Key Facts
- Hangul: 밀다 (milda)
- Meaning: to push
- Level: B1
- Stem: 밀
- Conjugation class: ㄹ-drop
- Polite present: 밀어요
- Object marking: transitive
What Does 밀다 Mean?
밀다 takes the pushed object with 을/를, as in 문을 밀다. Its everyday partner is 당기다 (pull), and the two meet on door signs. Pushing is away from you; for pulling, use 당기다.
On Korean doors the push sign usually shows the polite form 미세요 (please push), and the pull sign uses 당기다 in the same way, so the two verbs are an opposite pair worth learning together. 밀다 is not limited to doors: 친구가 차를 밀었어요 means a friend pushed the car.
How Do You Pronounce 밀다?
Before a vowel the ㄹ joins the next syllable as a light flap: 밀어요 is [미러요] and 밀었어요 [미러써요]. In the formal 밉니다 the ㄹ has dropped from the spelling, and ㅂ becomes ㅁ before ㄴ: [밈니다].
How Do You Use 밀다 in a Sentence?
The examples show pushing a door, pushing a car and what happens when you push.
문을 밀어요.
I push the door.
문을 is the object of the push.
친구가 차를 밀었어요.
My friend pushed the car.
친구가 is the subject and 차를 the thing pushed, in the past tense.
문을 밀면 열려요.
If you push the door, it opens.
The conditional 밀면 gives a cause and result: push and it opens.
Useful Patterns with 밀다
Because of the ㄹ drop, the present modifier is 미는 (that pushes, that is pushing) and the past modifier is 민 (that pushed). Both look short next to 밀어요, so learners sometimes fail to recognise them in reading.
How Does Milda Conjugation Work?
밀다 is an ㄹ-drop verb. The ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ: 밉니다, 미는, 민, and the honorific 미세요. Elsewhere it stays: 밀어요, 밀면. ㄹ stems never add an extra vowel before -면, so the conditional is simply 밀면.
밀다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 밀어요 | ||
| Polite past | 밀었어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 밀 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 밀겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 밉니다 | ||
| Formal past | 밀었습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 밀 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 밀어 | ||
| Casual past | 밀었어 | ||
| Casual future | 밀 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 밀고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 미세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 밀어서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 밀면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 미는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 민 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 밀 | ||
| Short negative | 안 밀어요 | ||
| Long negative | 밀지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 밀어요 | [미러요] |
| Polite past | 밀었어요 | [미러써요] |
| Polite guess | 밀겠어요 | [밀게써요] |
| Formal past | 밀었습니다 | [미럳씀니다] |
| Casual present | 밀어 | [미러] |
| Casual future | 밀 거야 | [밀꺼야] |
| Because | 밀어서 | [미러서] |
| Long negative | 밀지 않아요 | [밀지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 밀습니다
Correct: ✓ 밉니다
Why: In ㄹ verbs the ㄹ drops before ㅂ, so the formal polite form is 밉니다. Learners who treat 밀 like any consonant stem attach 습니다 as they would to other consonant stems, but ㄹ stems take the vowel-stem ending after the ㄹ drops.
How It Differs from Similar Words
| Word | How to tell it from 밀다 |
|---|---|
| 당기다 | The opposite: to pull. |
| 누르다 | To press down, e.g. a button. |
| 끌다 | To drag or pull along. |
A Door That Will Not Open
Two visitors reach a café entrance. One has been pulling the door and the other notices the sign.
Jun
문을 밀었어요?
Muneul mireosseoyo?
Did you push the door?
Hana
아니요. 당겼어요.
Aniyo. Danggyeosseoyo.
No. I pulled it.
Jun
미세요. 밀면 열려요.
Miseyo. Milmyeon yeollyeoyo.
Push it, please. It opens if you push.
밀었어요 asks about a completed push, 미세요 gives an instruction, and 밀면 introduces a condition. All three come from 밀다. The door is already the topic, so Jun can leave out 문을 in his reply. The short instruction is enough when both people can see what needs moving.
