Key Facts
- Hangul: 깨다 (kkaeda)
- Meaning: to wake/break
- Level: B1
- Stem: 깨
- Conjugation class: regular
- Polite present: 깨요
- Object marking: both
What Does 깨다 Mean?
깨다 has two senses. Waking: 잠에서 깨다, where the person is the subject (제가 깼어요). Breaking: 접시를 깨다, where the thing broken takes 을/를. For something that breaks on its own, the usual form is 깨지다.
The two meanings are separate words that happen to share a spelling, so context decides. A time, a person or the noun 잠 (sleep) points to waking; a cup or a dish with 을/를 points to breaking. With sleep, both 잠이 깨다 and 잠을 깨다 occur in everyday talk.
How Do You Pronounce 깨다?
깨다 is read as written. The past 깼어요 sounds like [깨써요] and the formal 깹니다 like [깸니다]. After the future ending ㄹ, the ㄱ of 거 becomes tense: 깰 거예요 is [깰꺼예요].
How Do You Use 깨다 in a Sentence?
Two examples show waking and one shows breaking.
저는 아침 여섯 시에 깨요.
I wake up at six in the morning.
The time 여섯 시에 and the subject 저는 point to the waking sense.
아기가 밤에 자주 깨서 힘들어요.
The baby wakes up often at night, so it is hard.
The reason form 깨서 explains a tiring night with a baby.
동생이 컵을 깼어요.
My younger sibling broke a cup.
컵을 is the object, so this is the breaking sense in the past tense.
Useful Patterns with 깨다
Sort the two senses by their particles. For waking, the person who wakes is the subject and there is usually no object: 제가 깼어요. For breaking, the person who breaks something is the subject and the broken thing takes 을/를: 접시를 깨다. If a glass breaks with nobody named as the cause, Korean switches to 깨지다: 유리가 깨졌어요.
How Does Kkaeda Conjugation Work?
깨다 is regular. The stem 깨 ends in the vowel ㅐ, and the 어 of the ending is absorbed into it: 깨요, 깼어요, 깨서. Endings that start with a consonant attach directly: 깹니다, 깨지 않아요. The honorific is 깨세요.
깨다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 깨요 | ||
| Polite past | 깼어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 깰 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 깨겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 깹니다 | ||
| Formal past | 깼습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 깰 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 깨 | ||
| Casual past | 깼어 | ||
| Casual future | 깰 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 깨고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 깨세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 깨서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 깨면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 깨는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 깬 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 깰 | ||
| Short negative | 안 깨요 | ||
| Long negative | 깨지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 깼어요 | [깨써요] |
| Polite future | 깰 거예요 | [깰꺼예요] |
| Polite guess | 깨겠어요 | [깨게써요] |
| Formal present | 깹니다 | [깸니다] |
| Formal future | 깰 것입니다 | [깰꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 깼어 | [깨써] |
| Casual future | 깰 거야 | [깰꺼야] |
| Long negative | 깨지 않아요 | [깨지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 엄마가 나를 깼어요 (meaning my mother woke me)
Correct: ✓ 엄마가 나를 깨웠어요
Why: Waking another person needs the causative 깨우다; 깨다 alone means that the subject wakes up, or that the subject breaks something. With 나를 as the object, the wrong sentence sounds as if your mother broke you.
How It Differs from Similar Words
| Word | How to tell it from 깨다 |
|---|---|
| 일어나다 | 일어나다 is to get up (out of bed); 깨다 is to stop sleeping, even if you stay lying down. |
| 깨우다 | 깨우다 means to wake someone else up; 깨다 is to wake up yourself. |
A Baby Wakes during the Night
Two parents hear their baby stirring. The exchange uses a past report, a description of repeated waking and a conditional plan.
Mina
아기가 깼어요.
Agiga kkaesseoyo.
The baby woke up.
Alex
오늘은 자주 깨요.
Oneureun jaju kkaeyo.
The baby keeps waking today.
Mina
또 깨면 제가 갈게요.
Tto kkaemyeon jega galgeyo.
If the baby wakes again, I’ll go.
Alex
고마워요. 저는 좀 쉴게요.
Gomawoyo. Jeoneun jom swilgeyo.
Thank you. I’ll rest a little.
Once 아기가 establishes the subject, both parents can leave it out. The verb still describes the baby waking, not either parent waking the baby. 자주 gives a repeated pattern, while 또 points to one more occurrence.
Which Phrases Use the Waking Meaning?
