Key Facts
- Hangul: 찍다 (jjikda)
- Meaning: to take (a photo); to stamp; to dip
- Part of speech: verb (동사)
- Level: A2
- Stem: 찍
- Class: regular
- Object marking: transitive
What Does 찍다 Mean?
- to take (a photo). Used for taking photos: 사진을 찍다.
- to stamp; to dip. Also means to stamp (도장을 찍다) or to dip in sauce (소스에 찍다).
찍다 is the verb for taking a photo: 사진을 찍다. It also means to stamp, as in 도장을 찍다, and to dip, as in 소스에 찍다. 영화를 찍다 means to film a movie. 같이 찍어요 is a friendly way to suggest taking a photo together. What you photograph, film or stamp takes 을/를; the sauce you dip into takes 에.
Grammar. Takes an object with 을/를 (사진을 찍다).
Usage note. Very common. Collocations: 사진을 찍다, 영화를 찍다 (film a movie), 도장을 찍다 (stamp a seal).
How Do You Pronounce 찍다?
When a vowel ending follows, the final ㄱ of the stem moves into the next syllable. Before a consonant, the following sound may become tense, or the stem’s ㄱ may become nasal. The polite present 찍어요 is read [찌거요], the past 찍었어요 is [찌거써요], the formal 찍습니다 is [찍씀니다], and the modifier 찍는 is [찡는].
How Do You Use 찍다 in a Sentence?
저는 사진을 자주 찍어요.
I take photos often.
A habit: 자주 means often, and 찍어요 is the plain polite present.
공원에서 사진을 찍었어요.
I took photos in the park.
A park trip: 공원에서 means in the park, and 찍었어요 is the past.
여기서 사진을 찍으세요.
Please take a photo here.
여기서 means here. The honorific form 찍으세요 politely asks someone to take a photo, as a guide or staff member might say.
How Does Jjikda Conjugation Work?
The stem 찍 ends in a consonant. Endings with a vowel use 어 by vowel harmony: 찍어요, 찍었어요, 찍어서. Endings with 으 appear after the stem: 찍으세요, 찍으면, 찍은. Consonant-start endings join directly: 찍습니다, 찍고 싶어요.
찍다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 찍어요 | ||
| Polite past | 찍었어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 찍을 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 찍겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 찍습니다 | ||
| Formal past | 찍었습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 찍을 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 찍어 | ||
| Casual past | 찍었어 | ||
| Casual future | 찍을 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 찍고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 찍으세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 찍어서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 찍으면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 찍는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 찍은 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 찍을 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 찍어요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 찍지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 찍어요 | [찌거요] |
| Polite past | 찍었어요 | [찌거써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 찍을 거예요 | [찌글꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 찍겠어요 | [찍께써요] |
| Formal present | 찍습니다 | [찍씀니다] |
| Formal past | 찍었습니다 | [찌걷씀니다] |
| Formal future | 찍을 것입니다 | [찌글꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 찍어 | [찌거] |
| Casual past | 찍었어 | [찌거써] |
| Casual future | 찍을 거야 | [찌글꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 찍고 싶어요 | [찍꼬 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 찍으세요 | [찌그세요] |
| Because / and then | 찍어서 | [찌거서] |
| If (conditional) | 찍으면 | [찌그면] |
| Modifier, present | 찍는 | [찡는] |
| Modifier, past | 찍은 | [찌근] |
| Modifier, future | 찍을 | [찌글] |
| Negative, short | 안 찍어요 | [안 찌거요] |
| Negative, long | 찍지 않아요 | [찍찌 아나요] |
The pattern for this verb is explained in polite present recipe.
Common Mistake with 찍다
Wrong: ✗ 사진을 해요
Correct: ✓ 사진을 찍어요
Why: Photos are taken with 찍다; 하다 or 가지다 does not work like English 'take'.
Learners reach for a general verb such as 하다 because English uses the general word "take". In Korean, photos are always taken with 찍다: 사진을 찍어요.
찍다 Versus Similar Verbs
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 그리다 | 그리다 is to draw by hand; 찍다 is to take a photo. |
| 보내다 | 보내다 is to send the photo afterwards; 찍다 is to take it. |
Taking Photos in the Park
Two visitors stop beside a pond. One asks about a hobby, then they discuss yesterday’s pictures and a photo they want to take now.
Mina
사진을 자주 찍어요?
Sajineul jaju jjigeoyo?
Do you take photos often?
