일해
eel-hae
ilhae
일하다
To say to work politely in the present tense, use 일해요 (eel-hae-yoh) · ilhaeyo. Below is the full conjugation of 일하다 across the three tenses and three everyday speech levels.
Grammar note (하다 (irregular)): 하다 (to do) is the base of Korean's most common verb class. It conjugates irregularly: the ㅏ in 하 contracts with the -아/-어 ending to give 해 instead of the expected *하어. Present polite: 해요; past: 했어요; future: 할 거예요. The formal form is 합니다. See all 하다 verbs →
Conjugation table
pron. = pronunciation guide · RR = Revised Romanization
Highlighted = where the stem changes
| Tense | Casual (반말) | Polite (요) | Formal (합니다) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | 일해요 eel-hae-yoh ilhaeyo | 일합니다 eel-hahm-nee-dah ilhamnida | |
| Past | 일했어 eel-hae-ssuh ilhaesseo | 일했어요 eel-hae-ssuh-yoh ilhaesseoyo | 일했습니다 eel-hae-sseum-nee-dah ilhaesseumnida |
| Future | 일할 거야 eel-hahl guh-yah ilhal geoya | 일할 거예요 eel-hahl guh-yae-yoh ilhal geoyeyo | 일할 겁니다 eel-hahl guhm-nee-dah ilhal geomnida |
Example sentences
- casual present너 요즘 어디서 일해?Where are you working these days?
- polite present저는 병원에서 일해요.I work at a hospital.
- formal present저희 회사는 주 4일 일합니다.Our company works a four-day week.
- casual past어제 몇 시까지 일했어?How late did you work yesterday?
- polite past학생 때 카페에서 일했어요.I worked at a café when I was a student.
- formal past저는 5년 동안 마케팅 분야에서 일했습니다.I worked in marketing for five years.
- casual future이번 주말에도 일할 거야.I’m working this weekend too.
- polite future졸업하면 해외에서 일할 거예요.After I graduate, I’m going to work abroad.
- formal future새 직원은 다음 주부터 일할 겁니다.The new employee will start work next week.
- honorific -(으)세요무리하지 말고 쉬면서 일하세요.Don’t overdo it. Take breaks while you work.
How it’s used
일하다 means to work at a job; the workplace takes 에서: 은행에서 일해요. Like other noun + 하다 verbs it can also be split: 일을 해요. To ask what someone does for a living, Koreans usually say 무슨 일 하세요?
Common mistake
Using 일하다 for machines: ✗ 컴퓨터가 일 안 해요 → ✓ 컴퓨터가 안 돼요 (or 작동이 안 돼요). 일하다 is only for people doing work.
Other useful forms
Honorific / Command Polite (-(으)세요)
일하세요
eel-hah-sae-yoh
ilhaseyo
Suggestion / Let's Polite (요)
일해요
eel-hae-yoh
ilhaeyo
Question Polite (요)
일해요?
eel-hae-yoh-?
ilhaeyo?
Connective "and" — (고)
일하고
eel-hah-goh
ilhago
Conditional "if" — (면)
일하면
eel-hah-myuhn
ilhamyeon
Progressive (고 있어요)
일하고 있어요
eel-hah-goh ee-ssuh-yoh
ilhago isseoyo
Want to (고 싶어요)
일하고 싶어요
eel-hah-goh shee-puh-yoh
ilhago sipeoyo
Can / Able to ((으)ㄹ 수 있어요)
일할 수 있어요
eel-hahl soo ee-ssuh-yoh
ilhal su isseoyo
Because / So (아/어서)
일해서
eel-hae-suh
ilhaeseo
Noun form — (기)
일하기
eel-hah-gee
ilhagi
Noun form — (음)
일함
eel-hahm
ilham