Key Facts
- Hangul: 싸다 (ssada)
- Meaning: to wrap; to pack
- Level: B1
- Part of speech: verb
- Stem: 싸
- Conjugation class: regular
- Grammar: What is wrapped or packed takes 을/를 (도시락을 싸요).
- Usage: Same spelling as the adjective 싸다 (cheap), so context decides. Note 쌌어요.
What Does 싸다 Mean?
The thing wrapped takes 을/를: 선물을 싸다 (wrap a gift), 짐을 싸다 (pack luggage), 도시락을 싸다 (pack a lunch). The same spelling also belongs to the adjective 싸다, which means cheap.
Senses:
- to wrap: Wrap something in paper or cloth: 선물을 싸다.
- to pack: Pack a bag or lunch: 짐을 싸다, 도시락을 싸다.
How Do You Pronounce 싸다?
The verb is read as spelled. The formal present 쌉니다 is [쌈니다], with ㅂ turning into [ㅁ] before ㄴ. The past 쌌어요 is [싸써요], where the final ㅆ links into the next syllable. Because the adjective 싸다 sounds identical, sentence context is the only guide.
How Do You Use 싸다 in a Sentence?
아침마다 도시락을 싸요.
I pack a lunch every morning.
아침마다 도시락을 싸요 shows the habit. 아침마다 means every morning.
선물을 종이로 쌌어요.
I wrapped the gift in paper.
선물을 종이로 쌌어요 names the material with 로. The past 쌌어요 is [싸써요].
짐을 싸면 여행 준비가 끝나요.
Once you pack your bags, your trip preparation is done.
짐을 싸면 여행 준비가 끝나요 links the conditional 싸면 to the end of preparation.
How Does Ssada Conjugation Work?
싸다 is regular. The stem 싸 ends in ㅏ, so 싸 + 아 contracts to 싸, which gives 싸요. In the past, the past marker joins the stem and contracts it to 쌌, which gives 쌌어요. Endings that start with a consonant attach straight to 싸, as in 싸면 and 싸고.
싸다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 싸요 | ||
| Polite past | 쌌어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 쌀 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 싸겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 쌉니다 | ||
| Formal past | 쌌습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 쌀 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 싸 | ||
| Casual past | 쌌어 | ||
| Casual future | 쌀 거야 | ||
| Want to (polite) | 싸고 싶어요 | ||
| Honorific polite | 싸세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 싸서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 싸면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 싸는 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 싼 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 쌀 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 싸요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 싸지 않아요 |
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 쌌어요 | [싸써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 쌀 거예요 | [쌀꺼예요] |
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 싸겠어요 | [싸게써요] |
| Formal present | 쌉니다 | [쌈니다] |
| Formal past | 쌌습니다 | [싿씀니다] |
| Formal future | 쌀 것입니다 | [쌀꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 쌌어 | [싸써] |
| Casual future | 쌀 거야 | [쌀꺼야] |
| Want to (polite) | 싸고 싶어요 | [싸고 시퍼요] |
| Negative (long form) | 싸지 않아요 | [싸지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 짐을 포장해요
Correct: ✓ 짐을 싸요
Why: Packing your travel belongings is 짐을 싸다. 포장하다 suggests packaging those belongings, for example for shipping, rather than preparing your bag for a trip.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 싸다?
| Word | How to tell it from 싸다 |
|---|---|
| 싸다 (cheap) | A different word with the same spelling: 'is cheap'. |
| 담다 | To put something into a container. |
| 묶다 | To tie together. |
The adjective 싸다 has the same spelling and means cheap. 담다 is putting something into a container, and 묶다 is tying together. 싸다 is wrapping in a cover or packing for a trip.
Where Does 싸다 Turn Up?
Moving house, travel and school lunches all use 싸다. Nearby verbs are 접다 (to fold paper) and 붙이다 (to stick on a label).
Packing for an Early Train
Two housemates are getting ready for a morning trip. One checks the luggage, and the other explains what is still left to pack.
Jisu
짐 다 쌌어요?
Jim da ssasseoyo?
Have you packed everything?
Alex
아니요. 도시락을 싸요.
Aniyo. Dosirageul ssayo.
No. I’m packing lunch.
Jisu
저는 물을 챙길게요.
Jeoneun mureul chaenggilgeyo.