Alex
네. 어제도 여기서 사진을 찍었어요.
Ne. Eojedo yeogiseo sajineul jjigeosseoyo.
Yes. I took photos here yesterday too.
Mina
저도 여기서 사진을 찍고 싶어요.
Jeodo yeogiseo sajineul jjikgo sipeoyo.
I want to take photos here too.
The object stays 사진을 while the ending changes from a general question to a past event and then a wish. 여기서 is short for 여기에서, “here” as the place of an action. It tells you where the photographer stands; it does not describe the subject of the picture.
Collocations: Pictures, Seals and Sauce
사진을 찍다 means to take a photograph. 동영상을 찍다 means to record a video, while 영화를 찍다 refers to filming a movie. The object tells you whether someone is making a still image or moving images. Watching those images uses a different verb, 보다.
도장을 찍다 literally means to stamp a seal. You may encounter it when someone completes paperwork. The seal leaves a physical impression; the verb does not mean signing your name with a pen. 점을 찍다 means to put a dot on something, another use involving a mark left on a surface.
소스에 찍다 means to dip something in sauce. The food is understood from the meal, and 에 marks the sauce it goes into. A conversation about dumplings therefore gives 찍다 a different meaning from a conversation about a camera. Reading the noun beside the verb is more reliable than translating 찍다 as “take” every time.
Where Will You Meet 찍다?
At a tourist spot, 같이 찍어요 can invite someone to be in a photo together. A guide’s 여기서 사진을 찍으세요 instead tells you where to take pictures. That sentence directs the listener’s action; it does not explicitly ask the listener to take a picture for the speaker.
Exhibition notices often use the related noun 촬영, meaning photography or filming. 촬영 금지 means photography or filming is prohibited. A notice may therefore contain no form of 찍다 even though it concerns the same action. In entertainment news, a discussion of a director or actor filming a movie often uses 찍다 with 영화.
What Is Tricky about 찍다?
The initial ㅉ stays tense in every form. The final ㄱ behaves differently: compare 찍어요 with 찍는 in the table. In 찍는, the ㄱ itself changes to a nasal sound before ㄴ. These are pronunciation changes, while the written stem remains 찍.
Keep the spaces in 찍고 싶어요 and 안 찍어요. The wish expression and the short negative are separate words. The honorific ending in 찍으세요 also needs 으 after the consonant stem; simply remembering the short casual 찍어 does not give you that longer form.
| Related word | Meaning | When you need it |
|---|---|---|
| 사진 | photograph | The normal object when taking a still picture. |
| 동영상 | video | Use it for a clip recorded on your phone. |
| 카메라 | camera | Names the equipment, rather than the picture. |
| 촬영 | photography / filming | Common in notices about whether recording is allowed. |
See smartphone and app vocabulary for words used when taking and sharing phone pictures.
Mini Drill: Build the Photo Sentence
- Change 찍다 to the polite past.
- Choose the modifier for an ongoing action: 찍는 or 찍은?
- Give the honorific polite form used in the guide’s example.
- Write the short negative of 찍어요.
Show drill answers
- 찍었어요.
- 찍는. 찍은 describes a completed photo-taking action.
- 찍으세요.
- 안 찍어요.
Quick Self-Test
- What does 영화를 찍다 mean?
- In 소스에 찍다, what does 에 mark?
- Does 촬영 금지 invite you to take pictures?
Show answers
- To film a movie.
- The sauce into which the food is dipped.
- No. It prohibits photography or filming.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say "Take a Photo" in Korean?
Say 사진을 찍어요 (I take a photo), or 사진을 찍었어요 for the past.
Can 찍다 Mean to Stamp?
Yes. 도장을 찍다 means to stamp a seal, and 소스에 찍다 means to dip food in sauce. Both sit beside the photo meaning.
How Do I Politely Ask Someone to Take a Photo?
Use the honorific polite 찍으세요, as in 여기서 사진을 찍으세요 (please take a photo here).
How Is 찍어요 Pronounced?
It is read [찌거요]: the final ㄱ of the stem moves into the next syllable because the ending starts with a vowel.
What Is the Difference between 찍다 and 보내다?
찍다 is taking the photo; 보내다 is sending it to someone afterwards.
Which Words Are Related to 찍다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Continue with 보내다 for sending the photo and 저장하다 for saving it. Once 찍다 feels familiar, compare it with other entries in the verb dictionary or check a form in the conjugator.