Key Facts
- Hangul: 졸다 (jolda)
- Meaning: to doze
- Level: B1
- Stem: 졸
- Conjugation class: ㄹ-drop
- Particles: It takes only a subject with 이/가 or 은/는; there is no object.
What Does 졸다 Mean?
졸다 describes drifting into sleep when you should be awake, as in 수업 시간에 졸다 or 운전하다가 졸다. It takes only a subject with 이/가 or 은/는, and there is no object. It often appears in talk about classes and long drives. Do not confuse it with 졸리다, which means to feel sleepy: 졸리다 is the feeling, and 졸다 is the act of actually dozing.
How Do You Pronounce 졸다?
The dictionary form has 2 syllables and is read as written. The ㄹ-drop is audible: 졸아요 keeps the ㄹ and is spoken [조라요], but the formal 좁니다 loses it and sounds like [좀니다]. The future 졸 거예요 is spoken [졸꺼예요].
How Do You Use 졸다 in a Sentence?
어제 못 자서 수업 시간에 졸았어요.
I could not sleep yesterday, so I dozed off in class.
어제 못 자서 gives the reason and 수업 시간에 졸았어요 gives the result. The past form keeps the ㄹ before 아.
졸면 운전이 위험해요.
Driving is dangerous if you doze off.
졸면 is the condition. Dozing off at the wheel is dangerous, 운전이 위험해요.
아이는 차 안에서 자주 졸아요.
The child often dozes in the car.
자주 means often, and 차 안에서 says where. The polite present 졸아요 keeps the ㄹ.
How Does Jolda Conjugation Work?
졸다 is an ㄹ-drop verb. The stem-final ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ, ㅅ and 오, so the formal present is 좁니다, the honorific is 조세요 and the modifier is 조는. It stays elsewhere, which gives 졸아요, 졸았어요 and 졸면. The plain written present drops the ㄹ too: 존다.
졸다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 졸아요 | ||
| Polite past | 졸았어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 졸 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 졸겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 좁니다 | ||
| Formal past | 졸았습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 졸 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 졸아 | ||
| Casual past | 졸았어 | ||
| Casual future | 졸 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 졸고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 조세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 졸아서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 졸면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 조는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 존 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 졸 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 졸아요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 졸지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 졸아요 | [조라요] |
| Polite past | 졸았어요 | [조라써요] |
| Plan future | 졸 거예요 | [졸꺼예요] |
| Guess future | 졸겠어요 | [졸게써요] |
| Formal present | 좁니다 | [좀니다] |
| Formal past | 졸았습니다 | [조랃씀니다] |
| Formal future | 졸 것입니다 | [졸꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 졸아 | [조라] |
| Casual past | 졸았어 | [조라써] |
| Casual future | 졸 거야 | [졸꺼야] |
| Want to | 졸고 싶어요 | [졸고 시퍼요] |
| Because | 졸아서 | [조라서] |
| Short negative | 안 졸아요 | [안 조라요] |
| Long negative | 졸지 않아요 | [졸지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 졸습니다 or 졸는 사람
Correct: ✓ 좁니다 / 조는 사람
Why: A learner who treats 졸다 as an ordinary verb writes 졸습니다 or 졸는 사람. Because of the ㄹ-drop, the formal form is 좁니다 and the modifier is 조는 사람.
How It Differs from Similar Words
| Word | How to tell it apart |
|---|---|
| 자다 | 자다 is to sleep properly. 졸다 is to drift off briefly, often when you should not. |
| 졸리다 | 졸리다 is the adjective-like verb for feeling sleepy, while 졸다 is the action of dozing. |
After an Afternoon Meeting
A coworker noticed someone nodding off during a meeting. The reply explains what happened and whether it is a recurring problem.
Mina
회의 시간에 졸았어요?
Hoeui sigane jorasseoyo?
Did you doze off during the meeting?
Jun
네. 점심 후에 자주 졸아요.
Ne. Jeomsim hue jaju jorayo.
Yes. I often doze after lunch.
Mina
졸면 잠깐 쉬세요.
Jolmyeon jamkkan swiseyo.
If you start dozing, take a short break.
졸았어요 asks about the completed meeting, while 자주 졸아요 describes a habit. 졸면 introduces a condition for the suggestion to rest. The speaker asks about actual nodding off; a question about simply feeling sleepy would use 졸리다 instead.
Phrases for Nodding Off
The Korean Basic Dictionary’s entry for 졸다 includes 꾸벅꾸벅 졸다, describing repeated nodding as someone dozes. 꾸벅꾸벅 adds a visible picture: the head dips, rises and dips again. It is useful in a story about a passenger, student or tired coworker, where plain 졸다 would describe the action without that detail.
