Key Facts
- Hangul: 맛없다 (madeopda)
- Meaning: not tasty
- Level: A1
- Part of speech: adjective
- Stem: 맛없
- Conjugation class: regular
- Grammar: Takes 이/가 for the food that is not tasty.
- Usage: Written 맛없다 and pronounced 마덥따. Fairly blunt; softer is 맛이 별로예요 (not great).
What Does 맛없다 Mean?
It is the plain opposite of 맛있다 and is blunt: 이 국은 조금 맛없어요 says a soup is not tasty. 조금 softens it a little.
To be gentler, speakers turn to 맛이 별로예요 ('it is not great'), and 맛없는 음식은 남겨요 ('I leave food that isn't tasty') states a habit plainly.
Senses:
- not tasty: Describes food that tastes bad or unappealing, e.g. 맛없는 음식.
How Do You Pronounce 맛없다?
The dictionary form is written 맛없다 but spoken [마덥따]: the final ㅅ of 맛 is read as ㄷ, and it links into the next syllable. That is why the romanisation madeopda follows the sound while maseopda follows the spelling. Forms follow the same path: 맛없어요 is [마덥써요] and 맛없었어요 is [마덥써써요].
How Do You Use 맛없다 in a Sentence?
이 국은 조금 맛없어요.
This soup is not very tasty.
이 국은 조금 맛없어요 uses 조금 to soften the complaint.
어제 먹은 빵이 맛없었어요.
The bread I ate yesterday was not tasty.
어제 먹은 빵이 맛없었어요 modifies 빵 with 먹은 and puts the judgment in the past.
맛없는 음식은 남겨요.
I leave food that isn't tasty.
맛없는 음식은 남겨요 uses the modifier 맛없는, which takes 는 because the word ends in 없다.
How Does Madeopda Conjugation Work?
맛없다 is regular, with the stem 맛없 fixed and 어 selected: 맛없어요, 맛없었어요. Its modifier is 는: 맛없는, 맛없었던. The ordinary positive opposite is 맛있어요. A further negative can qualify the judgment as “not bad”, rather than directly saying “delicious”.
맛없다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 맛없어요 | ||
| Polite past | 맛없었어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 맛없을 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 맛없겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 맛없습니다 | ||
| Formal past | 맛없었습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 맛없을 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 맛없어 | ||
| Casual past | 맛없었어 | ||
| Casual future | 맛없을 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 맛없으세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 맛없어서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 맛없으면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 맛없는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 맛없었던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 맛없을 |
The table focuses on the basic forms of 맛없다. For the direct positive meaning, compare 맛있다.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 맛없어요 | [마덥써요] |
| Polite past | 맛없었어요 | [마덥써써요] |
| Polite future | 맛없을 거예요 | [마덥쓸꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 맛없겠어요 | [마덥께써요] |
| Formal present | 맛없습니다 | [마덥씀니다] |
| Formal past | 맛없었습니다 | [마덥썯씀니다] |
| Formal future | 맛없을 것입니다 | [마덥쓸꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 맛없었어 | [마덥써써] |
| Past modifier | 맛없었던 | [마덥썯떤] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 맛없은 음식
Correct: ✓ 맛없는 음식
Why: Words ending in 없다 take the 는 modifier like 있다.
Where Does 맛없다 Turn up in Daily Talk?
When you want to give the reason, use 싱겁다 (bland) or 짜다 (too salty), since 맛없다 does not say why. Next to 맛있다, it is the second of the two basic taste judgments.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 맛없다?
| Word | How to tell it from 맛없다 |
|---|---|
| 맛있다 | 맛있다 is the opposite, delicious. |
| 싱겁다 | 싱겁다 means bland or under-salted, one specific reason food may be 맛없다. |
Comparing Yesterday's Bread with Today's
Two friends are trying bread from a different bakery after a disappointing purchase yesterday.
Mina
어제 먹은 빵이 맛없었어요.
Eoje meogeun ppangi madeopseosseoyo.
The bread I ate yesterday was not tasty.
Jisu
이 빵도 맛없어요?
I ppangdo madeopseoyo?
Is this bread not tasty either?
Mina
아니요. 이건 맛있어요.
Aniyo. Igeon masisseoyo.
No. This one is tasty.
맛없었어요 reports yesterday's experience; 맛없어요 asks about the bread being tasted now. 이건 is a shortened form of 이것은, “as for this one”. The final reply switches to the opposite adjective rather than building a complicated negative of 맛없다.
The question ending does not change the written form: 맛없어요? asks, and 맛없어요. states. In speech, intonation and the surrounding conversation help show which one the speaker means. 도 connects today's bread with the disappointing bread from yesterday.
How Strong Is a Complaint with 맛없다?