I’ll get the water.
Alex
도시락을 싸면 출발해요.
Dosirageul ssamyeon chulbalhaeyo.
Let’s leave once I’ve packed lunch.
다 means “all” or “completely”, so the first question checks whether packing is finished. 짐 다 쌌어요 leaves out 을 after 짐, a natural choice in conversation. The final 싸면 makes packing the condition for leaving. 출발해요 works as a suggestion here because the speakers are arranging their departure together.
Which Packing Phrases Are Useful?
짐을 싸다 means to pack your belongings. 짐 can cover a suitcase, several bags or the things you are taking with you. The phrase focuses on preparing those belongings for departure; it does not tell you whether each item has been wrapped individually. In a travel conversation, a past-tense question about 짐 usually checks readiness to leave.
도시락을 싸다 means to prepare and pack a lunch to take away. You can use it for a meal you put together at home, even when no wrapping paper is involved. 도시락 names the packed meal, so translating the phrase as “wrap a lunchbox” misses the everyday meaning.
쌈을 싸다 means to make a food wrap, often by putting rice and other ingredients in a lettuce or perilla leaf. 쌈 is the wrap you make; 싸다 is the action. You may hear this at a Korean barbecue table when people are assembling individual bites. This is a literal wrapping use, not an idiom about packing luggage.
선물을 싸다 describes wrapping a present. With 종이로, the sentence also identifies the wrapping material. The marker 로 answers “with what material?” while 을 marks the gift. The two noun phrases do different jobs, so 선물을 종이로 쌌어요 can include both without repeating the same information.
How Can You Recognize the Right Meaning?
In a family chat, a question about 짐 or 도시락 points to packing. In a price comparison, the same spoken 싸요 can mean “is cheap”. Look at the noun and its marker: 짐을 gives the action an object, while a price description says something about the item. English translations of a single isolated 싸요 cannot settle the meaning.
싸다 is neutral everyday language. The casual 싸 is useful with close friends, but addressed to someone without that relationship it can sound like a blunt command to pack. The table’s 싸세요 can be a polite instruction. Its polite ending does not turn the ordinary action into a special honorific verb.
A useful limit on the comparison with 포장하다: that word is not restricted to shop staff. People can 포장하다 their own gifts too. The distinction is the job being described. For packing your travel belongings, 짐을 싸다 is the natural combination; for packaging or gift wrapping, 포장하다 is also possible.
Words to Use While Packing
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 짐 | luggage; belongings | The usual object when preparing for a trip. |
| 여행 가방 | travel bag; suitcase | Names the bag rather than everything being packed. |
| 도시락 | packed lunch | Can refer to the meal as well as its container. |
| 포장지 | wrapping paper | Names a material for wrapping a gift. |
The travel vocabulary lesson adds the transport and luggage words you need after packing.
For a morning departure, distinguish finishing the packing from leaving the house. 짐을 쌌어요 reports the first step; a separate departure verb reports when the trip actually starts.
Mini Drill
- Give the polite past for a finished packing job.
- Complete “if you pack”: 싸다 → ____.
- Give the formal present.
- Make 싸요 negative with 안.
Show drill answers
- 쌌어요.
- 싸면, keeping the stem 싸.
- 쌉니다, with ㅂ attached to 싸.
- 안 싸요, with a space after 안.
Quick Self-Test
- At a barbecue table, what does 쌈을 싸다 mean?
- In 선물을 종이로 쌌어요, what does 로 identify?
- Does 짐을 싸다 mean that every item needs wrapping paper?
Show answers
- To make a food wrap.
- The wrapping material: paper.
- No. It means packing your belongings for departure.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say Pack a Lunch?
도시락을 싸요.
Is the Verb 싸다 the Same as Cheap?
The spelling is the same, but the meaning is different. Context decides.
What Is the past Tense?
쌌어요.
What Is the Difference between 싸다 and 포장하다?
포장하다 describes packaging or wrapping, including gifts you wrap yourself. 싸다 is the natural verb for packing your luggage or lunch.
Which Words Are Related to 싸다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Compare 담다 and 묶다, then 붙이다. The rule behind 싸요 (to wrap; to pack) is in polite present recipe, and the Korean verb conjugator tests other stems. 싸다 (to wrap; to pack) sits beside 담다 and 묶다 in the Korean verb dictionary.