Key Facts
- Hangul: 맑다 (makda)
- Meaning: clear (weather)
- Level: A2
- Part of speech: adjective
- Stem: 맑
- Conjugation class: regular
- Dictionary form sounds like: [막따]
- Grammar: Descriptive word; the clear thing takes 이/가 (하늘이 맑아요).
- Usage: Standard weather word (날씨가 맑다). Also used for water and air (맑은 물).
What Does 맑다 Mean?
맑다 means clear in the sense of fine weather or transparency. 날씨가 맑아요 is the standard way to say the weather is clear, and 하늘이 맑아요 says the sky is clear. It also describes water and air: 맑은 물 is clear water. The clear thing takes 이/가.
How Do You Pronounce 맑다?
The spelling ends in ㄺ, like 밝다. Before 다 the ㄹ is silent and the ㄱ is kept; the following ㄷ becomes tense, so 맑다 is [막따]. Before a vowel both consonants are heard: 맑아요 is [말가요] and 맑은 is [말근]. The formal 맑습니다 is [막씀니다], and 맑지 않아요 is [막찌 아나요].
How Do You Use 맑다 in a Sentence?
오늘은 하늘이 맑아요.
The sky is clear today.
오늘은 is the topic, and 하늘이 is the subject, so the sky is the clear thing.
맑은 날에 소풍을 가요.
We go on a picnic on a clear day.
맑은 is the present modifier and goes before 날에, a clear day.
어제는 날씨가 맑았어요.
The weather was clear yesterday.
어제는 sets the time, and 맑았어요 puts the clear weather in the past.
Weather, a modifier on a day, and the past: the three sentences cover the most common uses.
How Does Makda Conjugation Work?
맑다 is regular, so the stem 맑 does not change. Its last vowel is ㅏ, so the endings take 아: 맑아요, 맑았어요, 맑아서. With a consonant ending: 맑습니다 and 맑지 않아요. The if-form is 맑으면, the present modifier is 맑은, and the future modifier is 맑을. The rule behind this class is in the polite present recipe lesson.
맑다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 맑아요 | ||
| Polite past | 맑았어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 맑을 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 맑겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 맑습니다 | ||
| Formal past | 맑았습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 맑을 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 맑아 | ||
| Casual past | 맑았어 | ||
| Casual future | 맑을 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 맑으세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 맑아서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 맑으면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 맑은 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 맑았던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 맑을 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 맑아요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 맑지 않아요 |
No want-to row: -고 싶다 suits verbs.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 맑아요 | [말가요] |
| Polite past | 맑았어요 | [말가써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 맑을 거예요 | [말글꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 맑겠어요 | [말께써요] |
| Formal present | 맑습니다 | [막씀니다] |
| Formal past | 맑았습니다 | [말갇씀니다] |
| Formal future | 맑을 것입니다 | [말글꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 맑아 | [말가] |
| Casual past | 맑았어 | [말가써] |
| Casual future | 맑을 거야 | [말글꺼야] |
| Honorific polite | 맑으세요 | [말그세요] |
| Because / and then | 맑아서 | [말가서] |
| If (conditional) | 맑으면 | [말그면] |
| Present modifier | 맑은 | [말근] |
| Past modifier | 맑았던 | [말갇떤] |
| Future modifier | 맑을 | [말글] |
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 맑아요 | [안 말가요] |
| Long negative | 맑지 않아요 | [막찌 아나요] |
Common Mistake with 맑다
Wrong: ✗ 말가요
Correct: ✓ 맑아요
Why: Spelling keeps both consonants of the ㄺ batchim: 맑 + 아요 is written 맑아요, although it sounds like 말가요. Do not spell the sound.
Weather, Water and Air
맑다 is the standard weather word, and it also covers water and air: 맑은 물. On a picnic day, the natural phrase is 맑은 날에 소풍을 가요. The opposite for the weather is 흐리다, while 깨끗하다 is for something clean rather than transparent.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 맑다?
| Word | How to tell it from 맑다 |
|---|---|
| 흐리다 | The weather opposite: 흐리다 is cloudy, 맑다 is clear. |
| 깨끗하다 | 깨끗하다 is clean; 맑다 is clear and transparent, as water or sky. |
For a sky, 맑다 and 흐리다 are a pair. For water, 맑다 means transparent, while 깨끗하다 means clean.
Deciding Whether to Go on a Picnic
Two friends compare yesterday's weather with today's before choosing a picnic day.
Mina
오늘은 하늘이 맑아요.
Oneureun haneuri malgayo.
The sky is clear today.
Jisu
어제도 맑았어요?
Eojedo malgasseoyo?
Was it clear yesterday too?
Mina
아니요. 맑은 날에 소풍을 가요.
Aniyo. Malgeun nare sopungeul gayo.
No. Let’s go on a picnic on a clear day.
맑아요 describes the current sky, 맑았어요 asks about an earlier day, and 맑은 places “clear” before 날, “day”. The last 가요 is a suggestion in this setting. The same polite form can describe going or invite someone to go; the shared plan supplies the meaning.
