Key Facts
- Hangul: 팔다 (palda)
- Meaning: to sell
- Level: A1
- Stem: 팔
- Class: ㄹ-drop
- Objects: transitive
- Honorific polite: 파세요
What Does 팔다 Mean?
팔다 means to sell: to give something to someone for money, as in 과일을 팔다. It is transitive, and the thing sold takes 을/를 (과일을 팔아요).
In brief:
- to sell. Give something to someone for money, as in 과일을 팔다.
It is a high-frequency verb, and its natural partner is 사다 (to buy). The modifier 파는 turns the verb into a description of a person or thing: 파는 사람 is the person who sells. That form shows the verb's one quirk: the ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ, as in 파는, 팝니다 and 파세요.
How Do You Pronounce 팔다?
팔다 itself is read as written, with the aspirated ㅍ (a p with a clear puff of air) and a clear l at the end of the first syllable. The final ㄹ of the stem moves onto the next syllable before a vowel, where it becomes a light tap, so 팔아요 is read [파라요] and 팔았어요 is read [파라써요]. The formal present loses the ㄹ and is read [팜니다]. Where the ㄹ stays, the plan form 팔 거예요 is read [팔꺼예요].
How the main forms sound:
- 팔아요 [파라요]
- 팔았어요 [파라써요]
- 팔 거예요 [팔꺼예요]
- 팔겠어요 [팔게써요]
- 팝니다 [팜니다]
- 팔았습니다 [파랃씀니다]
- 팔 것입니다 [팔꺼심니다]
- 팔아 [파라]
- 팔았어 [파라써]
- 팔 거야 [팔꺼야]
- 팔고 싶어요 [팔고 시퍼요]
- 팔아서 [파라서]
- 안 팔아요 [안 파라요]
- 팔지 않아요 [팔지 아나요]
How Do You Use 팔다 in a Sentence?
이 가게는 과일을 팔아요.
This shop sells fruit.
The shop is the subject, and the object 과일을 is marked by 을/를. The polite present 팔아요 gives a general fact about what the shop does. (팔아요)
어제 오래된 자전거를 팔았어요.
I sold my old bicycle yesterday.
오래된 자전거를 is the old thing being sold, in front of the verb. The past 팔았어요 keeps the ㄹ, because the ending starts with a vowel. (팔았어요)
파는 사람이 친절해요.
The seller is friendly.
The present modifier 파는 goes before the noun 사람, and the ㄹ is gone. The sentence describes the seller as friendly; 친절해요 is the usual word for kind, helpful service. (파는)
How Does Palda Conjugation Work?
팔다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 팔아요 | ||
| Polite past | 팔았어요 | ||
| Polite future | 팔 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (guess) | 팔겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 팝니다 | ||
| Formal past | 팔았습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 팔 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 팔아 | ||
| Casual past | 팔았어 | ||
| Casual future | 팔 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 팔고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 파세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 팔아서 | ||
| Conditional | 팔면 | ||
| Present modifier | 파는 | ||
| Past modifier | 판 | ||
| Future modifier | 팔 | ||
| Short negative | 안 팔아요 | ||
| Long negative | 팔지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 팔아요 | [파라요] |
| Polite past | 팔았어요 | [파라써요] |
| Polite future | 팔 거예요 | [팔꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 팔겠어요 | [팔게써요] |
| Formal present | 팝니다 | [팜니다] |
| Formal past | 팔았습니다 | [파랃씀니다] |
| Formal future | 팔 것입니다 | [팔꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 팔아 | [파라] |
| Casual past | 팔았어 | [파라써] |
| Casual future | 팔 거야 | [팔꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 팔고 싶어요 | [팔고 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 파세요 | as written |
| Because / and then | 팔아서 | [파라서] |
| Conditional | 팔면 | as written |
| Present modifier | 파는 | as written |
| Past modifier | 판 | as written |
| Future modifier | 팔 | as written |
| Short negative | 안 팔아요 | [안 파라요] |
| Long negative | 팔지 않아요 | [팔지 아나요] |
Is 팔다 Regular or Irregular?
팔다 is ㄹ-irregular. The stem-final ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ, and it stays in other forms. That gives 팝니다 (formal), 파세요 (honorific) and 파는 (present modifier), but 팔아요, 팔았어요 and 팔 거예요 keep the ㄹ. The pattern is explained on the ㄹ-drop verbs and adjectives page.
Which Mistake Do Learners Make with 팔다, to Sell?
Wrong: ✗ 팔는 사람
Correct: ✓ 파는 사람
Why: 팔다 is a ㄹ-irregular verb: the ㄹ drops before endings that begin with ㄴ, ㅂ or ㅅ (파는, 팝니다, 파세요), and ㄹ stems never add 으 (팔면, not 팔으면).
Learners attach the modifier ending to the whole stem and produce 팔는 사람. The ㄹ must drop before ㄴ, so the correct form is 파는 사람. The same drop explains 파세요 and 팝니다.