What Do Push Signs Actually Say?
A café or shop door label may say 미세요, “please push”, or simply 밀기, “pushing”. These are different forms of the same verb. 미세요 addresses the person opening the door; 밀기 labels the required action. A learner who knows only 밀어요 may miss the connection because 미세요 has no written ㄹ.
당기세요 means “please pull”. Read the label on your side of the door: the same door can require a push from one side and a pull from the other. The label tells you how to open it from where you are standing, rather than naming a permanent feature of the door.
On a door, 미세요 is a normal polite instruction. Said sharply to a person in a crowd, the same request can feel much more forceful. The ending supplies politeness, while the situation and tone still determine how the instruction comes across.
Common Combinations with 밀다
문을 밀다 is the basic door phrase. 카트를 밀다 means to push a cart, and 유모차를 밀다 means to push a stroller. These combinations describe keeping an object moving in front of you. The action can continue for a while; 밀다 does not mean just one quick shove.
등을 밀다 literally means to push someone's back. In a physical scene, someone might help another person move forward. In a figurative scene, it can mean urging someone to act. A character hesitating outside an interview room may receive encouragement rather than an actual push. The surrounding action makes the reading clear.
사람을 밀다 means to push a person. In a queue or on public transport, this describes bodily contact rather than a harmless gesture toward a button. For an elevator button, 누르다 is the useful verb. Choose according to the movement: pushing a whole object and pressing a small control are different actions.
Keep the ㄹ in the Right Places
밀어요 and 밀면 retain the stem's ㄹ. 미세요, 미는 and 밉니다 lose it because of the ending that follows. In 밉니다, the ㅂ belongs to the formal ending; it is not a new stem consonant replacing ㄹ in every form. Return to 밀 when building the next form.
The future 밀 거예요 has a space before 거예요. Its first word still looks like the stem 밀 because the future modifier does not add a second ㄹ. The present modifier 미는 looks different: 미는 문 describes a door that you push to open. Recognising these forms helps you connect labels and descriptions to the dictionary entry.
Words for Doors and Things You Push
| Related word | Meaning | Useful connection |
|---|---|---|
| 문 | door | The object in 문을 밀다. |
| 손잡이 | handle | The part you hold while opening a door. |
| 카트 | cart | A shopping cart is something you can push. |
| 유모차 | stroller | Another everyday object used with 밀다. |
The shopping vocabulary lesson gives you the setting for carts, shop entrances and moving through a store. Keep 당기다 beside 밀다 when learning door instructions; learn 누르다 alongside buttons and controls.
Mini Drill: Find the Missing ㄹ
- Give the polite request form of 밀다 shown on a door.
- Give the conditional form of 밀다.
- Complete the formal present from the table: ____.
- Make the present modifier before 문: ____ 문.
Show drill answers
- 미세요. The ㄹ drops before 시.
- 밀면; an ㄹ stem does not add 으 here.
- 밉니다.
- 미는 문, a door you push to open.
Quick Self-Test
- What should you do when a door says 미세요?
- Which verb fits pressing an elevator button?
- In 카트를 밀다, what is being pushed?
Show answers
- Push the door.
- 누르다.
- The cart; 를 marks it as the object.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is the Opposite of 밀다?
당기다, to pull toward you. On doors the two appear as a pair.
What Are the Modifier Forms of 밀다?
미는 for the present and 민 for the past. The ㄹ drops before ㄴ in both.
How Is 밀다 Different from 누르다?
누르다 is to press down on something, such as a button. 밀다 moves the whole object away from you.
How Is 밀다 Different from 끌다?
끌다 is to drag or pull something along behind you, the opposite direction to 밀다.
Which Words Are Related to 밀다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Compare 끌다 and 당기다 for the opposite direction. The ㄹ drop in 밉니다 and 미는 is explained in Korean ㄹ irregular verbs. You can check other forms in the Korean verb conjugator or browse the Korean verb dictionary.