Key Facts
- Hangul: 올라가다 (ollagada)
- Meaning: to go up
- Level: A2
- Stem: 올라가
- Class: regular
- Objects: intransitive
- Honorific polite: 올라가세요
What Does 올라가다 Mean?
올라가다 means to go up: to move upward or to a higher place. Two typical goals are 산에 올라가다 (go up a mountain) and 위층으로 올라가다 (go to the upper floor). It is intransitive, with the goal marked by 에 or (으)로.
Meanings:
- to go up. Move upward or to a higher place, as in 산에 올라가다 or 위층으로 올라가다.
It also has a figurative use: prices and levels go up too, as in 가격이 올라가다. The thing you climb along can take 을/를, as in 산을 올라가요, much like English 'go up the mountain'. The honorific polite form is 올라가세요.
How Do You Pronounce 올라가다?
The verb has a double ㄹ in the middle, ll, which is read as one long l: 올라가다 sounds like ol-la-ga-da. The past 올라갔어요 is read [올라가써요]. The formal present 올라갑니다 is read [올라감니다], and the plan form 올라갈 거예요 is read [올라갈꺼예요].
How the forms sound:
- 올라갔어요 [올라가써요]
- 올라갈 거예요 [올라갈꺼예요]
- 올라가겠어요 [올라가게써요]
- 올라갑니다 [올라감니다]
- 올라갔습니다 [올라갇씀니다]
- 올라갈 것입니다 [올라갈꺼심니다]
- 올라갔어 [올라가써]
- 올라갈 거야 [올라갈꺼야]
- 올라가고 싶어요 [올라가고 시퍼요]
- 올라가지 않아요 [올라가지 아나요]
How Do You Use 올라가다 in a Sentence?
저는 계단으로 올라가요.
I go up by the stairs.
The route is marked with 으로 after 계단 (stairs), the way you take, not a destination. The polite present 올라가요 gives a habit or a general statement. (올라가요)
어제 친구와 산에 올라갔어요.
I went up the mountain with a friend yesterday.
A companion marked with 와, and the goal is a mountain marked with 에. 올라갔어요 is the past; its ㅆ links forward, so it is read [올라가써요]. (올라갔어요)
내일 위층으로 올라갈 거예요.
I will go upstairs tomorrow.
위층으로 gives the direction, and 내일 (tomorrow) pairs with the plan form 올라갈 거예요. The future form is written with a spaced 거예요. (올라갈 거예요)
How Does Ollagada Conjugation Work?
올라가다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 올라가요 | ||
| Polite past | 올라갔어요 | ||
| Polite future | 올라갈 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (guess) | 올라가겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 올라갑니다 | ||
| Formal past | 올라갔습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 올라갈 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 올라가 | ||
| Casual past | 올라갔어 | ||
| Casual future | 올라갈 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 올라가고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 올라가세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 올라가서 | ||
| Conditional | 올라가면 | ||
| Present modifier | 올라가는 | ||
| Past modifier | 올라간 | ||
| Future modifier | 올라갈 | ||
| Short negative | 안 올라가요 | ||
| Long negative | 올라가지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 올라가요 | as written |
| Polite past | 올라갔어요 | [올라가써요] |
| Polite future | 올라갈 거예요 | [올라갈꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 올라가겠어요 | [올라가게써요] |
| Formal present | 올라갑니다 | [올라감니다] |
| Formal past | 올라갔습니다 | [올라갇씀니다] |
| Formal future | 올라갈 것입니다 | [올라갈꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 올라가 | as written |
| Casual past | 올라갔어 | [올라가써] |
| Casual future | 올라갈 거야 | [올라갈꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 올라가고 싶어요 | [올라가고 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 올라가세요 | as written |
| Because / and then | 올라가서 | as written |
| Conditional | 올라가면 | as written |
| Present modifier | 올라가는 | as written |
| Past modifier | 올라간 | as written |
| Future modifier | 올라갈 | as written |
| Short negative | 안 올라가요 | as written |
| Long negative | 올라가지 않아요 | [올라가지 아나요] |
Is 올라가다 Regular or Irregular?
올라가다 is regular. The final stem syllable 가 ends in the vowel ㅏ, so the ending 아 merges with it and nothing changes. The first part 올라 is a fixed part of the compound and never moves. The pattern is described on the polite present recipe page.
Which Mistake Do Learners Make with 올라가다, to Go Up?
Wrong: ✗ 올라 가요
Correct: ✓ 올라가요
Why: 올라가다 is one compound verb written without a space.
Because English writes go up as two words, learners split the Korean verb as 올라 가요. It is one compound verb, so it is written without a space in every form: 올라가요, 올라갔어요, 올라갈 거예요.
How Does 올라가다, to Go up, Differ from Similar Words?
