Korean Parts of Speech Explained: 9 Word Classes, Inflection & Function

Why This Reference Exists — And Why It's Not in the Main Curriculum

Kkultong's goal is to help non-native learners understand Korean more systematically. Classifying words by their nature — that's what a parts-of-speech system does — helps you understand sentence structure. But memorizing that system before you start learning Korean isn't efficient. It's like memorizing a map before you've decided where you want to go. A map is most useful when you actually need it.

This reference is for learners who hit a point in their Korean studies where they want to know why words behave the way they do. It's reconstructed from what native Korean speakers learn in school, which means it goes deeper than most Korean learning materials. Use it when you need it, as much as you need it.

1. Classification by Meaning — The 9 Parts of Speech

Korean words are divided into nine categories based on meaning. Scan the full list first, then read through each one.

Part of Speech	In a word	Examples
Noun (명사)	Names things	학교 school, 사랑 love, 커피 coffee
Pronoun (대명사)	Stands in for nouns	나/저 I, 너 you, 이것 this, 여기 here
Numeral (수사)	Expresses numbers	하나·둘·셋 / 일·이·삼
Verb (동사)	Expresses actions	가다 go, 먹다 eat, 사랑하다 love
Adjective (형용사)	Expresses states & qualities	크다 big, 예쁘다 pretty, 행복하다 happy
Adnominal (관형사)	Modifies nouns — never changes form	새 new, 모든 every, 이 this, 그 that
Adverb (부사)	Modifies verbs & adjectives	빨리 quickly, 정말 really, 너무 too
Interjection (감탄사)	Expresses emotion independently	아 ah, 와 wow, 네 yes, 어머 oh my
Particle (조사)	Marks relationships between words	은/는, 이/가, 을/를, 에

Noun (명사) — Words That Name Things

Nouns are the names of people, objects, places, and concepts. They make up the largest portion of Korean vocabulary.

[People]   사람 person, 친구 friend, 선생님 teacher, 학생 student
[Objects]  책 book, 가방 bag, 커피 coffee, 음악 music, 드라마 drama
[Places]   학교 school, 집 home, 카페 café, 서울 Seoul, 공원 park
[Concepts] 사랑 love, 행복 happiness, 자유 freedom, 시간 time

In a sentence, nouns don't stand alone — they take a particle to signal their role.

학교에 가요.    school + 에 → going to school
커피를 마셔요.  coffee + 를 → drinking coffee (object particle)
친구가 왔어요.  friend + 가 → friend arrived (subject particle)

How Korean differs from English — plurals

English requires plural marking. No exceptions.

one cat → two cats     (-s is mandatory)
one book → two books

Korean plural marking is optional. The suffix -들 exists, but leaving it off is perfectly grammatical.

친구가 왔어요.      → Could be one friend or several — context decides
친구들이 왔어요.    → -들 makes plural explicit

학생이 열심히 해요.   → One student or many — context
학생들이 열심히 해요. → Clearly plural

-들 goes further than you'd expect. It can attach not just to nouns but to adverbs and verbs, adding a "everyone" nuance:

빨리들 와.      → "Everyone come quickly" (addressing a group)
먹어들 봐.      → "Everyone try eating it"

This distinctive usage of -들 is covered in detail in Series 2.

Pronoun (대명사) — Words That Stand In for Nouns

Pronouns replace nouns so you don't have to repeat them.

Personal pronouns — refer to people.

나, 저      I / me  (나: casual / 저: formal/polite)
너          you     (casual only)
그, 그녀    he, she (mostly written — rarely used in speech)
우리, 저희  we / our side  (우리: casual / 저희: formal)
여러분      everyone / ladies and gentlemen

Three things stand out compared to English:

1. Korean has two words for "I."

English "I" is always "I." Korean splits based on who you're talking to.

[Casual]  나 — with friends, younger people
[Polite]  저 — with seniors, strangers, in formal situations

There's no English equivalent of this distinction. Korean speakers always have to choose.

2. "우리" reaches far beyond "our."

우리 엄마   → English: my mom  (not "our mom" — but Korean says 우리)
우리 나라   → English: my country / our country
우리 학교   → English: my school / our school

Korean uses 우리 for anything seen as a shared community — family, school, country. Saying "나의 엄마 (my mom)" sounds cold and unnatural in most contexts.

3. "그/그녀 (he/she)" barely exists in speech.

