물어
moo-ruh
mureo
묻다
To say to ask politely in the present tense, use 물어요 (moo-ruh-yoh) · mureoyo. Below is the full conjugation of 묻다 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 | 물어요 moo-ruh-yoh mureoyo | 묻습니다 moot-seum-nee-dah mutseumnida | |
| Past | 물었어 moo-ruh-ssuh mureosseo | 물었어요 moo-ruh-ssuh-yoh mureosseoyo | 물었습니다 moo-ruh-sseum-nee-dah mureosseumnida |
| Future | 물을 거야 moo-reul guh-yah mureul geoya | 물을 거예요 moo-reul guh-yae-yoh mureul geoyeyo | 물을 겁니다 moo-reul guhm-nee-dah mureul geomnida |
Example sentences
- casual present모르면 나한테 물어.If you don’t know, ask me.
- polite present길을 모르면 사람들한테 물어요.When I don’t know the way, I ask people.
- formal present기자들이 같은 질문을 계속 묻습니다.Reporters keep asking the same question.
- casual past걔한테 이유 물었어?Did you ask them why?
- polite past직원에게 출구가 어디인지 물었어요.I asked an employee where the exit was.
- formal past의사가 저에게 증상을 자세히 물었습니다.The doctor asked me about my symptoms in detail.
- casual future내일 친구한테 물을 거야.I’m going to ask my friend tomorrow.
- polite future면접에서 연봉에 대해 물을 거예요.I’m going to ask about the salary in the interview.
- formal future설문 조사에서 몇 가지를 물을 겁니다.We will ask you a few questions in the survey.
- honorific -(으)세요궁금한 게 있으면 언제든지 물으세요.If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
How it’s used
묻다 (to ask) is ㄷ-irregular: 물어요, 물었어요, but 묻고, 묻습니다. In everyday speech 물어보다 is more common than plain 묻다: 물어볼게요 (“I’ll ask”). To ask someone senior, use the humble 여쭤보다: 선생님께 여쭤볼게요.
Common mistake
Mixing up the three verbs spelled 묻다. Only “to ask” is irregular (물어요); 묻다 “to bury” and 묻다 “to get on, to stain” are regular: 옷에 커피가 묻었어요 (“I got coffee on my clothes”).
Other useful forms
Honorific / Command Polite (-(으)세요)
물으세요
moo-reu-sae-yoh
mureuseyo
Suggestion / Let's Polite (요)
물어요
moo-ruh-yoh
mureoyo
Question Polite (요)
물어요?
moo-ruh-yoh-?
mureoyo?
Connective "and" — (고)
묻고
moot-goh
mutgo
Conditional "if" — (면)
물으면
moo-reu-myuhn
mureumyeon
Progressive (고 있어요)
묻고 있어요
moot-goh ee-ssuh-yoh
mutgo isseoyo
Want to (고 싶어요)
묻고 싶어요
moot-goh shee-puh-yoh
mutgo sipeoyo
Can / Able to ((으)ㄹ 수 있어요)
물을 수 있어요
moo-reul soo ee-ssuh-yoh
mureul su isseoyo
Because / So (아/어서)
물어서
moo-ruh-suh
mureoseo
Noun form — (기)
묻기
moot-gee
mutgi
Noun form — (음)
물음
moo-reum
mureum