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 내려가다 | 내려가다 is the opposite: to go down. The two verbs share the ending 가다, so both describe movement away from the speaker, one upward and one downward. |
| 오르다 | 오르다 is shorter and is used for climbing and for rising prices. 올라가다 is the everyday compound for going up, and it is the safer choice when you are describing a trip to an upper floor. |
Finding a Meeting Room Upstairs
A visitor asks a receptionist how to reach a meeting room. Both are downstairs, so the trip leads upward and away from their present location.
Visitor
회의실에 가려면 어디로 올라가요?
Hoeuisire garyeomyeon eodiro ollagayo?
Which way do I go up to get to the meeting room?
Receptionist
이 계단으로 올라가세요.
I gyedaneuro ollagaseyo.
Please go up these stairs.
Visitor
민수 씨는 벌써 올라갔어요?
Minsu ssineun beolsseo ollagasseoyo?
Has Minsu already gone up?
Receptionist
네. 삼 층에 있어요.
Ne. Sam cheunge isseoyo.
Yes. He’s on the third floor.
올라가요 asks about the route, 올라가세요 gives a respectful direction, and 올라갔어요 checks a completed movement. 계단으로 identifies the way up; 삼 층에 identifies where Minsu is now. The third floor is written with a space between the number word and 층.
Phrases for Floors, Prices and Temperature
계단을 올라가다 means to go up the stairs. Here 을 marks the path you climb. Compare 계단으로 올라가다, which presents the stairs as the route or means of going up. Both describe using stairs, with a different focus.
가격이 올라가다 means that a price goes up. The price is the subject, and no person needs to be named. If a shop raises a price deliberately, 올리다 is the related verb for what the shop does. A rising price and raising a price describe different sides of the change.
기온이 올라가다 means that the air temperature rises. News and weather reports use the same upward movement image for a number on a scale. 기온 is outside air temperature; 체온 is body temperature. The surrounding noun tells you which kind of rise is meant.
Where Will You Hear 올라가다?
In buildings, 올라가세요 is a common instruction for reaching an upper floor. An elevator or staircase gives the route, while a floor number names the goal. The verb itself does not tell you whether the person walks, rides an elevator or uses an escalator.
In news and everyday conversation, 올라가다 describes increases such as prices or scores. You do not need to imagine an object moving up through physical space. A number or level can be the subject of the same verb.
| Related word | Meaning | When you need it |
|---|---|---|
| 계단 | stairs | Names the route you climb on foot. |
| 위층 | the floor above / upstairs | Gives an upper destination without a floor number. |
| 아래층 | the floor below / downstairs | Helps you understand the reverse direction. |
| 엘리베이터 | elevator / lift | Names another way to reach an upper floor. |
The house and home vocabulary lesson teaches the building and floor words used with these directions.
Why Is 올라가다 Regular When 오르다 Is Irregular?
올라 is already built into the compound 올라가다. When you change the tense or speech level, work from the whole stem 올라가. The final 가 supplies the forms 올라가요 and 올라갔어요; you do not conjugate 오르다 again inside the compound.
Keep the compound together, but leave a space in 올라갈 거예요. The first space question concerns one dictionary word; the second concerns the separate word 거. These are different spelling decisions even though they occur in the same expression.
Mini Drill: Give Directions Upward
- Give the polite past of 올라가다.
- Give the respectful direction “Please go up”.
- Complete the plan form: 올라갈 ____.
- Give the short negative of 올라가요.
Show drill answers
- 올라갔어요.
- 올라가세요.
- 올라갈 거예요, with a space before 거예요.
- 안 올라가요.
Quick Self-Test
- You are upstairs, calling someone up toward you. 올라가다 or 올라오다?
- Does 가격이 올라가다 require a person as the subject?
- Does 올라가다 tell you that someone used the stairs?
Show answers
- 올라오다, because the movement comes toward you.
- No. The price itself is the subject.
- No. The route needs its own words, such as 계단으로.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 올라가다 Written with a Space?
No. It is one compound verb, so 올라가요 is written without a space; 올라 가요 is a spelling error.
Which Particles Mark the Goal?
에 or (으)로. The examples use 산에 for a mountain and 위층으로 for the upper floor.
Can 올라가다 Be Used for Prices?
Yes. Prices and levels go up too: 가격이 올라가다 means the price goes up.
What Is the Honorific Form?
올라가세요. It is the honorific polite form in the table.
Which Words Are Related to 올라가다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Read 내려가다 next for the opposite direction, then 올라오다, which describes the same upward movement toward the speaker. 오르다 and 올리다 are the related single-word verbs. The Korean verb conjugator checks any form of 올라가다; the whole Korean verb dictionary lists the other entries, and the class rule is on the polite present recipe page.