Unlike English where "he" and "she" are used constantly, Korean speakers almost never say 그 or 그녀 in conversation. They use names or relational titles instead.

[Written]  그녀는 노래를 잘한다.         (fiction, journalism)
[Spoken]   지은이는 노래를 잘해.         (use the name)
           그 언니는 노래를 잘해.        (use a relational title)

Demonstrative pronouns — point to objects or places.

이것 / 이거   this (near the speaker)
그것 / 그거   that (near the listener, or previously mentioned)
저것 / 저거   that over there (far from both)

여기   here
거기   there
저기   over there

Interrogative pronouns — used when something is unknown.

누구    who  (unknown person)
무엇/뭐 what (unknown thing)
어디    where (unknown place)

Numeral (수사) — Words That Express Numbers

Korean has two counting systems. English also has two (cardinal: one, two, three / ordinal: first, second, third), and Korean has ordinals too (첫째, 둘째, 셋째 / 제일, 제이). But the Korean native/Sino-Korean split is different from the English cardinal/ordinal split. In Korean, what you're counting determines which system to use.

[Native Korean]    하나, 둘, 셋, 넷, 다섯, 여섯, 일곱, 여덟, 아홉, 열
[Sino-Korean]      일(一), 이(二), 삼(三), 사(四), 오(五), 육(六), 칠(七), 팔(八), 구(九), 십(十)

What makes it harder is counter words (단위명사). Korean requires a counter between the number and the noun.

사과 세 개     three apples  (사과 세 ✗ — the counter 개 is required)
학생 두 명     two students
고양이 한 마리 one cat
책 한 권       one book
커피 한 잔     one cup of coffee

English says "three apples" — number directly before noun, no counter. Korean not only requires counters but pairs them with a specific number system (native vs. Sino-Korean), and which system to use depends on the counter.

Numbers and counter words are one of the most consistently challenging areas for Korean learners. The full breakdown is in the Reference — Numbers section.

Verb (동사) — Words That Express Actions

Verbs express movement and action. In the dictionary, they appear in their base form ending in -다.

가다      go        먹다    eat       오다    come      자다    sleep
읽다      read      말하다  speak     듣다    listen    보다    see
사랑하다  love      공부하다 study    운동하다 exercise  일하다  work
만나다    meet      기다리다 wait     시작하다 start     끝나다  end

The base form never appears directly in a sentence. It changes depending on tense, formality, and sentence type.

가다 → 가요 / 갔어요 / 가는 / 갈까요?
먹다 → 먹어요 / 먹었어요 / 먹는 / 먹을까요?

Two ways Korean verbs differ from English

1. Korean verbs follow a single conjugation system.

English is full of irregular verbs:

go → went      (irregular)
eat → ate      (irregular)
walk → walked  (regular)

Korean verbs are almost entirely predictable. Once you know the pattern, you can conjugate any new verb:

가다    → 가 + 아요 = 가요
먹다    → 먹 + 어요 = 먹어요
공부하다 → 공부하 + 여요 = 공부해요

2. Korean verbs always come at the end of the sentence.

[English] I    love   you.    verb in the middle
          S     V      O

[Korean]  나는  너를  사랑해.  verb at the end
           S     O      V

Why Korean is structured this way — and what that means for how sentences are built — is covered in Series 3.

Adjective (형용사) — Words That Describe States and Qualities

Adjectives describe the state, quality, or emotion of a person or thing.

크다      big       작다      small     많다    many      적다    few
예쁘다    pretty    멋있다    cool      맛있다  delicious 맛없다  tasteless
행복하다  happy     슬프다    sad       힘들다  hard      편하다  comfortable
따뜻하다  warm      시원하다  cool/refreshing  조용하다 quiet   시끄럽다 loud
새롭다    new       익숙하다  familiar  낯설다  unfamiliar 신기하다 fascinating

The most important difference from English adjectives: Korean adjectives conjugate.

English adjectives never change form:

[English] beautiful → beautiful → beautiful  (always the same)

Korean adjectives change form like verbs do:

[Korean] 아름답다
아름다워요    present
아름다웠어요  past
아름다운 사람 modifying a noun
아름답죠?    asking

[Korean] 행복하다
행복해요 / 행복했어요 / 행복한 사람 / 행복하죠?

[Korean] 맛있다
맛있어요 / 맛있었어요 / 맛있는 음식 / 맛있죠?

