Key Facts
- Hangul: 화나다 (hwanada)
- Meaning: angry
- Part of speech: verb (동사)
- Level: A2
- Stem: 화나
- Class: regular
What Does 화나다 Mean?
화나다 says a person is angry. It comes from the phrase 화가 나다, literally 'anger arises', and you will see both: 화가 나다 as a phrase and 화난 얼굴 (an angry face) as a modifier. The past 화났어요 is the normal way to say someone is angry right now, because anger has already arisen. It describes a feeling that arises, so a 'want to' expression is unusual in ordinary conversation.
How Do You Pronounce 화나다?
The sounds follow the spelling, so 화나다 is said as written. The past 화났어요 is [화나써요], the formal 화납니다 is [화남니다], and the modifier past 화났던 is [화낟떤]. Because the stem ends in a vowel, the polite present 화나요 is short and light.
How Do You Use 화나다 in a Sentence?
동생이 많이 화났어요.
My younger sibling is very angry.
동생이 많이 화났어요 uses the past form to describe the state. 많이 is 'a lot'.
화난 얼굴로 왔어요.
He came with an angry face.
화난 얼굴로 왔어요 puts 화난 before 얼굴로, 'with an angry face'. The particle 로 shows the manner of arrival.
화나서 아무 말도 안 했어요.
I was angry, so I said nothing.
In 화나서 아무 말도 안 했어요 the reason comes first, and 아무 말도 안 했어요 means 'said nothing' with 안 for negation.
How Does Hwanada Conjugation Work?
화나다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 화나요 | ||
| Polite past | 화났어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 화날 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 화나겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 화납니다 | ||
| Formal past | 화났습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 화날 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 화나 | ||
| Casual past | 화났어 | ||
| Casual future | 화날 거야 | ||
| Because / and then | 화나서 | ||
| Conditional (if) | 화나면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 화난 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 화났던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 화날 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 화나요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 화나지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Sound if different |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 화나요 | — |
| Polite past | 화났어요 | [화나써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 화날 거예요 | [화날꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 화나겠어요 | [화나게써요] |
| Formal present | 화납니다 | [화남니다] |
| Formal past | 화났습니다 | [화낟씀니다] |
| Formal future | 화날 것입니다 | [화날꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 화나 | — |
| Casual past | 화났어 | [화나써] |
| Casual future | 화날 거야 | [화날꺼야] |
| Because / and then | 화나서 | — |
| Conditional (if) | 화나면 | — |
| Modifier, present | 화난 | — |
| Modifier, past | 화났던 | [화낟떤] |
| Modifier, future | 화날 | — |
| Short negative | 안 화나요 | — |
| Long negative | 화나지 않아요 | [화나지 아나요] |
Is 화나다 Regular or Irregular?
화나다 is regular. Its stem 화나 ends in ㅏ, so the polite ending 아요 merges into it and the vowel does not double: 화나 + 아요 becomes 화나요. The past stem is 화났. Because the word is a feeling that arises, the present modifier 화난 looks like a past tense, which is its normal form. Everything follows the present-tense recipe.
Common Mistake with 화나다
Wrong: ✗ 저는 친구를 화났어요
Correct: ✓ 저는 친구한테 화났어요
Why: 화나다 is intransitive and takes no object, so the person you are angry with is marked by 한테 or 에게. To show your anger to them, use 화를 내다.
화나다 Versus 화내다 and 짜증나다
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 화내다 | 화내다 is the act of showing anger, such as shouting at someone. 화나다 is the state of being angry. |
| 짜증 나다 | 짜증 나다 is annoyed or irritated, milder than angry. |
Talking after a Missed Appointment
Alex arrived late without sending a message. Jisu explains why she is upset, and Alex apologises. Both speakers keep polite endings even though the conversation is tense.
Alex
많이 화났어요?
Mani hwanasseoyo?
Are you very angry?
Jisu
네. 연락도 없어서 화났어요.
Ne. Yeollakdo eopseoseo hwanasseoyo.
Yes. I got angry because you did not even contact me.
Alex
미안해요. 다음에는 꼭 연락할게요.
Mianhaeyo. Daeumeneun kkok yeollakalgeyo.
I am sorry. Next time I will definitely contact you.
Jisu
기다릴 때 연락이 없으면 화나요.
Gidaril ttae yeollagi eopseumyeon hwanayo.
I get angry when I am waiting and do not hear from you.
화났어요 names the anger that has already arisen in this particular incident. 화나요 in the last line describes a recurring reaction to being left waiting. The shift from past to present has a purpose: Jisu moves from what happened today to explaining what generally upsets her.
