Key Facts
- Hangul: 멀다 (meolda)
- Meaning: far
- Level: A1
- Part of speech: adjective
- Stem: 멀
- Conjugation class: ㄹ-drop
- Grammar: Descriptive word; the subject takes 이/가 and the reference point takes 에서 (학교에서 집이 멀어요).
- Usage: Basic word at A1. ㄹ-irregular: 멀어요 but 멉니다, 머세요. Often with 에서 and 까지.
What Does 멀다 Mean?
멀다 means far. 집이 멀어요 says the house is far away, and 먼 나라 is a far country. It also stretches to distance in time. The reference point takes 에서, so 학교에서 집이 멀어요 means that home is far from school, with the house as the subject.
How Do You Pronounce 멀다?
멀다 is read as written. Before a vowel ending the ㄹ moves onto the next syllable: 멀어요 is [머러요] and 멀었어요 is [머러써요]. Before ㄴ and ㅂ the ㄹ drops, so the formal present 멉니다 is [멈니다]. The future 멀 거예요 is spoken [멀꺼예요].
How Do You Use 멀다 in a Sentence?
우리 집은 학교에서 멀어요.
My home is far from school.
우리 집은 means our house, and 학교에서 sets the school as the point of measurement.
먼 나라에서 왔어요.
I came from a far country.
먼 is the present modifier, shortened from 멀 + 은, and 나라에서 gives the origin.
멀면 택시를 타요.
If it's far, I take a taxi.
멀면 택시를 타요 uses the if-form of 멀다, with the ㄹ kept before 면.
They show the polite present 멀어요, the shortened modifier 먼 and the if-form 멀면.
How Does Meolda Conjugation Work?
멀다 is a ㄹ-drop adjective. The ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ, ㅅ, so you get 멉니다, 머세요 and the modifier 먼. Before other endings the ㄹ stays: 멀어요, 멀었어요, 멀어서, 멀면. In the future, the endings attach to 멀 as 멀 거예요 and 멀겠어요. The rule behind this class is in the lesson on ㄹ-irregular verbs and adjectives.
멀다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 멀어요 | ||
| Polite past | 멀었어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 멀 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 멀겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 멉니다 | ||
| Formal past | 멀었습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 멀 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 멀어 | ||
| Casual past | 멀었어 | ||
| Casual future | 멀 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 머세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 멀어서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 멀면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 먼 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 멀었던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 멀 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 멀어요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 멀지 않아요 |
No want-to row: -고 싶다 suits verbs.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 멀어요 | [머러요] |
| Polite past | 멀었어요 | [머러써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 멀 거예요 | [멀꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 멀겠어요 | [멀게써요] |
| Formal present | 멉니다 | [멈니다] |
| Formal past | 멀었습니다 | [머럳씀니다] |
| Formal future | 멀 것입니다 | [멀꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 멀어 | [머러] |
| Casual past | 멀었어 | [머러써] |
| Casual future | 멀 거야 | [멀꺼야] |
| Because / and then | 멀어서 | [머러서] |
| Past modifier | 멀었던 | [머럳떤] |
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 멀어요 | [안 머러요] |
| Long negative | 멀지 않아요 | [멀지 아나요] |
Common Mistake with 멀다
Wrong: ✗ 멀은 곳
Correct: ✓ 먼 곳
Why: ㄹ verbs drop the ㄹ before ㄴ: 멀 + 은 becomes 먼, never 멀은. The formal 멉니다 and the honorific 머세요 follow the same rule.
멀다 with 에서 and 까지
멀다 is a basic word at the A1 level. It nearly always has a place word with it: 학교에서 멀어요, from school, and 에서 and 까지 mark where the distance starts and ends. The ㄹ-drop is the one real trap, and it affects only the formal, honorific and modifier forms. For a distance that is too long, a natural fix is 멀면 택시를 타요.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 멀다?
| Word | How to tell it from 멀다 |
|---|---|
| 가깝다 | The opposite: 가깝다 is near, 멀다 is far. |
| 길다 | 길다 is long in length; 멀다 is long in distance away. |
길다 is long in length, as in a long road. 멀다 is for how far apart two places are.