When a Korean adjective modifies a noun, it must change form (adding -ㄴ/은):

예쁘다  → 예쁜 가방 / 예쁜 친구 / 예쁜 신발
크다    → 큰 사람 / 큰 집 / 큰 가방
조용하다 → 조용한 카페 / 조용한 방 / 조용한 사람

→ More in Series 3 — Verbs and Adjectives

Adnominal (관형사) — Words That Modify Nouns Without Changing Form

Adnominals attach directly before nouns. Unlike adjectives, their form never changes.

새 가방 / 새 친구 / 새 신발 / 새 학기     (새 = new)
헌 옷 / 헌 책 / 헌 가방                  (헌 = old/worn)
모든 사람 / 모든 학생 / 모든 것           (모든 = every/all)
이 사람 / 그 책 / 저 건물                 (this/that/that over there)
여러 나라 / 온갖 것                       (여러 = various, 온갖 = all kinds of)

You can't say "새다," "헌다," or "모든다." They have no conjugated forms — they never change at all.

These are similar to English "determiners."

English has a category of words that precede nouns without changing form:

this book / that book / every student / all people

These are called "determiners" in English grammar. Korean adnominals work the same way.

이 책     ↔  this book
그 책     ↔  that book
모든 학생  ↔  every student

Adnominal vs. Adjective — easy to confuse, one key difference

Both can appear before nouns. The difference: one changes form, the other doesn't.

새 가방      → 새 (adnominal) — no change, directly before noun
새로운 가방  → 새롭다 (adjective) — 새로운 / 새로워요 / 새로웠어요

"새" and "새롭다" have similar meanings, but they're different parts of speech.

The difference becomes clearest as a predicate:

이 가방은 새요.      ✗  (adnominals cannot be predicates)
이 가방은 새 거예요. ✓  (새 + 것 + 이에요)
이 가방은 새로워요.  ✓  (adjective 새롭다 works as a predicate)

이 사람은 모든요.    ✗  (adnominal cannot be a predicate)
모든 사람이 왔어요.  ✓  (adnominal before a noun — correct)

Note: English adjectives also don't change form before nouns (beautiful book, beautiful books). What makes Korean different is that Korean adjectives do change when modifying nouns (adding -ㄴ/은) — which is why the adjective/adnominal distinction matters more in Korean than in English.

Adverb (부사) — Words That Modify Verbs, Adjectives, or Whole Sentences

Like adnominals, adverbs are modifiers — but they modify verbs and adjectives, not nouns.

English forms many adverbs by adding -ly to an adjective:

quick → quickly
slow  → slowly
loud  → loudly

Korean doesn't have this consistent pattern. Most adverbs exist as standalone words:

빨리    (compare: 빠르다 is the adjective — the adverb stem is different)
천천히  (no related adjective form)
크게    (this one does follow a pattern — adjective stem + 게)

Korean adjectives can be turned into adverbs by adding -게 to the stem:

크다      → 크게 말해요.      Speak loudly.
빠르다    → 빠르게 가요.     Go quickly. (same as 빨리 가요)
조용하다  → 조용하게 해요.   Do it quietly.

Modifying verbs:

빨리 가요.          빨리 먹어요.        빨리 와요.
천천히 가요.        많이 먹었어요.      조금 먹었어요.

Modifying adjectives:

정말 예뻐요.        너무 더워요.
아주 맛있어요.      엄청 좋아요.

Modifying the whole sentence:

항상 감사합니다.    가끔 그리워요.
벌써 왔어요.        아직 몰라요.
드디어 끝났어요.    갑자기 나타났어요.

A note on question words

Learners often wonder what part of speech 어디, 언제, 왜, and 어떻게 are:

어디    → Pronoun  (stands in for an unknown place)
언제    → Adverb   (modifies time)
왜      → Adverb   (modifies reason)
어떻게  → Adverb   (modifies manner)

어디 is a pronoun (it replaces a place name). The others are adverbs.

Interjection (감탄사) — Words That Stand Alone

Interjections express emotion, reaction, or will. They have no grammatical connection to the rest of the sentence.

[Surprise]  아, 어머, 어머나, 헉, 세상에
[Admiration] 와, 우와, 이야, 대박
[Affirmative] 네, 응, 어, 맞아, 그렇죠
[Negative]  아니오, 아니
[Calling]   야, 저기요, 있잖아

아, 깜짝이야.     Oh, you startled me.
어머, 어떡해.     Oh my, what do we do?
와, 정말 예쁘다!  Wow, it's really pretty!
네, 알겠어요.     Yes, I understand.
야, 잠깐만.       Hey, wait a moment.

