How to Say "The book is old" in Korean | -아/어요 Grammar

Quick Answer: "The book is old" in Korean is "책이 오래됐어요." (chaeki oraedwaeteoyo.). It uses the -아/어요 grammar pattern (Polite Ending (-아/어요)). Level: A1.

Want to express "The book is old" in Korean? Say "책이 오래됐어요.". The grammar point -아/어요 (A1) is essential for everyday Korean conversation. Read on for a full breakdown.

What does "The book is old" mean in Korean?

The Korean sentence "책이 오래됐어요." translates to "The book is old." in English. "책이 오래됐어요." is a simple A1–A2 sentence that paints a clear scene. It ends with "-요" so it feels polite and warm. It is perfect for fairy-tale style narration.

Pronunciation guide: chaeki oraedwaeteoyo.

Grammar Point: Polite Ending (-아/어요)

The -아/어요 ending is the standard polite speech level in Korean. Use -아요 after bright vowels (ㅏ, ㅗ), -어요 after dark vowels, and 해요 for 하다 verbs.

가다 → 가요, 먹다 → 먹어요, 하다 → 해요. This is the most common speech level in daily Korean.

Korean Sentence Structure Breakdown

Korean follows a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) word order, which is different from English (SVO). In "책이 오래됐어요.", the verb comes at the end of the sentence. Here is the word-by-word breakdown: • 책이 (chaeki) • 오래됐어요 (oraedwaeteoyo)

Korean sentences always end with the verb. Get comfortable with putting the action word last.

Why This Korean Expression Sounds Natural

In English, we often say "The book is old" directly. Korean keeps the same idea but adds softness through the ending, so the line feels caring rather than flat.

Cultural Insight

한국 동화는 작은 장면 안에 따뜻한 마음을 숨겨 둡니다.

Examples

책이 오래됐어요. — chaeki oraedwaeteoyo. — The book is old.

오늘은 책이 오래됐어요. — oneuleun chaeki oraedwaeteoyo. — Today, the book is old

지금 책이 오래됐어요. — jigeum chaeki oraedwaeteoyo. — Right now, the book is old

Common Mistakes

Incorrect: 먹아요 → Correct: 먹어요. The stem 먹- ends in a dark vowel (ㅓ), so it takes -어요 not -아요. Match the vowel harmony.

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