Choosing a Hotel near the Station
Two friends are looking at a hotel listing. One asks about the distance; the other weighs the taxi option. The question and answer use 멀어요, and the condition uses 멀면.
Jisu
호텔이 역에서 멀어요?
Hoteli yeogeseo meoreoyo?
Is the hotel far from the station?
Alex
네, 좀 멀어요.
Ne, jom meoreoyo.
Yes, it is a bit far.
Jisu
멀면 택시를 타요.
Meolmyeon taeksireul tayo.
If it is far, let’s take a taxi.
Alex
좋아요. 먼 곳까지 걷고 싶지 않아요.
Joayo. Meon gotkkaji geotgo sipji anayo.
Sounds good. I don’t want to walk somewhere far away.
호텔이 names the hotel as the subject, while 역에서 supplies the reference point. The last line uses 먼 before 곳, “place”. The adjective changes shape, but the distance still belongs to the destination. 타요 works as a suggestion here because the friends are deciding what to do together.
Which Phrases Take Distance beyond a Map?
아직 멀었어요 literally says that something is still far away. It can mean “there is still a long way to go” before reaching a destination or finishing a task. A learner may also use it modestly when someone praises their ability. The past-looking 멀었어요 does not force a past-time translation in this expression.
먼 미래 means “the distant future”, and 먼 옛날 means “long ago”. Neither phrase measures kilometres. Both use the modifier 먼 to put an event far from the present. In a story opening, 먼 옛날 sets a remote time rather than a remote location.
거리가 멀다 literally means “the distance is great”. With a place, that can be physical distance. With an idea or standard, it can mean “far removed from”. For example, 현실과 거리가 멀다 means “to be far from reality”. The noun 현실, “reality”, makes the figurative reading clear. These spatial and non-spatial senses appear in the National Institute of Korean Language’s entry for 멀다.
Where Will You Hear 멀다?
In apartment searches, a question about whether a home is far usually needs a reference point: the station, school or workplace. Once both speakers know the station under discussion, 역에서 can be left out. A bare 멀어요 still makes sense in that shared setting.
When asking directions, distance and travel time are different answers. 멀어요 tells you the destination is far; it gives no exact walking time. Someone carrying luggage may call a route far even when a local finds it manageable. Ask about minutes if you need to decide whether to walk.
The honorific cell 머세요 is a grammatical shape, but most distance questions concern places. A hotel or station does not need an honorific ending. The polite 멀어요 is the practical form to use when discussing those places with a stranger.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 거리 | distance / street | In a distance discussion, it names the gap between places. |
| 근처 | nearby area | Useful when looking for something around a station or hotel. |
| 가깝다 | to be near | Describes a short distance from a reference point. |
| 길다 | to be long | Describes length, including the length of a road. |
Use the asking-directions lessons to put distance questions into a route conversation.
Mini Drill: Keep or Drop ㄹ
- Make 멀다 polite in the present.
- Make it formal in the present.
- Complete “a faraway place”: ____ 곳.
- Complete “if it is far”: ____.
Show drill answers
- 멀어요: ㄹ stays before 어요.
- 멉니다: ㄹ drops before ㅂ.
- 먼 곳: ㄹ drops before the modifier ㄴ.
- 멀면: ㄹ stays before 면.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 먼 미래 refer to physical distance?
- In 호텔이 역에서 멀어요, what is the reference point?
- Does 아직 멀었어요 always describe a past journey?
Show answers
- No. It means the distant future.
- The station, marked by 역에서.
- No. It can mean there is still a long way to go now.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do You Say 'My Home Is Far from School'?
우리 집은 학교에서 멀어요.
Is 멀은 곳 Correct?
No. Use 먼 곳. The ㄹ drops before ㄴ.
What Is the Formal Present?
멉니다, and the honorific is 머세요.
How Is 멀어요 Pronounced?
It is spoken [머러요].
What Is the Opposite of 멀다?
The opposite is 가깝다, which means near.
Which Words Are Related to 멀다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Learn 가깝다 as the opposite, then 길다 for length. The ㄹ-drop lesson shows the same pattern in other words. Once you know how to say "far", put another word through the Korean verb conjugator to compare the pattern, or browse more entries in the Korean verb dictionary.