Key Facts
- Hangul: 서다 (seoda)
- Meaning: to stand
- Level: A1
- Stem: 서
- Class: regular
- Objects: intransitive
- Honorific polite: 서세요
What Does 서다 Mean?
서다 means to stand: to be upright on your feet, as in 줄을 서다 (stand in line). It also means to stop, as in 버스가 서다 (the bus stops). It is intransitive and takes no object; the place takes 에 or 에서, as in 문 앞에 서요.
In brief:
- to stand. Be upright on your feet, as in 줄을 서다 (stand in line); also to stop (버스가 서다).
Two fixed phrases are worth learning early: 줄을 서다 (to queue) and 앞에 서다 (to stand in front). In 서 있다 the verb describes the state of standing rather than the movement of getting up.
How Do You Pronounce 서다?
The dictionary form and the polite present are read as written; ㅓ is an open, unrounded "uh", so 서요 sounds like "suh-yo". The past 섰어요 is read [서써요], with the ㅆ sound beginning the next syllable, and the formal present 섭니다 is read [섬니다]. The plan form 설 거예요 is read [설꺼예요].
How the main forms sound:
- 섰어요 [서써요]
- 설 거예요 [설꺼예요]
- 서겠어요 [서게써요]
- 섭니다 [섬니다]
- 섰습니다 [섣씀니다]
- 설 것입니다 [설꺼심니다]
- 섰어 [서써]
- 설 거야 [설꺼야]
- 서고 싶어요 [서고 시퍼요]
- 서지 않아요 [서지 아나요]
How Do You Use 서다 in a Sentence?
학생들이 줄을 서요.
The students line up.
줄을 is the line, and 학생들이 is a group of students. The polite present 서요 says what they do. (서요)
버스가 정류장에 섰어요.
The bus stopped at the bus stop.
The subject is a vehicle, and 정류장에 marks the stop. 섰어요 is the past, and the meaning is stopped, not stood. (섰어요)
오래 서서 다리가 아파요.
My legs hurt from standing for a long time.
서서 is the connecting form, with the sense because I stood. 오래 means for a long time, and the consequence is that the legs ache. (서서)
How Does Seoda Conjugation Work?
서다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 서요 | ||
| Polite past | 섰어요 | ||
| Polite future | 설 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (guess) | 서겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 섭니다 | ||
| Formal past | 섰습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 설 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 서 | ||
| Casual past | 섰어 | ||
| Casual future | 설 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 서고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 서세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 서서 | ||
| Conditional | 서면 | ||
| Present modifier | 서는 | ||
| Past modifier | 선 | ||
| Future modifier | 설 | ||
| Short negative | 안 서요 | ||
| Long negative | 서지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 서요 | as written |
| Polite past | 섰어요 | [서써요] |
| Polite future | 설 거예요 | [설꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 서겠어요 | [서게써요] |
| Formal present | 섭니다 | [섬니다] |
| Formal past | 섰습니다 | [섣씀니다] |
| Formal future | 설 것입니다 | [설꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 서 | as written |
| Casual past | 섰어 | [서써] |
| Casual future | 설 거야 | [설꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 서고 싶어요 | [서고 시퍼요] |
| Honorific polite | 서세요 | as written |
| Because / and then | 서서 | as written |
| Conditional | 서면 | as written |
| Present modifier | 서는 | as written |
| Past modifier | 선 | as written |
| Future modifier | 설 | as written |
| Short negative | 안 서요 | as written |
| Long negative | 서지 않아요 | [서지 아나요] |
Is 서다 Regular or Irregular?
서다 is regular. The stem 서 ends in the vowel ㅓ, so the ending 어 merges into it and the polite present is 서요, not a doubled vowel. The past 섰어요 adds a final ㅆ. The recipe is on the polite present recipe page.
Which Mistake Do Learners Make with 서다, to Stand?
Wrong: ✗ 서어요
Correct: ✓ 서요
Why: The stem 서 + 어요 merges to 서요; the ㅓ is not written twice.
Learners write the stem and the ending next to each other: 서어요. The two ㅓ sounds are one syllable in Korean, so 서 + 어요 is written 서요.
How Does 서다, to Stand, Differ from Similar Words?
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 앉다 | 앉다 is the opposite: to sit. The pair 서다 and 앉다 describes posture, while 서 있다 tells you someone is standing right now. |
| 일어서다 | 일어서다 is the action of getting up to your feet. 서다 can describe the state of standing or stopping, while 일어서다 is the movement. |
Finding the Ticket Queue
A visitor reaches a museum entrance and asks a member of staff where to wait. Both use polite endings. The visitor asks where to stand, follows the instruction, and checks the location.