What Else Can Be 맑다?
| Collocation | Meaning | What “clear” describes |
|---|---|---|
| 맑은 하늘 | A clear sky | A sky without cloud cover obscuring it. |
| 맑은 물 | Clear water | Water that looks transparent rather than cloudy. |
| 맑은 공기 | Clear, fresh air | Air described as free of haze or pollution. |
| 맑은 목소리 | A clear voice | A bright, clear vocal quality. |
| 맑은 정신 | A clear mind | An alert mental state without confusion. |
The voice and mind expressions extend the idea of clarity beyond something you can look through. 맑은 목소리 is about the quality of the voice, not simply its volume. A loud voice is not automatically 맑다, and a quiet voice may still sound clear.
맑은 정신 describes alertness. In a scene where a character is tired or confused, a reference to 정신 shifts the meaning away from weather. Learn these as noun-and-adjective combinations: the noun tells you which kind of clarity the speaker means.
Where Will You See 맑다 in Weather Reports?
A weather forecast can show 맑음, a compact label meaning “clear”. In a full forecast sentence, 맑겠습니다 presents expected clear conditions. You can recognize both from 맑다 even though neither is the conversational 맑아요 used when looking out of the window.
맑다 does not tell you the temperature. A winter day may have a clear sky and still be bitterly cold. It also does not guarantee that the air quality is good: a forecast's sky condition and its fine-dust information answer different questions.
Descriptions of rivers or streams use 맑은 물 for visible clarity. That phrase alone does not establish that the water is safe to drink. It tells you how the water looks; drinking safety requires different information.
What Makes the ㄺ Ending Tricky?
맑다 is regular in spelling, but its two final consonants do not always sound the same way. Before a vowel, both can be heard across the syllables: 맑아요 is [말가요]. Before 다, only ㄱ remains as the closing sound and the next ㄷ becomes tense: [막따].
Before a ㄱ-starting ending, ㄺ in this verb stem behaves differently again: 맑고 is [말꼬], with ㄹ retained and the following ㄱ tensed. This follows the National Institute of Korean Language's standard pronunciation rules for ㄺ in verb stems. The spelling remains 맑고; pronunciation does not remove letters from the written stem.
A useful way to practise is to compare 맑아요, 맑습니다 and 맑고. All three keep 맑 on the page, but the ending changes which consonants you hear. The sound changes are separate from an irregular conjugation such as 맵다 becoming 매워요.
How Do 맑다, 밝다 and 깨끗하다 Differ?
맑다 describes clarity, 밝다 describes brightness, and 깨끗하다 describes cleanliness. A bright room has plenty of light; a clean room has no dirt. For the sky, a clear night can be 맑다 even when there is little light, so “clear” and “bright” are not the same judgment.
The contrast with 흐리다 is especially useful for weather: clear versus cloudy. Keep the pair tied to a noun such as 하늘 or 날씨 so that the comparison stays concrete.
Weather Words to Learn Next
| Korean | Meaning | One useful connection |
|---|---|---|
| 하늘 | sky | The visible sky can be 맑아요. |
| 날씨 | weather | The overall conditions you discuss in a forecast. |
| 흐리다 | cloudy; overcast | The weather opposite of 맑다. |
| 햇빛 | sunlight | Often present on a clear day, but names the light itself. |
The weather vocabulary lesson adds the words for rain, snow and other conditions that 맑다 alone cannot describe.
Mini Drill: Keep the Written Cluster
- Give the polite present of 맑다.
- Fill the gap: ____ 날, “a clear day”.
- Give the polite past for yesterday's weather.
- Give the conditional form, “if it is clear”.
Show drill answers
- 맑아요. Keep ㄺ even though the sound is [말가요].
- 맑은 날.
- 맑았어요.
- 맑으면. The vowel ending lets both consonants be heard.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 맑아요 mean the weather is warm?
- What does 맑은 목소리 describe?
- Is a spelling change needed when 맑다 is pronounced [막따]?
Show answers
- No. It describes clear conditions, without specifying temperature.
- A clear voice, rather than the sky or water.
- No. Keep 맑다 with ㄺ in writing.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do You Say 'the Sky Is Clear Today'?
오늘은 하늘이 맑아요.
Is 말가요 a Correct Spelling?
No. Write 맑아요. It is only pronounced [말가요].
What Is the Opposite of 맑다 for Weather?
The opposite is 흐리다, which means cloudy.
Can 맑다 Describe Water?
Yes. 맑은 물 is clear water.
How Is 맑다 Pronounced?
It is [막따]. The ㄹ is silent and the ㄱ is kept before 다.
Which Words Are Related to 맑다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Learn 흐리다 as the weather opposite, then 밝다 and 깨끗하다 for light and cleanliness. Once you know how to say "clear (weather)", put another word through the Korean verb conjugator to compare the pattern, or browse more entries in the Korean verb dictionary.