Key Facts
- Hangul: 멈추다 (meomchuda)
- Meaning: to stop
- Level: B1
- Stem: 멈추
- Class: regular
- Object marking: both
What Does 멈추다 Mean?
멈추다 means to stop movement, sound or an action: 차가 멈추다, 걸음을 멈추다. Typical subjects are 비, 소리, 차 and 시계.
Senses:
- to stop. Used for stopping movement, sound or an action: 차가 멈추다, 걸음을 멈추다.
How Is 멈추다 Used?
멈추다 is both intransitive and transitive. With 이/가 the thing stops itself (차가 멈추다); with 을/를 someone stops it (차를 멈추다).
Object marking. Intransitive with 이/가 (차가 멈추다) and transitive with 을/를 (차를 멈추다).
How Do You Pronounce 멈추다?
멈추다 is romanized meomchuda. Most forms are read as written; the main changes are 멈췄어요 [멈춰써요] and 멈춥니다 [멈춤니다].
Example Sentences
버스가 정류장에서 멈춰요.
The bus stops at the bus stop.
This is the polite present form. The bus is the subject (버스가), and 정류장에서 means at the bus stop.
갑자기 차가 멈췄어요.
Suddenly the car stopped.
This is the polite past form. 갑자기 means suddenly.
여기에서 멈추세요.
Please stop here.
This is the honorific polite form, a polite request to stop here, for example to a driver.
Meomchuda Conjugation: What Are the Forms of 멈추다?
멈추다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 멈춰요 | ||
| Polite past | 멈췄어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 멈출 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 멈추겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 멈춥니다 | ||
| Formal past | 멈췄습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 멈출 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 멈춰 | ||
| Casual past | 멈췄어 | ||
| Casual future | 멈출 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 멈추고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 멈추세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 멈춰서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 멈추면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 멈추는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 멈춘 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 멈출 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 멈춰요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 멈추지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 멈춰요 | - |
| Polite past | 멈췄어요 | [멈춰써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 멈출 거예요 | [멈출꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 멈추겠어요 | [멈추게써요] |
| Formal present | 멈춥니다 | [멈춤니다] |
| Formal past | 멈췄습니다 | [멈춷씀니다] |
| Formal future | 멈출 것입니다 | [멈출꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 멈춰 | - |
| Casual past | 멈췄어 | [멈춰써] |
| Casual future | 멈출 거야 | [멈출꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 멈추고 싶어요 | [멈추고 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 멈추세요 | - |
| Because / and then | 멈춰서 | - |
| If (conditional) | 멈추면 | - |
| Modifier, present | 멈추는 | - |
| Modifier, past | 멈춘 | - |
| Modifier, future | 멈출 | - |
| Short negative | 안 멈춰요 | - |
| Long negative | 멈추지 않아요 | [멈추지 아나요] |
Is 멈추다 Regular or Irregular?
멈추다 is regular. The stem contracts: 멈춰요, 멈췄어요.
Usage note. Common. Typical subjects: 비, 소리, 차, 시계. The stem 멈추- contracts: 멈춰요, 멈췄어요.
Related words: 그만두다, 서다, 끝나다, 계속하다.
Stopping Versus Quitting
Korean draws a firm line between stopping and quitting. 멈추다 stops something that is moving or happening: a car, a sound, a clock, a step (걸음을 멈추다). It does not mean to give something up for good. For a job, a habit or school, Korean reaches for 그만두다 instead, and the wrong choice, 학교를 멈췄어요, would sound as if the school itself had stopped moving.
A third word, 서다, is also close. It can mean to come to a stop on its own, as in 차가 서다, while 멈추다 is the general-purpose verb that works with either kind of subject. When the stopper is a person acting on the thing, the object takes 을/를, as in 차를 멈추다. When the thing simply halts, the subject takes 이/가. Reading the particle tells you which story is being told.
Common Mistake with 멈추다
Wrong: ✗ 학교를 멈췄어요
Correct: ✓ 학교를 그만뒀어요
Why: Quitting school or a job uses 그만두다; 멈추다 is for stopping movement or an action. English "stop" covers both, but Korean does not.
Similar Words
| Word | How it differs from 멈추다 |
|---|---|
| 그만두다 | 그만두다 is to quit a job or habit; 멈추다 is to stop moving or happening. |
| 서다 | 서다 is to stand or to come to a stop on its own (차가 서다); 멈추다 is the more general 'stop'. |
Stopping outside a Café
A passenger is guiding a driver to a café. The driver can stop briefly outside, and the passenger confirms when the car has stopped.
