Conjugation: 흔들다 Meaning, Forms & Examples

Key Facts

• Hangul: 흔들다 (heundeulda, 3 syllables)
• Meaning: to shake or to wave
• Level: B1
• Stem: 흔들
• Conjugation class: ㄹ-drop
• What it takes: What is shaken takes 을/를 (손을 흔들어요).

What Does 흔들다 Mean?

흔들다 means to shake something: 머리를 흔들다 is shaking your head. It also covers waving, as in 손을 흔들다. Whatever moves takes 을/를.

The verb is transitive. Its look-alike 흔들리다 is the intransitive one: it describes something that sways. Many mistakes come from swapping the two.

• to shake: Move something back and forth: 머리를 흔들다.
• to wave: Wave your hand: 손을 흔들다.

How Do You Pronounce 흔들다?

Three syllables. Before a vowel ending the ㄹ of 들 carries over, as in 흔들어요 [흔드러요]. The past 흔들었어요 is [흔드러써요] and 흔듭니다 is [흔듬니다]. Revised Romanization is heundeulda.

Use the audio above to compare the dictionary form with its polite, formal, and casual forms.

How Do You Use 흔들다 in a Sentence?

A wave at a friend: the hand is the object and 에게 marks the person.

Past tense: someone shook a tree.

The -면 ending gives a cause-and-effect warning: shake your head too hard and you feel dizzy.

How Does Heundeulda Conjugation Work?

흔들다 is an ㄹ-drop verb. The ㄹ of the stem drops before ㅂ, ㄴ and ㅅ: 흔듭니다, 흔드는 and the past modifier 흔든. Before 어 it stays, so you get 흔들어요, 흔들었어요 and 흔들어서. The honorific is 흔드세요.

The pattern behind 흔들다 is taught step by step in ㄹ-drop verbs and adjectives.

Common Mistake

Wrong: ✗ 손을 흔들려요

Correct: ✓ 손을 흔들어요

Why: 흔들리다 means 'to sway' (intransitive); waving your hand is 흔들다.

How Does 흔들다 Differ from Similar Words?

Finding a Friend outside the Station

Two friends speak on the phone in a crowded station square. One is trying to spot the other. They use casual forms because they are close.

Jisu

Minho

Jisu

Minho

The first 흔들어 describes the speaker's current action. The question 흔들었어 looks back, and 흔들 거야 announces the next attempt. 손을 makes the waved body part explicit; the second speaker can omit it because both people know what movement they mean.

두 손 means “both hands” here. The dialogue is about getting someone's attention across a crowd, so English naturally uses “wave”. Shaking a bottle uses the same Korean verb, but English chooses “shake” because the object and purpose differ.

Which Movements Use 흔들다?

손을 흔들다 means to wave a hand, often in greeting or farewell. 고개를 흔들다 means to shake one's head. In a response to a question, a side-to-side head movement can convey refusal or disagreement. The movement's direction and the scene supply that message; 흔들다 alone does not mean “say no”.

꼬리를 흔들다 describes wagging a tail. A dog is the subject doing the action and the tail is the object. 병을 흔들다 means to shake a bottle, such as before mixing a drink. These are literal movements, with 을/를 marking what is moved.

An instruction using 흔드세요 can occur in an exercise class or during a demonstration. The form is a polite request or instruction in that setting. On a product, a shaking instruction concerns mixing the contents; it does not tell you to turn the container in a full circle. 돌리다 is the more direct verb for turning or rotating.

What Can 흔들다 Mean Figuratively?

마음을 흔들다 literally means “shake someone's heart or mind”. It can describe stirring emotions or making someone waver. An attractive offer might disturb a firm decision; a moving scene might stir someone's feelings. No physical movement is involved. The object 마음 keeps the same 을 marker as a hand or bottle.

의지를 흔들다 means to weaken or unsettle someone's resolve. The Basic Korean Dictionary entry for 흔들다 includes this figurative use alongside physical shaking. In a drama, look at what is being shaken: a hand points to movement, while resolve points to pressure on a decision.

The related 흔들리다 presents the person or thing as affected. A chair that wobbles, a tree that sways, or a person's resolve that wavers can be the subject of 흔들리다. Someone may still cause the movement; the sentence simply focuses on what moves rather than naming an actor moving an object.

The Two Changes Learners Need to Separate

In 흔들어요, the ㄹ stays in the spelling and links to the next vowel in speech. In 흔듭니다, the ㄹ disappears from the written stem before ㅂ. One is a pronunciation change, and the other changes the conjugated spelling. Looking only at the sound can make these seem like the same operation.

Keep ㄹ before 고 and 면: 흔들고 싶어요 and 흔들면. Drop it before the present modifier ending 는: 흔드는. For the future modifier 흔들, the stem already ends in ㄹ; you do not add another ㄹ or an extra syllable. The future phrase is 흔들 거예요, with a space before 거예요.

Words for Describing the Motion

Use the body vocabulary lesson for the body parts that go with movement verbs. 고개 and 머리 can both occur with 흔들다, but 고개 is particularly useful when describing a head gesture during conversation.

Mini Drill: Keep or Drop ㄹ

1. Change 흔들다 to the formal present.
2. Give the present modifier before a noun.
3. Give the polite present: does ㄹ stay?
4. Say “I want to wave” using 고 싶어요.

Quick Self-Test

1. What is being moved in 손을 흔들다?
2. Does 흔들리다 require an object marked 을/를?
3. Is 마음을 흔들다 a physical action?

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do I Say 'Wave Goodbye'?

Say 손을 흔들어요, with 손 as the thing waved.

What Is the Formal Present?

It is 흔듭니다; the ㄹ drops before ㅂ.

What Is the Difference between 흔들다 and 흔들리다?

흔들다 is transitive (you shake something) while 흔들리다 is intransitive (something sways).

Which Modifier Do I Use before a Noun?

The present modifier is 흔드는, with the ㄹ dropped before ㄴ.

Which Words Are Related to 흔들다?

• 돌리다
• 돌다
• 밀다
• 인사하다

What Should You Learn Next?

Read 흔들리다 beside it, then 돌리다 and 밀다 for other hand-and-body movements. To test another form of 흔들다 ('to shake'), open the Korean verb conjugator, or browse the Korean verb dictionary.