말해
mahl-hae
malhae
말하다
To say to speak, to talk politely in the present tense, use 말해요 (mahl-hae-yoh) · malhaeyo. Below is the full conjugation of 말하다 across the three tenses and three everyday speech levels.
Grammar note (하다 verb): 하다 verbs are formed with a Sino-Korean noun + 하다 (e.g. 공부하다 = study + do). 하다 conjugates irregularly: the ㅏ in 하 contracts with the -아/-어 suffix to give 해 (not *하어). Present polite: 해요; past polite: 했어요. The formal ending is 합니다 (not *하습니다). Most noun+하다 compounds follow this pattern uniformly. 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 | 말해요 mahl-hae-yoh malhaeyo | 말합니다 mahl-hahm-nee-dah malhamnida | |
| Past | 말했어 mahl-hae-ssuh malhaesseo | 말했어요 mahl-hae-ssuh-yoh malhaesseoyo | 말했습니다 mahl-hae-sseum-nee-dah malhaesseumnida |
| Future | 말할 거야 mahl-hahl guh-yah malhal geoya | 말할 거예요 mahl-hahl guh-yae-yoh malhal geoyeyo | 말할 겁니다 mahl-hahl guhm-nee-dah malhal geomnida |
Other useful forms
Honorific / Command Polite (-(으)세요)
말하세요
mahl-hah-sae-yoh
malhaseyo
Suggestion / Let's Polite (요)
말해요
mahl-hae-yoh
malhaeyo
Question Polite (요)
말해요?
mahl-hae-yoh-?
malhaeyo?
Connective "and" — (고)
말하고
mahl-hah-goh
malhago
Conditional "if" — (면)
말하면
mahl-hah-myuhn
malhamyeon
Progressive (고 있어요)
말하고 있어요
mahl-hah-goh ee-ssuh-yoh
malhago isseoyo
Want to (고 싶어요)
말하고 싶어요
mahl-hah-goh shee-puh-yoh
malhago sipeoyo
Can / Able to ((으)ㄹ 수 있어요)
말할 수 있어요
mahl-hahl soo ee-ssuh-yoh
malhal su isseoyo
Because / So (아/어서)
말해서
mahl-hae-suh
malhaeseo
Noun form — (기)
말하기
mahl-hah-gee
malhagi
Noun form — (음)
말함
mahl-hahm
malham