How Does 팔다, to Sell, Differ from Similar Words?
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 사다 | 사다 is the buyer's verb and the opposite of 팔다: the shop sells, the customer buys. |
| 팔리다 | 팔리다 is the passive partner: the goods are the subject and they get sold. 팔다 needs someone doing the selling. |
Asking about a Bicycle at a Secondhand Shop
A customer wants to know whether a shop sells bicycles and what happened to one seen earlier. The shopkeeper answers from the seller’s side of the transaction.
Customer
여기서 자전거도 팔아요?
Yeogiseo jajeongeodo parayo?
Do you sell bicycles here too?
Shopkeeper
네. 중고 자전거를 팔아요.
Ne. Junggo jajeongeoreul parayo.
Yes. We sell used bicycles.
Customer
어제 본 빨간 자전거는 팔았어요?
Eoje bon ppalgan jajeongeoneun parasseoyo?
Did you sell the red bicycle I saw yesterday?
Shopkeeper
네. 내일 다른 자전거를 팔 거예요.
Ne. Naeil dareun jajeongeoreul pal geoyeyo.
Yes. We’ll be selling another bicycle tomorrow.
팔아요 describes the shop’s stock, 팔았어요 confirms a completed sale, and 팔 거예요 describes a future sale. The customer uses 팔았어요 because the question is about what the shopkeeper did. When the bicycle itself is the subject, the related passive verb 팔리다 describes it being sold.
Selling Phrases in Shops and Listings
중고로 팔다 means to sell something secondhand. 중고 describes a used item, and 로 gives the condition in which it is sold. The phrase is useful for a bicycle, phone or piece of furniture that already has an owner.
싸게 팔다 means to sell cheaply or at a low price. 싸게 describes how the seller prices the goods. It does not by itself promise a discount from an earlier price: the price may simply be low from the start.
잘 팔리다 means to sell well. This phrase uses 팔리다 because the goods are the subject. A shop can sell coffee with 팔다, while a particular kind of coffee sells well with 팔리다. The passive form here often describes demand rather than one finished sale.
Where Will You See 팝니다?
팝니다 appears in sales notices and secondhand listings. It is formal in shape, but a short listing title can use it without sounding like a formal speech. The seller states that an item is for sale; the notice does not mean it has already been sold.
In a shop, 팔아요? is a useful question when you want to know whether an item is carried there. 파세요? also asks about selling, with respect for the seller. It can be a question rather than an instruction; the question mark and context matter.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 판매 | sale / selling | A common noun on business signs and product pages. |
| 구매 | purchase / buying | Names the customer's side of the transaction. |
| 중고 | used / secondhand | Describes goods that have already been owned. |
| 품절 | sold out / out of stock | Describes unavailable stock, rather than the act of selling. |
See shopping vocabulary for the price and stock words used beside these expressions.
Two Different Changes in 팔아요 and 팝니다
팔아요 keeps the written ㄹ, even though you hear it at the start of the next syllable. 팝니다 drops the written ㄹ before the formal ending. One is a pronunciation change across syllables; the other changes the conjugated spelling.
The conditional 팔면 also keeps ㄹ. It attaches 면 directly to the stem, without inserting 으. Compare it with 파는: ㄴ triggers the drop, while ㅁ does not. This gives you a way to predict a form rather than memorizing every cell separately.
Mini Drill: Write the Seller's Forms
- Give the formal present of 팔다 for a listing.
- Complete “the person selling”: ____ 사람.
- Give the polite past.
- Write “if someone sells” using the conditional.
Show drill answers
- 팝니다.
- 파는 사람.
- 팔았어요.
- 팔면. Keep ㄹ and add 면 directly.
Quick Self-Test
- Which verb fits when the goods, rather than the seller, are the subject: 팔다 or 팔리다?
- Does 팝니다 in a listing mean the item is already sold?
- What does 중고로 팔다 mean?
Show answers
- 팔리다.
- No. It announces that the seller is offering it for sale.
- To sell something secondhand.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why Is the Modifier 파는 and Not 팔는?
The stem-final ㄹ drops before ㄴ. The same rule removes it before ㅂ and ㅅ, which gives 팝니다 and 파세요.
What Is the Formal Present of 팔다?
팝니다. The ㄹ is dropped before the ㅂ ending.
How Do 팔다 and 팔리다 Differ in Use?
팔다 means to sell something, with a seller as the subject. 팔리다 means to be sold, with the goods as the subject.
What Is the Honorific Polite Form?
파세요. The ㄹ drops before the ㅅ of the honorific ending.
Which Words Are Related to 팔다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Read 사다 for the buyer's side. 주문하다 covers ordering, 벌다 covers earning, and 내다 covers paying or putting out. The Korean verb conjugator checks any form of to sell; the whole Korean verb dictionary lists the other entries, and the class rule is on the ㄹ-drop verbs and adjectives page.