맛없다 evaluates the overall eating experience. It does not tell the cook whether the problem is salt, texture, sweetness or temperature. The literal parts are 맛, “taste”, and 없다, “to be absent”, but the whole adjective means “not tasty”, rather than “having no detectable flavour”. A strongly flavoured dish can still be 맛없다 to someone who dislikes it.
| Expression | Meaning | What the listener learns |
|---|---|---|
| 정말 맛없다 | To taste really bad | A strong negative judgment. |
| 맛없는 음식 | Food that is not tasty | A description attached to the food noun. |
| 맛이 별로예요 | The taste is not great | A more restrained complaint. |
| 입맛에 안 맞아요 | It does not suit my taste | The problem is framed as personal preference. |
입맛 means appetite or one's taste in food. Saying 입맛에 안 맞아요 leaves room for another person to enjoy the same dish. It is useful when a host offers something you dislike but has clearly prepared it with care.
조금 in the existing soup example softens the degree, but 맛없어요 still gives a direct verdict. If you need a change to the dish, name the issue: “too salty” gives the cook more to work with than simply “not tasty”.
Where Will You Hear or Read 맛없다?
Friends use 맛없어 or 맛없어요 when comparing meals or deciding whether to return to a restaurant. Online food reviews may use the adjective directly because the writer is evaluating a purchase for other customers. A friend talking privately has a different social setting from a guest speaking to the person who cooked.
A waiter can understand 맛없어요, but the polite 요 ending does not soften the judgment itself. If a dish is different from what you ordered, explain that problem rather than making the server guess what “not tasty” means. If it is a matter of preference, 입맛에 안 맞아요 expresses that more precisely.
What Is Tricky about the Spelling and Grammar?
Write 맛없다 as one word when using the adjective, just as you write 맛있다. The phrase 맛이 없다 is also possible: there, 맛 is a separate noun with the subject marker 이. Keep the 이 in that phrase rather than inserting a space inside the adjective 맛없다.
The stem ends in 없, so its last vowel is ㅓ. That is why 맛없어요 uses 어 even though 맛 contains ㅏ. Its ㅂ belongs to the consonant cluster ㅄ; this is not the ㅂ-irregular pattern of 맵다. You keep the written stem in 맛없어요 and 맛없는.
For the basic opposite, choose 맛있어요. A double negative such as 맛없지 않아요 can express “it isn't bad”, but it is a qualified judgment, weaker than a warm “it's delicious”. It is not needed when you simply want the ordinary positive adjective.
Words for Explaining the Problem
| Korean | Meaning | How it narrows the complaint |
|---|---|---|
| 싱겁다 | bland; under-salted | Points to insufficient seasoning. |
| 짜다 | salty | Describes saltiness, without judging every part of the dish. |
| 맛 | taste; flavour | The noun inside 맛없다 and 맛있다. |
| 입맛 | appetite; taste in food | Helps explain a personal preference. |
The cooking and taste lesson teaches the flavour words that make feedback more specific.
Mini Drill: Build the Taste Description
- Give the polite present of 맛없다.
- Fill the gap before 음식: “food that isn't tasty”.
- Describe the taste of yesterday's bread using the polite past.
- Choose the ordinary positive opposite of 맛없어요.
Show drill answers
- 맛없어요. The stem keeps its spelling.
- 맛없는 음식: 없다 compounds take 는 here.
- 맛없었어요.
- 맛있어요. This directly says that something tastes good.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 맛없다 always mean “not enough salt”?
- Does 요 by itself make this judgment gentle?
- Which phrase frames the issue as your own taste: 맛없어요 or 입맛에 안 맞아요?
Show answers
- No. 싱겁다 gives that more specific description.
- No. The sentence is polite, but its verdict is direct.
- 입맛에 안 맞아요: it does not suit my taste.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say "It Is Not Tasty"?
맛없어요. Add 조금 to soften it: 이 국은 조금 맛없어요.
Is 맛없다 Polite to Say?
It is blunt. A softer wording is 맛이 별로예요.
Why Is It 맛없는 and Not 맛없은?
Words ending in 없다 use the 는 modifier.
Is 맛없다 More General than 싱겁다?
맛없다 means not tasty for any reason. 싱겁다 blames a lack of salt in particular.
Which Words Are Related to 맛없다?
The entries closest to 맛없다 (not tasty) are 맛있다 (delicious), 싱겁다 (bland), 짜다 (salty), 재미없다 (boring).
What Should You Learn Next?
Pair it with 맛있다, then use 싱겁다 and 짜다 to explain why food is not tasty. To see why 'not tasty' takes the form 맛없어요, read how to conjugate the present tense; the Korean verb conjugator tests other stems, and the Korean verb dictionary lists the rest of the family.