Key Facts
- Hangul: 따뜻하다 (ttatteutada)
- Meaning: warm
- Level: A1
- Part of speech: adjective
- Stem: 따뜻하
- Conjugation class: 하다 type
- Grammar: Takes 이/가 for the warm thing or place.
- Usage: Also used for kind people or hearts: 마음이 따뜻한 사람. The shorter form 따뜻 is never used alone.
What Does 따뜻하다 Mean?
따뜻하다 is the comfortable middle between 춥다 and 덥다. The warm thing takes 이/가: 오늘은 날씨가 따뜻해요, and 따뜻한 차 is warm tea.
It also describes kind people and gentle hearts: 마음이 따뜻한 사람. The short stem 따뜻 is never used alone.
Senses:
- warm: Describes pleasant warmth in weather, rooms, drinks or feelings, e.g. 따뜻한 차.
How Do You Pronounce 따뜻하다?
따뜻하다 is spelled with ㅅ and ㅎ, but it is read [따뜨타다]: the final ㅅ of 뜻 becomes ㄷ, and ㄷ meeting ㅎ becomes ㅌ. The same change appears in the forms: 따뜻해요 is [따뜨태요], 따뜻했어요 is [따뜨태써요] and 따뜻합니다 is [따뜨탐니다].
How Do You Use 따뜻하다 in a Sentence?
오늘은 날씨가 따뜻해요.
The weather is warm today.
오늘은 날씨가 따뜻해요 sets 오늘은 as the topic and 날씨가 as the subject, with 따뜻해요 as the polite present.
따뜻한 차를 마셔요.
I drink warm tea.
따뜻한 차를 마셔요 uses the modifier 따뜻한 before 차.
방이 따뜻해서 졸려요.
The room is warm, so I'm sleepy.
방이 따뜻해서 졸려요 gives the cause with 따뜻해서 and the result, feeling sleepy.
How Does Ttatteutada Conjugation Work?
따뜻하다 is a 하다-type adjective. The 하 of the stem 따뜻하 plus 여 becomes 해: 따뜻해요, 따뜻했어요, 따뜻해서. Before 으 endings and consonants the stem stays whole: 따뜻하세요, 따뜻하면, 따뜻합니다, and the modifier is 따뜻한. The formal present 따뜻합니다 simply adds the usual -ㅂ니다 ending.
따뜻하다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 따뜻해요 | ||
| Polite past | 따뜻했어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 따뜻할 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 따뜻하겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 따뜻합니다 | ||
| Formal past | 따뜻했습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 따뜻할 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 따뜻해 | ||
| Casual past | 따뜻했어 | ||
| Casual future | 따뜻할 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 따뜻하세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 따뜻해서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 따뜻하면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 따뜻한 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 따뜻했던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 따뜻할 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 따뜻해요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 따뜻하지 않아요 |
For a word meaning 'warm', -고 싶다 has no cell, because that ending attaches to action verbs.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 따뜻해요 | [따뜨태요] |
| Polite past | 따뜻했어요 | [따뜨태써요] |
| Polite future | 따뜻할 거예요 | [따뜨탈꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 따뜻하겠어요 | [따뜨타게써요] |
| Formal present | 따뜻합니다 | [따뜨탐니다] |
| Formal past | 따뜻했습니다 | [따뜨탣씀니다] |
| Formal future | 따뜻할 것입니다 | [따뜨탈꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 따뜻했어 | [따뜨태써] |
| Past modifier | 따뜻했던 | [따뜨탣떤] |
| Long negative | 따뜻하지 않아요 | [따뜨타지 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 따뜻어요
Correct: ✓ 따뜻해요
Why: 따뜻하다 is a 하다 adjective: 하 + 여 becomes 해. Learners attach 어요 to 따뜻 as if 하다 were not there. The 하 must be kept and turned into 해.
Where Does 따뜻하다 Turn up in Daily Talk?
For tea, a room, a spring day or a kind person. 뜨겁다 describes stronger heat, and 덥다 is uncomfortable weather, while 따뜻하다 usually suggests comfortable warmth. 시원하다, 춥다 and 뜨겁다 cover the rest of the temperature scale.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 따뜻하다?
| Word | How to tell it from 따뜻하다 |
|---|---|
| 뜨겁다 | 뜨겁다 describes stronger heat; 따뜻하다 is comfortably warm. |
| 덥다 | 덥다 is uncomfortably hot weather; 따뜻하다 is pleasantly warm. |
At a Café: a Warm Drink after a Cold Walk
A customer has just come in from the cold. The server checks the drink, and the customer compares the café with outside.
Server
차가 따뜻해요?
Chaga ttatteutaeyo?
Is the tea warm?
Customer
네, 따뜻해요. 밖은 추웠어요.
Ne, ttatteutaeyo. Bakkeun chuwosseoyo.
Yes, it’s warm. It was cold outside.
Server
여기는 따뜻해서 좋아요.
Yeogineun ttatteutaeseo joayo.