잠에서 깨다 means to wake from sleep. 에서 identifies the state the sleeper comes out of. The phrase is useful when a bare 깼어요 could be unclear. 잠이 깨다 and 잠을 깨다 also occur, so an object marker alone does not always prove that the meaning is breaking something.
꿈에서 깨다 means to wake from a dream. Literally it describes leaving a dream during sleep. It can also appear figuratively when someone is brought back to reality from an unrealistic hope. The surrounding scene tells you whether an actual sleeper is involved.
잠이 확 깨다 means to become suddenly wide awake. 확 adds abruptness: a loud noise or surprising news can make someone feel fully alert. This is stronger than simply reporting the moment sleep ended. A person can already be out of bed and still describe finally losing their drowsiness.
깨다 does not itself mean “get out of bed”. You may wake, remain under the blanket and get up later. 일어나다 covers getting up. In a conversation about a morning schedule, this distinction explains why waking time and getting-up time can be different.
What Does the Breaking Meaning Extend To?
컵을 깨다 and 접시를 깨다 describe breaking a cup or plate. The person causing the break is the subject, and the fragile object takes 을/를. The verb does not say whether the damage was deliberate. An accidental break still uses the same basic pattern.
기록을 깨다 means to break a record, especially in sport. No physical object is shattered: the new result surpasses the earlier record. This is a useful figurative use to recognize in headlines. 분위기를 깨다 means to spoil or disrupt the atmosphere, such as interrupting a pleasant gathering with an awkward remark.
For an object that breaks, 깨지다 shifts attention to the damaged thing. The existing 유리가 깨졌어요 names the glass as subject without naming who caused it. This sentence does not prove that nobody caused the break; it simply leaves that person out.
Where Does Context Matter Most?
In family talk, a baby or a time of night often points to waking. In a kitchen, an object such as 컵 or 접시 points to breaking. Sports news often supplies 기록, and comments about an awkward conversation may supply 분위기. The object or subject is usually more informative than the ending.
The two meanings conjugate alike. 깼어요 can report either waking or breaking, so memorizing that form cannot settle the meaning. If a message says only 깼어요, ask what the conversation has already established rather than assuming the verb always concerns sleep.
How Do You Avoid Waking the Wrong Subject?
깨우다 makes someone else wake up. The parent who wakes a child needs 깨우다, while the child who stops sleeping takes 깨다. This is a difference in who causes the event, not a difference between polite and casual speech. Adding 요 to 깨다 does not give it the causative meaning.
Keep the past spelling 깼어요 even though the tense consonant you hear belongs to the following syllable in pronunciation. For the conditional, use 깨면; for a completed event before a noun, use 깬. These forms work for both meanings, so retain the noun when the context could be confusing.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 잠 | sleep | Helps make the waking sense explicit. |
| 꿈 | dream | Can name what someone wakes from. |
| 깨우다 | to wake someone | Adds a person causing another person to wake. |
| 깨지다 | to break / be broken | Makes the damaged thing the subject. |
The daily routines vocabulary lesson places waking beside sleeping, getting up and other daily actions.
Mini Drill: Waking or Breaking?
- Put 깨다 in the polite past.
- Give the conditional “if”.
- Choose the verb when you wake a child: 깨다 or 깨우다.
- Choose the verb when a glass is the subject of “broke”: 깨다 or 깨지다.
Show drill answers
- 깼어요.
- 깨면.
- 깨우다.
- 깨지다.
Quick Self-Test
- Must someone who 깼어요 already be out of bed?
- What does 기록을 깨다 mean?
- Does 컵을 깼어요 say the break was deliberate?
Show answers
- No. They may still be lying down.
- To break or surpass a record.
- No. It can describe an accident too.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Is 깨다 Different from 일어나다?
일어나다 is to get up out of bed. 깨다 is to stop sleeping, even if you stay lying down.
How Do I Say I Woke Someone Else Up?
Use the causative 깨우다: 엄마가 나를 깨웠어요 (My mother woke me up). 깨다 is only for the person who wakes.
Which Phrases with Sleep Are Common?
Both 잠이 깨다 and 잠을 깨다 are used, and 잠에서 깨다 (to wake from sleep) is common too.
Is 깨다 Used for Glass?
Yes, when someone breaks it: 컵을 깼어요. If it breaks by itself, the usual verb is 깨지다: 유리가 깨졌어요.
Which Words Are Related to 깨다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Learn 일어나다 next, since waking and getting up are separate steps in Korean, then 졸리다 (to be sleepy). Vowel-stem forms such as 깨요 are covered in how to conjugate Korean verbs in the present tense. You can check other forms in the Korean verb conjugator or browse the Korean verb dictionary.