How to Conjugate 오다 (to come): regular Pattern

오 + 아요 contracts to 와요. Contraction is mandatory in speech.

The Rule

오 + 아요 contracts to 와요. Contraction is mandatory in speech. 오다 is a regular verb, which means it follows predictable conjugation rules. Master this pattern and you can conjugate hundreds of other regular verbs the same way.

Why English Speakers Get It Wrong

English verb conjugation is relatively simple — "I eat, he eats, I ate." Korean is more complex because the verb ending changes based on politeness level, tense, AND the verb stem's final vowel or consonant. The good news: 오다 follows regular rules. The main challenge is remembering which ending to use for which situation.

How It Works

Stem: 오 Polite present (해요체): 와요 Polite past: 왔어요 Polite future: 올 거예요 Formal (합쇼체): 옵니다 Negative: 안 와요 Notice the predictable endings attached to "오". These same endings work with any regular verb.

Real Examples

• 와요 (wayo) — "come (polite present)" • 왔어요 (wateoyo) — "come (past)" • 올 거예요 (or geoyeyo) — "will come (future)" • 옵니다 (opnida) — "come (formal)" • 안 와요 (an wayo) — "don't come"

Common Mistakes

❌ 오아요 (oayo) ✅ 와요 (wayo) → 오 + 아 always contracts to 와. Never say 오아요. ❌ Using the casual form (오어/아) in formal situations ✅ Use 옵니다 when speaking to elders, at work, or in official settings → Mixing up politeness levels is one of the most noticeable mistakes foreigners make in Korean.

Quick Tip

Start by mastering the 해요체 (polite) form: 와요. This is the form you'll use 90% of the time in daily life. Once it's automatic, add the past (왔어요) and future (올 거예요) to your toolkit. Since 오다 is regular, use it as your "template" for conjugating new regular verbs.

오다: 와요 (present) / 왔어요 (past) / 올 거예요 (future)

Examples

와요 — wayo — come (polite)

왔어요 — wateoyo — come (past)

올 거예요 — or geoyeyo — will come

옵니다 — opnida — come (formal)

안 와요 — an wayo — don't come