Particle (조사) — Words That Mark Relationships

Particles attach to nouns and pronouns to signal their role in the sentence. English has no equivalent part of speech.

English uses word order to distinguish subject from object:

I love you.   → I is subject, you is object (determined by position)
You love I.   → Grammatically wrong

Korean uses particles, so word order can change without changing meaning:

나는 너를 사랑해.   → 나 (subject) + 너 (object)
너를 나는 사랑해.   → Same meaning (particles carry the roles)

Common particles:

은/는   topic/contrast   나는 학생이에요.
이/가   subject          친구가 왔어요.
을/를   object           밥을 먹어요.
에      place/time       학교에 가요. / 3시에 만나요.
에서    action location  카페에서 공부해요.
의      possession       친구의 가방
하고    and/with (spoken) 오빠하고 언니가 왔어요.
도      also/too         나도 가요.
만      only             나만 알아요.

One particle is special: 이다.

학생이다  →  나는 학생이에요. / 학생이었어요. / 학생인

이다 attaches to nouns to create a predicate ("is a ___"). It's a particle, but unlike every other particle, it changes form — the only inflected particle in the nine parts of speech. More on this in the next section.

→ More in Series 3 — Particles

9 Parts of Speech at a Glance

Part of Speech	In a word	Examples
Noun (명사)	Names things	학교 school, 사랑 love, 커피 coffee
Pronoun (대명사)	Stands in for nouns	나/저 I, 너 you, 이것 this, 여기 here
Numeral (수사)	Expresses numbers	하나·둘·셋 / 일·이·삼
Verb (동사)	Expresses actions	가다 go, 먹다 eat, 사랑하다 love
Adjective (형용사)	Expresses states & qualities	크다 big, 예쁘다 pretty, 행복하다 happy
Adnominal (관형사)	Modifies nouns — form never changes	새 new, 모든 every, 이 this, 그 that
Adverb (부사)	Modifies verbs & adjectives	빨리 quickly, 정말 really, 너무 too
Interjection (감탄사)	Expresses emotion independently	아 ah, 와 wow, 네 yes, 어머 oh my
Particle (조사)	Marks relationships between words	은/는, 이/가, 을/를, 에

2. Classification by Form — Inflected vs. Uninflected

As you've seen above, only verbs, adjectives, and 이다 change form. Everything else stays the same.

Category	Definition	Parts of speech
Inflected (가변어)	Form changes	Verb, adjective, 이다
Uninflected (불변어)	Form never changes	All others

이다 changes just like a verb does:

학생이다 → 학생이에요 → 학생이었어요 → 학생인

3. Classification by Function — Five Grammatical Roles

The third way to classify Korean words is by what they do in a sentence.

Functional class	Role	Parts of speech
Substantive (체언)	Subject / object position	Noun, pronoun, numeral
Predicate word (용언)	Predicate position	Verb, adjective
Modifier (수식언)	Modifies other words	Adnominal, adverb
Independent word (독립언)	No grammatical connection to sentence	Interjection
Relational word (관계언)	Marks relationships	Particle

Where All Three Overlap

Every Korean word satisfies all three criteria simultaneously.

Word	Meaning class	Form	Functional class
학교 school	Noun	Uninflected	Substantive
나 I	Pronoun	Uninflected	Substantive
먹다 eat	Verb	Inflected	Predicate word
아름답다 beautiful	Adjective	Inflected	Predicate word
새 new	Adnominal	Uninflected	Modifier
빨리 quickly	Adverb	Uninflected	Modifier
아 ah	Interjection	Uninflected	Independent word
은/는	Particle	Uninflected	Relational word

The three criteria overlap to produce exactly nine parts of speech.

Wrapping Up

Parts of speech are the vocabulary for talking about Korean grammar. If you've read this all the way through, the next time you encounter a grammar explanation that says "a particle attaches to a noun" or "adjectives conjugate," it'll land differently — because now you know why.

You don't need to memorize any of this. When you're learning Korean and you hit a moment where you wonder "why does this word change like that?" or "what do you call this kind of word?" — come back and look it up. That's exactly what this reference is for.

Series 2 covers how Korean words are built.
Series 3 covers how those words operate inside sentences.

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Korean Parts of Speech — Why the System Works This Way