🕰 Talking About Past Experiences with -았/었어요 – Beginner Level (TOPIK 1–2)
%20(1).jpg "Talking About Past Experiences with -았/었어요 – Beginner Level (TOPIK 1–2)")
Learn how to use -았/었어요 to talk about past experiences in Korean, with easy examples and everyday expressions.
Have you ever told a Korean friend about what you did last weekend? Using -았/었어요 is one of the easiest ways to express past experiences in Korean. Let’s learn how to use it in daily life!
🎯 Learning Goal
- Understand when and how to use
-았/었어요for past tense. - Learn to share your own past experiences in Korean.
- Practice using this grammar in simple conversations.
📑 Table of Contents
📚 Grammar Point
-았/었어요 is the polite past tense ending in Korean. Attach -았어요 if the final vowel is ㅏ or ㅗ, and -었어요 for all other vowels.
- 가다 → 갔어요 (went)
- 먹다 → 먹었어요 (ate)
- 하다 → 했어요 (did)
It can be used for both simple past actions and talking about past experiences.
🗝 Key Vocabulary
- 여행하다 (yeohaenghada) – to travel
- 만나다 (mannada) – to meet
- 보다 (boda) – to see/watch
- 먹다 (meokda) – to eat
- 재미있다 (jaemiitda) – to be fun/interesting
💡 Useful Expressions
- 저는 한국에 갔어요. – I went to Korea.
- 어제 친구를 만났어요. – I met a friend yesterday.
- 지난 주말에 영화를 봤어요. – I watched a movie last weekend.
- 점심에 김밥을 먹었어요. – I ate kimbap for lunch.
🙋 Practice Dialogue
A: 지난 주말에 뭐 했어요?
(Jinan jumare mwo haesseoyo?)
What did you do last weekend?
B: 친구랑 서울에 갔어요.
(Chingurang Seoure gasseoyo.)
I went to Seoul with a friend.
A: 재미있었어요?
(Jaemiisseosseoyo?)
Was it fun?
B: 네, 정말 재미있었어요.
(Ne, jeongmal jaemiisseosseoyo.)
Yes, it was really fun.
📝 Pop Quiz
Translate the sentences into Korean using -았/었어요. Click to reveal answers.
- I ate bulgogi yesterday.
Show Answer
어제 불고기를 먹었어요. - We traveled to Busan last summer.
Show Answer
지난 여름에 부산에 여행했어요. - I met my teacher this morning.
Show Answer
오늘 아침에 선생님을 만났어요.
👩🏫 Teacher’s Tips
Beginner learners often focus too much on memorizing forms, but with -았/었어요, it’s more important to connect it to real-life events. Try making sentences about what you did this morning, yesterday, or last weekend. Using personal experiences will make the grammar stick faster.
Also, pay attention to vowel harmony when choosing between -았어요 and -었어요. Over time, it will become automatic with practice.
Don’t just memorize patterns—connect them to things you actually did. This will make your speaking more natural and your memory stronger.
🌀 Say What?
In casual Korean, -았/었어요 sometimes becomes shorter: 갔어요 → 갔어, 먹었어요 → 먹었어. This is common among friends but avoid using it in formal settings.
📌 Did You Know?
Koreans often use past tense when sharing news, even for recent events that just happened. For example, if someone just arrived, you can say “왔어요” (“They came”) even though it happened moments ago.
