걸어
guh-ruh
georeo
걷다
To say to walk politely in the present tense, use 걸어요 (guh-ruh-yoh) · georeoyo. Below is the full conjugation of 걷다 across the three tenses and three everyday speech levels.
Grammar note (ㄷ irregular): ㄷ-irregular verbs end in 다 with a ㄷ final consonant. Before a vowel, the ㄷ changes to ㄹ. So 듣다 (to listen) becomes 들어요 — NOT *듣어요. Before consonants the ㄷ stays: 듣고, 듣지. A few verbs that look like ㄷ-irregulars are actually regular (e.g. 받다, 믿다) — there is no spelling rule; each must be memorised. See all ㄷ-irregular verbs →
Conjugation table
pron. = pronunciation guide · RR = Revised Romanization
Highlighted = where the stem changes
| Tense | Casual (반말) | Polite (요) | Formal (합니다) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | 걸어요 guh-ruh-yoh georeoyo | 걷습니다 guht-seum-nee-dah geotseumnida | |
| Past | 걸었어 guh-ruh-ssuh georeosseo | 걸었어요 guh-ruh-ssuh-yoh georeosseoyo | 걸었습니다 guh-ruh-sseum-nee-dah georeosseumnida |
| Future | 걸을 거야 guh-reul guh-yah georeul geoya | 걸을 거예요 guh-reul guh-yae-yoh georeul geoyeyo | 걸을 겁니다 guh-reul guhm-nee-dah georeul geomnida |
Example sentences
- casual present나 매일 회사까지 걸어.I walk to work every day.
- polite present저는 저녁마다 공원에서 걸어요.I walk in the park every evening.
- formal present이 길은 하루에 수천 명이 걷습니다.Thousands of people walk this path every day.
- casual past오늘 만 보 걸었어.I walked ten thousand steps today.
- polite past비가 와서 우산을 쓰고 걸었어요.It was raining, so I walked with an umbrella.
- formal past우리는 해변을 따라 한 시간 동안 걸었습니다.We walked along the beach for an hour.
- casual future날씨 좋으니까 집까지 걸을 거야.The weather’s nice, so I’m going to walk home.
- polite future내일은 한강을 따라 걸을 거예요.Tomorrow I’m going to walk along the Han River.
- formal future다음 코스에서는 약 3km를 걸을 겁니다.On the next route we will walk about 3 km.
- honorific -(으)세요천천히 걸으세요.Walk slowly, please.
How it’s used
걷다 means to walk. To say you go somewhere on foot, use 걸어서 with 가다 or 오다: 걸어서 10분 걸려요 (“it’s a ten-minute walk”). It is ㄷ-irregular: 걸어요, 걸었어요, but 걷고, 걷습니다. A different, regular 걷다 means to roll up or collect: 소매를 걷어요 (“I roll up my sleeves”).
Common mistake
Putting the destination straight onto 걷다: ✗ 학교에 걸어요 → ✓ 학교에 걸어서 가요. 걷다 describes the walking itself; to say where you walk to, use 걸어서 가다.
Other useful forms
Honorific / Command Polite (-(으)세요)
걸으세요
guh-reu-sae-yoh
georeuseyo
Suggestion / Let's Polite (요)
걸어요
guh-ruh-yoh
georeoyo
Question Polite (요)
걸어요?
guh-ruh-yoh-?
georeoyo?
Connective "and" — (고)
걷고
guht-goh
geotgo
Conditional "if" — (면)
걸으면
guh-reu-myuhn
georeumyeon
Progressive (고 있어요)
걷고 있어요
guht-goh ee-ssuh-yoh
geotgo isseoyo
Want to (고 싶어요)
걷고 싶어요
guht-goh shee-puh-yoh
geotgo sipeoyo
Can / Able to ((으)ㄹ 수 있어요)
걸을 수 있어요
guh-reul soo ee-ssuh-yoh
georeul su isseoyo
Because / So (아/어서)
걸어서
guh-ruh-suh
georeoseo
Noun form — (기)
걷기
guht-gee
geotgi
Noun form — (음)
걸음
guh-reum
georeum