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Korean grammar

Korean permission and prohibition: 도 돼요, 면 안 돼요, 지 마세요

Three patterns cover permission in Korean. 아/어도 돼요 asks or grants it (가도 돼요? May I go?), 안 돼요 refuses it, and (으)면 안 돼요 turns a condition into a rule: if you do it, it's not okay, so you must not. 지 마세요 is the polite way to ask someone not to do something. The first takes the verb's 아/어 form; the other two attach to the plain stem.

Examples are written in Hangul. New to it? Start with the hangul chart.

In short

  • 아/어 form + 도 돼요 asks or gives permission: 가도 돼요? (May I go?), 네, 가도 돼요 (Yes, you may go), 먹어도 돼요 (You may eat).
  • To refuse, 안 돼요 (it's not okay): 아니요, 안 돼요.
  • (으)면 안 돼요 forbids: 가면 안 돼요 (you must not go), 먹으면 안 돼요 after a consonant stem.
  • Stem + 지 마세요 is the polite don't: 가지 마세요 (please don't go), 걱정하지 마세요 (don't worry).
  • Mind the stem: 도 돼요 needs the 아/어 form (먹어도), while 지 마세요 and (으)면 take the plain stem (먹지 마세요, 먹으면).

verb-아/어 + 도 돼요

Take the verb's 아/어 form (vowel harmony, like the 해요 present) and add 도 돼요 to ask 'may I…?': 가다 → 가도 돼요? ('may I go?'), 먹다 → 먹어도 돼요? ('may I eat?'), 보다 → 봐도 돼요? ('may I look?'). As a plain statement (no question intonation) it GRANTS permission: 가도 돼요 = 'you may go'.

  • 도 돼요

    do dwaeyo

    may / it's okay to (verb + 도 돼요)

  • 여기서 밥을 먹어도 돼요?

    May I eat here?

  • 가도 돼요?

    May I go?

  • 먹어도 돼요?

    May I eat?

면 / 으면 + 안 돼요

To forbid, use the conditional 면 + 안 돼요 ('if you do X, it's not okay' → 'you must not X'). After a vowel stem use 면: 가다 → 가면 안 돼요 (you must not go). After a consonant stem use 으면: 먹다 → 먹으면 안 돼요 (you must not eat). This is the exact mirror of 아/어도 돼요.

  • 으면 안 돼요

    eumyeon an dwaeyo

    must not (after consonant)

  • 면 안 돼요

    myeon an dwaeyo

    must not (after vowel)

  • 여기서 밥을 먹으면 안 돼요

    You must not eat here.

  • 가면 안 돼요

    You must not go

  • 여기서 먹으면 안 돼요

    You must not eat here

stem + 지 마세요

To ask someone NOT to do something, add 지 마세요 to the plain stem: 가지 마세요 ('please don't go'), 먹지 마세요 ('please don't eat'), 걱정하지 마세요 ('don't worry'). It's the negative of the polite request; the same 세요 polite-command base you met in 주세요.

  • 지 마세요

    ji maseyo

    please don't (verb + 지 마세요)

  • 그거 먹지 마세요

    Please don't eat that.

  • 가지 마세요

    Please don't go

Check yourself

Questions from the course. Pick an answer to check it; nothing is saved.

  1. 1.'May I go?' Pick the Korean.

  2. 2.'May I look (at it)?' Pick the Korean.

  3. 3.'You must not go.' Pick the Korean.

  4. 4.'You must not smoke (cigarettes).' Pick the Korean.

  5. 5.'Please don't go.' Pick the Korean.

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