It’s nice because it’s warm in here.
Customer
따뜻한 차도 좋아요.
Ttatteutan chado joayo.
The warm tea is nice too.
따뜻해요 finishes a sentence, 따뜻해서 introduces a reason, and 따뜻한 describes the tea before the noun. The same adjective covers both the room and the drink. 밖은 contrasts the cold outdoors with the comfortable café; it does not change the meaning of 따뜻하다.
Warm Objects and Warm Treatment
따뜻한 물 is warm water, and 따뜻한 차 is warm tea. Both are literal descriptions of temperature. 따뜻한 말, “warm words”, describes kindness expressed through speech. The words do not have a physical temperature. 따뜻한 마음 likewise means a kind, caring heart rather than a measurement of body heat.
따뜻한 봄날 names a warm spring day. 따뜻한 방 names a warm room. These combinations let you describe the source of comfort precisely: the day, the room or the drink. If you only say 따뜻해요 while holding a cup, the listener will usually understand that the cup or its contents are warm.
마음이 따뜻한 사람 means a warm-hearted person. The 마음이 phrase identifies the quality being praised. A person’s hands can also be literally warm, so naming 마음 helps make the emotional meaning clear. The compliment concerns kindness; it does not automatically mean cheerful, outgoing or talkative.
Where Will You Hear or See 따뜻하다?
Weather conversation uses 따뜻해요 for a mild day, especially when comparing it with colder days. For the air feeling uncomfortably hot, 덥다 is more suitable. A warm room can be welcome in winter; the same room may feel too hot to someone wearing a heavy coat. The speaker’s comfort helps explain the word choice.
At a café, 따뜻한 can distinguish a warm drink from an iced one. It does not specify a safe drinking temperature in degrees. A freshly served drink may still be hot enough that you want to wait. When warning someone about heat, 뜨겁다 is more direct than simply calling the drink 따뜻하다.
In a message thanking someone, 따뜻한 말 can acknowledge comforting words. In a story, 마음이 따뜻한 describes a character’s caring nature. This emotional use keeps the pleasant association of physical warmth, without referring to weather or heating.
Temperature Words to Learn Next
| Korean | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 미지근하다 | lukewarm | Often describes a drink that is less hot than expected. |
| 뜨겁다 | hot to the touch | A stronger description for hot food, liquid or surfaces. |
| 포근하다 | cozy; comfortably warm | Useful for snug bedding or mild, comfortable weather. |
| 마음 | heart; mind | Makes the figurative kindness meaning explicit. |
The weather vocabulary lesson teaches the wider set for describing the air and the day. For tea or a heated surface, compare the object-temperature words instead of translating every English “hot” the same way.
Why Does the Spelling Keep 뜻?
The sound change in 따뜻해요 does not turn the written word into a different stem. Keep 뜻하 in the dictionary form and 뜻해 in the polite present. The ㅅ and ㅎ combine in pronunciation, while the spelling preserves the parts of the adjective. This is separate from the 하 + 여 contraction that produces 해.
Before a noun, the adjective uses 따뜻한. The action-verb ending 하는 does not belong in “warm tea”. Likewise, 따뜻해요 can already mean “it is warm”; adding a separate word for “is” is unnecessary. The noun phrase and the sentence ending do different jobs.
Mini Drill: Choose the Right Form
- Complete “warm water”: ____ 물.
- Give the polite past of 따뜻하다.
- Join “warm” to a reason using the table’s because-form.
- Make 따뜻해요 negative with the long form.
Show drill answers
- 따뜻한 물.
- 따뜻했어요.
- 따뜻해서.
- 따뜻하지 않아요.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 따뜻한 말 describe the temperature of speech?
- Which form goes before 차: 따뜻한 or 따뜻해요?
- Does 따뜻한 차 guarantee that a drink is safe to swallow immediately?
Show answers
- No. It means kind or comforting words.
- 따뜻한.
- No. The word gives a general description, not an exact temperature.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say "It Is Warm Today"?
오늘은 날씨가 따뜻해요.
Why Is It 따뜻해요 and Not 따뜻어요?
따뜻하다 is a 하다 adjective. 하 + 여 becomes 해, so the stem keeps its 하.
Can 따뜻하다 Describe a Person?
Yes. 마음이 따뜻한 사람 is a warm-hearted person.
Is 따뜻하다 as Hot as 뜨겁다?
뜨겁다 describes stronger heat. 따뜻하다 is comfortably warm.
Which Words Are Related to 따뜻하다?
The entries closest to 따뜻하다 (warm) are 시원하다 (cool/refreshing), 뜨겁다 (hot to the touch), 덥다 (hot, of weather), 춥다 (cold, of weather).
What Should You Learn Next?
시원하다 is the cool side of the same family, and 뜨겁다, 덥다 and 춥다 complete the temperature scale. To see why 'warm' takes the form 따뜻해요, read how 하다 verbs and adjectives conjugate; the Korean verb conjugator tests other stems, and the Korean verb dictionary lists the rest of the family.