Visitor
어디에 서요?
Eodie seoyo?
Where do I stand?
Staff
여기에 줄을 서세요.
Yeogie jureul seoseyo.
Please line up here.
Visitor
여기에 서면 돼요?
Yeogie seomyeon dwaeyo?
Can I stand here?
Staff
네, 맞아요.
Ne, majayo.
Yes, that is right.
여기에 identifies the spot. 줄을 서세요 asks the visitor to join the queue, rather than merely stay upright. 서면 돼요 asks whether standing here is all right. The conditional 서면 connects the action to 돼요, which asks whether it is acceptable.
Standing, Queuing, and Stopping
줄을 서다 is the everyday expression for lining up. Although 서다 is generally intransitive, this established expression contains 줄을. Learn the whole combination: 줄 names the queue rather than a person or object you make stand. Outside a busy restaurant, the phrase usually concerns waiting your turn.
서 있다 describes a standing position that continues. The two words are separated by a space. When you describe someone waiting by a door, this expression focuses on their posture at that moment. 일어서다 instead focuses on rising from a seat or another lower position.
앞에 서다 means to stand in front. 앞 needs a reference point supplied by a noun or by the scene. 문 앞에 means “in front of the door”. This is useful when a photographer places people for a picture: the instruction concerns location, without necessarily involving a queue.
With a vehicle, 서다 can describe coming to a stop. The bus example above uses the bus as the subject and the stop as its destination. The same English word “stop” can also describe a person deliberately stopping a machine; that requires a different sentence pattern.
Where Will You Hear 서다?
At ticket counters, staff use 서세요 to direct people into a line. The ending can be an instruction with respect for the listener. It is more suitable for directing an unfamiliar visitor than the bare casual 서, which can sound abrupt outside a close relationship.
On buses and in conversations about routes, a question about where a vehicle stops may contain 서다. A passenger saying that the bus 섰어요 is reporting its arrival at a halt. The verb alone does not say that everyone got off or that the bus broke down.
Exercise and posture instructions also use 서다. Here the contrast with 앉다, “sit”, matters more than the transport meaning. The subject helps distinguish posture, queuing, and stopping.
Why Are 선 and 설 Easy to Miss?
The past modifier is 선, and the future modifier is 설. Each adds a final consonant directly to 서, leaving just one syllable. Neither is a separate irregular stem. In a noun phrase such as 줄을 선 사람, “the person who lined up”, 선 belongs with the verb and 사람 is the person being described.
The formal form 섭니다 adds ㅂ directly under 서. Its pronunciation changes to the nasal sound shown above, but the spelling keeps ㅂ. Do not use the sound of the formal form to rebuild the stem: the dictionary stem is still 서.
Words for Position and Waiting
| Korean | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 줄 | line; queue | Goes with 서다 when people wait their turn. |
| 앞 | front | Combine with 에 to locate a standing person. |
| 뒤 | back; behind | Useful when joining the end of a queue. |
| 기다리다 | to wait | Describes waiting, whether sitting or standing. |
The motion verbs lesson helps separate changes of posture from movement to another place.
Mini Drill: Choose the Right Form
- Make 서다 polite present.
- Complete “The bus stopped”: 버스가 ___.
- Choose the future form for “I will stand”: 서요 / 설 거예요.
Show answers
- 서요. The two ㅓ vowels merge.
- 버스가 섰어요.
- 설 거예요.
Quick Self-Test
- What does 줄을 서다 ask you to do?
- What does 서 있다 emphasize?
- Does 버스가 섰어요 mean the bus is standing on its feet?
Show answers
- Join or form a queue.
- The continuing position of standing.
- No. It means the bus stopped.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can 서다 Mean to Stop?
Yes. With a vehicle as the subject, 서다 means to stop: 버스가 정류장에 섰어요 means the bus stopped at the bus stop.
How Do I Say to Queue?
Say 줄을 서다, literally "to stand a line", as in 학생들이 줄을 서요 (The students line up).
Why Is the Polite Present 서요 and Not 서어요?
The stem 서 already ends in ㅓ, so the ㅓ of the ending merges into it and is not written twice.
Which Verb Means to Get up to Your Feet?
일어서다 is the action of rising to your feet, while 서다 can describe the state of standing or a vehicle stopping.
Which Words Are Related to 서다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Read 앉다 for the opposite posture and 일어서다 for getting up. 멈추다 covers stopping in general, and 기다리다 often appears in a queue. The Korean verb conjugator checks any form of to stand; the whole Korean verb dictionary lists the other entries, and the class rule is on the polite present recipe page.