깜빡 졸다 means “to doze off briefly.” 깜빡 emphasizes the short lapse, often one the speaker did not intend. 잠깐 졸다 also describes dozing for a short time, but without the same emphasis on a momentary lapse. These phrases help explain why someone missed an announcement or part of a conversation.
수업 시간에 졸다 and 회의 시간에 졸다 locate the dozing during a class or meeting. 시간에 marks the occasion or time, while a place such as 차 안에서 identifies where the action happens. 졸다 has no object: the class is not something being “dozed.”
안 졸아요 means “I do not doze,” not necessarily “I am not sleepy.” A person may feel sleepy and still remain awake. That distinction lets you describe the feeling with 졸리다 and the observable behavior with 졸다, rather than translating both as the same event.
Where Will You Encounter 졸다?
Everyday stories about commuting and studying often use 졸았어요. A passenger may describe briefly drifting off on a bus; a student may explain missing part of a lesson. 졸다 usually suggests light or interrupted sleep, whereas 자다 is the broader verb for sleeping.
Road-safety messages use the related noun 졸음 in 졸음운전, “drowsy driving.” Recognizing the shared meaning helps connect the sign to the verb, even though the sign does not contain a conjugated form of 졸다. The noun names sleepiness; the verb reports the act of dozing.
Asking a coworker whether they were dozing can sound like criticism. In a friendly private conversation, the question may show concern. Said publicly after a meeting, it can embarrass the person. The ending 졸았어요 is polite, but the situation still affects how the question lands.
Words around Sleep and Alertness
| Related word | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 졸리다 | to feel sleepy | The feeling may occur before any dozing. |
| 졸음 | sleepiness / drowsiness | A noun used in road-safety language. |
| 하품 | yawn | A visible sign of tiredness, not proof of sleep. |
| 깨다 | to wake up | Describes returning to wakefulness. |
The physical-state adjectives lesson helps distinguish sleepy, tired and other bodily states.
Why Does 조는 Still Mean Dozing?
The present modifier 조는 loses ㄹ because the next ending begins with ㄴ. In 조는 사람, the person is dozing; the word has not changed into a different verb. The past modifier 존 also loses ㄹ, while the future modifier 졸 keeps it. Read the ending before deciding whether the stem consonant stays.
졸면 retains ㄹ because the ending starts with ㅁ. The common mistake is to add an unnecessary 으 after the ㄹ, as though every consonant stem needed it. Here the table’s conditional 졸면 is the model to follow. 졸아요 likewise keeps ㄹ before the vowel ending.
The honorific 조세요 belongs to 졸다, but it is not the usual way to wish someone a good night. A bedtime wish concerns proper sleep, so 자다 or its respectful counterpart 주무시다 is the useful verb. Dozing and sleeping overlap in meaning without sharing every social expression.
The table also lists 졸고 싶어요, a wish to doze. Most everyday complaints about tiredness instead describe feeling sleepy or wanting to sleep. Choose 졸다 when the brief nodding-off action itself is what you mean, rather than using it for every situation involving sleep.
Mini Drill: Practice the Forms
- Report dozing in class: 수업 시간에 ____.
- Put 졸다 before 사람 to mean “a person who is dozing.”
- Give the formal present of 졸다.
- Complete “if you doze”: 졸다 → ____.
Show drill answers
- 수업 시간에 졸았어요. The past keeps ㄹ.
- 조는 사람. ㄹ drops before ㄴ.
- 좁니다. ㄹ drops before ㅂ.
- 졸면. ㄹ stays before ㅁ.
Quick Self-Test
- Can someone be 졸리다 without actually doing 졸다?
- What does 꾸벅꾸벅 add to 졸다?
- Is a class the direct object in 수업 시간에 졸다?
Show answers
- Yes. Feeling sleepy does not mean the person has dozed off.
- The repeated dipping motion of the head.
- No. 수업 시간에 tells you when the dozing occurs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say I Dozed in Class?
Say 수업 시간에 졸았어요.
What Is the Formal Present?
좁니다, with the ㄹ dropped.
What Is the Modifier Form?
조는, as in 조는 사람.
How Is It Different from 졸리다?
졸리다 means to feel sleepy. 졸다 means to doze.
Which Words Are Related to 졸다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Read the ㄹ-drop lesson, then learn 졸리다 and 피곤하다 for describing tiredness. The pattern behind 졸다 is covered in how ㄹ-drop verbs work; to check any other form, open the Korean verb conjugator, or browse the Korean verb dictionary.