Phrases for Anger without Confusing the Roles
화가 나다 literally says “anger arises”. In this spaced phrase, 화 is the noun “anger” and 가 marks it as the subject. The single verb 화나다 carries the same central idea of becoming angry. Keep the space in 화가 나다; the particle belongs to the noun, rather than becoming part of a longer dictionary form.
화가 풀리다 means that someone's anger subsides. The image is of anger loosening or being released. This phrase is useful after an apology or a conversation that resolves a disagreement. It describes the angry person's change of feeling, rather than simply the other person saying sorry.
화를 참다 means to hold back anger. A person can feel 화나다 and still choose to restrain their reaction. 화를 내다 means to express anger, so it focuses on what comes out in behaviour. These combinations explain why feeling angry and showing anger are related but separate ideas.
Who Is Angry, and Who Caused It?
친구가 화났어요 says that the friend is angry. 친구한테 화났어요 says that the speaker, or another person understood from context, is angry with the friend. The difference sits in the marker after 친구, so listen for 가 versus 한테 before deciding who feels the anger.
The cause can also be a situation. 약속 때문에 화났어요 means that someone is angry because of an appointment or promise, with the details supplied by context. 때문에 names the cause; 한테 names the person toward whom the anger is directed. Neither turns that person into a direct object of 화나다.
The full phrase 화가 나다 can include the person as a topic: 저는 화가 났어요. Korean makes the anger the grammatical subject inside the phrase, while 저는 tells you whose experience is being discussed. English usually translates the whole statement naturally as “I am angry” or “I got angry”.
Where Will You Hear 화나다?
Friends and family use 화났어? when someone seems upset. In a drama it can open a reconciliation scene, but the same question may sound accusatory if spoken sharply. 화났어요? keeps a polite ending, yet it still directly asks about a sensitive feeling. The relationship and tone matter alongside the grammar.
화나요 can also express a current reaction to unfair behaviour or frustrating news. The past 화났어요 is common for an anger that has already developed, but it is not the only possible form for a feeling connected to the present. Use the surrounding time words to decide whether English needs “am angry”, “got angry”, or “was angry”.
An apology does not require the angry person to stop feeling upset immediately. A listener can acknowledge 화났어요 as a report of emotion without assuming shouting or an argument took place. For the visible expression of that anger, 화내다 gives more specific information.
Words for the Rest of the Conversation
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 화 | anger | The noun in 화가 나다 and 화를 내다. |
| 화내다 | to express anger | Names the outward reaction rather than the feeling alone. |
| 짜증 | irritation | Often concerns repeated annoyances or frustration. |
| 사과하다 | to apologise | Useful when discussing what happened after a disagreement. |
See the feelings phrase collection for ways to describe your reaction and respond to someone else's.
A Useful Spelling and Tense Check
화난 얼굴 describes an angry face. The form 화난 shows the state resulting from becoming angry; it need not mean that the person was angry only in the distant past. 화났던 adds a looking-back perspective. Let the sentence establish the time before translating every ㄴ modifier as an English past tense.
Short negatives keep their space: 안 화나요 means “I do not get angry” or “I am not angry”, according to context. In the longer phrase 화가 나다, both the noun-plus-particle and the verb retain their own written units. Read the whole phrase before deciding where a word begins.
Mini Drill: Choose the Right Form
- Give the polite present of 화나다.
- Use the polite past to ask whether someone is angry.
- Complete “an angry face”: ____ 얼굴.
- Choose the marker for “angry with a friend”: 친구가 or 친구한테.
Show drill answers
- 화나요. The two ㅏ vowels merge.
- 화났어요? The anger has already arisen.
- 화난 얼굴.
- 친구한테. 친구가 would identify the friend as the angry person.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 화나다 necessarily mean someone shouted?
- What does 화가 풀리다 describe?
- Which version keeps the subject particle attached correctly: 화 가 나다 or 화가 나다?
Show answers
- No. It describes the feeling; 화내다 focuses on expressing it.
- Anger subsiding.
- 화가 나다. The particle 가 attaches to 화.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is It 화나다 or 화가 나다?
Both appear. The dictionary form is written 화나다, and the spaced 화가 나다 is also common.
Why Is 화난 Used for 'Angry'?
화난 is the present modifier of this word; it merely looks like a past form.
How Do I Say 'I Am Angry' Right Now?
Say 화났어요, with the past form.
Can I Add 'Want to' to 화나다?
A 'want to' expression is unusual here because anger usually arises rather than being chosen. It is not a grammatical ban on expressing a wish about a feeling.
Which Words Are Related to 화나다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Next study 화내다 for expressing anger toward someone, then 짜증 나다 for milder annoyance. 슬프다 and 무섭다 sit beside it among feeling words. The Korean verb conjugator tests other stems, and the Korean verb dictionary lists the rest of the family.