Passenger
저 카페 앞에서 멈추세요.
Jeo kape apeseo meomchuseyo.
Please stop in front of that café.
Driver
네, 여기에서 멈출 거예요.
Ne, yeogieseo meomchul geoyeyo.
Okay, I’ll stop here.
Passenger
차가 멈췄어요. 여기서 내릴게요.
Chaga meomchwosseoyo. Yeogiseo naerilgeyo.
The car has stopped. I’ll get out here.
멈추세요 is the passenger's request, 멈출 거예요 is the driver's plan, and 멈췄어요 confirms the result. The final sentence uses 차가 because the car is the thing that has stopped. It does not need to name the driver again.
Common Combinations with 멈추다
걸음을 멈추다 means to stop walking, literally to stop your steps. 걸음 names a step or the act of walking. In a story, this phrase often marks the moment someone notices a sound, sees another person, or pauses before continuing. It describes a halt rather than a decision to give up walking altogether.
시계가 멈추다 means a clock or watch stops running. A watch can remain on your wrist while its mechanism stops, so “stop” does not have to mean stopping a journey. 소리가 멈추다 similarly means a sound ceases; the subject tells you what activity has come to a halt.
차를 멈추다 means to stop a car. Compare 차가 멈추다: the first expression names the car as the object controlled by someone, while the second reports the car's stopping. The subject version alone does not prove whether the driver braked or the engine failed.
Where Will You Hear 멈추다?
In traffic talk, 멈추다 describes a vehicle halting. A story may add 갑자기, “suddenly,” to emphasize an unexpected stop. Elsewhere, a news report can use the same verb for a machine or service that stops operating. The shared idea is that an activity ceases.
For a road sign, you may instead see 정지, meaning “stop” or “halt.” This noun is common on signs and controls, while 멈추다 fits a full sentence describing what a person or vehicle does. Recognizing 정지 helps you connect a short label with the longer spoken instruction.
The casual command 멈춰 is direct. A character shouting it in a drama may be trying to stop someone immediately. 멈추세요 is the polite instruction form, but urgency and tone still matter: a shouted polite ending can remain forceful.
Words around a Stop
| Korean | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 정지 | stop / halt | Common as a short sign or control label. |
| 일시 정지 | pause | Signals a temporary interruption, including on media controls. |
| 걸음 | step / walking | The object in 걸음을 멈추다. |
| 정류장 | bus stop | Names a place, rather than the action of stopping. |
See transportation vocabulary for the places and vehicles used with 멈추다.
A video can stop before it reaches its ending. 멈추다 describes the interruption, while 끝나다 says that something ends. If someone pauses a clip halfway through, the story may still have more to show.
Mini Drill: Movement and Particles
- Complete “The car stopped”: 차__ 멈췄어요.
- Complete “I stopped the car”: 저는 차__ 멈췄어요.
- Change 멈추다 to the polite present.
- Give a polite instruction to stop here using 여기에서.
Show drill answers
- 차가 멈췄어요.
- 저는 차를 멈췄어요.
- 멈춰요. ㅜ and 어 combine into ㅝ.
- 여기에서 멈추세요.
The contraction belongs in 멈춰요 and 멈췄어요. Keep the stem's ㅜ in 멈추세요 and 멈추면, where no 어 is attached. This explains why the polite instruction looks different from the polite present without making 멈추다 irregular.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 차가 멈췄어요 say why the car stopped?
- Which verb fits quitting a job: 멈추다 or 그만두다?
- What does 걸음을 멈추다 describe?
Show answers
- No. The cause needs more context.
- 그만두다.
- Stopping walking or halting your steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is the Polite Present of 멈추다?
멈춰요. The ㅜ of the stem and the 어 of the ending merge into ㅝ.
Can I Say 학교를 멈추다 for Quitting School?
No. For quitting school or a job use 그만두다: 학교를 그만뒀어요.
Can 멈추다 Take an Object?
Yes. With 을/를 someone stops something (차를 멈추다); with 이/가 the thing stops by itself (차가 멈추다).
What Kinds of Things Usually Stop?
Rain (비), sounds (소리), cars (차) and clocks (시계) are typical subjects, as are steps: 걸음을 멈추다 means to stop walking.
Which Words Are Related to 멈추다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Read 그만두다 and 서다 next. Class lesson: How to Conjugate Korean Verbs in the Present Tense. Tool: Korean verb conjugator.