먹어
muh-guh
meogeo
regular
먹다
To say to eat politely in the present tense, use 먹어요 (muh-guh-yoh) · meogeoyo. Below is the full conjugation of 먹다 across the three tenses and three everyday speech levels.
Grammar note (regular): Regular verbs and adjectives conjugate predictably. Before 어-series suffixes, vowels may contract (가 + 아 → 가, 보 + 아 → 봐), but no consonant in the stem changes. If the final vowel of the stem is ㅏ or ㅗ, use 아; otherwise use 어. Consonant-final stems: 먹 + 어 → 먹어; vowel-final: 가 + 아 → 가.
Conjugation table
pron. = pronunciation guide · RR = Revised Romanization
| Tense | Casual (반말) | Polite (요) | Formal (합니다) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | 먹어요 muh-guh-yoh meogeoyo | 먹습니다 muhg-sseum-nee-dah meoksseumnida | |
| Past | 먹었어 muh-guh-ssuh meogeosseo | 먹었어요 muh-guh-ssuh-yoh meogeosseoyo | 먹었습니다 muh-guh-sseum-nee-dah meogeosseumnida |
| Future | 먹을 거야 muh-geul guh-yah meogeul geoya | 먹을 거예요 muh-geul guh-yae-yoh meogeul geoyeyo | 먹을 겁니다 muh-geul guhm-nee-dah meogeul geomnida |
Example sentences
- casual present나 지금 밥 먹어.I’m eating right now.
- polite present저는 아침에 빵을 먹어요.I eat bread in the morning.
- formal present한국 사람들은 설날에 떡국을 먹습니다.Koreans eat rice-cake soup on Lunar New Year.
- casual past너 밥 먹었어?Have you eaten? (a common way to say “how are you?”)
- polite past어제 친구하고 삼겹살을 먹었어요.I had grilled pork belly with a friend yesterday.
- formal past회의 전에 간단히 점심을 먹었습니다.We had a quick lunch before the meeting.
- casual future오늘은 집에서 라면 먹을 거야.I’m going to have ramyeon at home today.
- polite future저녁은 뭐 먹을 거예요?What are you going to have for dinner?
- formal future내일 점심은 회사 식당에서 먹을 겁니다.We will have lunch in the company cafeteria tomorrow.
- honorific -(으)세요식기 전에 먹으세요.Eat it before it gets cold.
How it’s used
먹다 is the everyday verb for eating, and it is also used for taking medicine (약을 먹다) and even for getting older (나이를 먹다). When the eater is someone you respect, switch to the honorific 드시다 (드세요, 드셨어요); 잡수시다 is more deferential still and is mostly used for elderly people. The question 밥 먹었어? (or politely, 식사하셨어요?) is often just a friendly greeting.
Common mistake
Using 먹다 for elders and guests. 먹으세요 is fine with friends and younger people, but 할머니가 먹어요 or telling a guest 많이 먹으세요 sounds off; the respectful choice is 드시다: 할머니가 드세요, 많이 드세요.
Other useful forms
Honorific / Command Polite (-(으)세요)
먹으세요
muh-geu-sae-yoh
meogeuseyo
Suggestion / Let's Polite (요)
먹어요
muh-guh-yoh
meogeoyo
Question Polite (요)
먹어요?
muh-guh-yoh-?
meogeoyo?
Connective "and" — (고)
먹고
muhg-ggoh
meokkko
Conditional "if" — (면)
먹으면
muh-geu-myuhn
meogeumyeon
Progressive (고 있어요)
먹고 있어요
muhg-ggoh ee-ssuh-yoh
meokkko isseoyo
Want to (고 싶어요)
먹고 싶어요
muhg-ggoh shee-puh-yoh
meokkko sipeoyo
Can / Able to ((으)ㄹ 수 있어요)
먹을 수 있어요
muh-geul soo ee-ssuh-yoh
meogeul su isseoyo
Because / So (아/어서)
먹어서
muh-guh-suh
meogeoseo
Noun form — (기)
먹기
muhg-ggee
meokkki
Noun form — (음)
먹음
muh-geum
meogeum