울어
oo-ruh
ureo
울다
To say to cry politely in the present tense, use 울어요 (oo-ruh-yoh) · ureoyo. Below is the full conjugation of 울다 across the three tenses and three everyday speech levels.
Grammar note (ㄹ stem): ㄹ-stem verbs end in ㄹ as the final consonant. They are conjugated regularly with vowel suffixes (살다 → 살아요), but the ㄹ drops before certain consonant suffixes — specifically before ㄴ, ㅂ, ㅅ, and before the formal ending 습니다: 살다 → 사는, 삽니다, 살지 (ㄹ kept before ㅈ). This is sometimes called a "ㄹ drop" or "ㄹ irregular." See all ㄹ-stem verbs →
Conjugation table
pron. = pronunciation guide · RR = Revised Romanization
Highlighted = where the stem changes
| Tense | Casual (반말) | Polite (요) | Formal (합니다) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Present | 울어요 oo-ruh-yoh ureoyo | 웁니다 oom-nee-dah umnida | |
| Past | 울었어 oo-ruh-ssuh ureosseo | 울었어요 oo-ruh-ssuh-yoh ureosseoyo | 울었습니다 oo-ruh-sseum-nee-dah ureosseumnida |
| Future | 울 거야 ool guh-yah ul geoya | 울 거예요 ool guh-yae-yoh ul geoyeyo | 울 겁니다 ool guhm-nee-dah ul geomnida |
Example sentences
- casual present왜 울어?Why are you crying?
- polite present아기가 배고프면 울어요.The baby cries when it’s hungry.
- formal present매미는 여름에 웁니다.Cicadas sing in summer.
- casual past그 영화 보고 울었어?Did you cry at that movie?
- polite past너무 감동해서 울었어요.I was so moved that I cried.
- formal past결승전이 끝나고 선수들은 모두 울었습니다.When the final ended, all the players cried.
- casual future그 장면 보면 너도 울 거야.You’ll cry when you see that scene.
- polite future이 책 마지막 장에서 분명히 울 거예요.You’ll definitely cry at the last chapter of this book.
- formal future이 장면에서 관객들은 모두 울 겁니다.The whole audience will cry at this scene.
- honorific -(으)세요실컷 우세요. 괜찮아요.Go ahead and cry. It’s okay.
How it’s used
울다 means to cry, and it is also used for some animal and insect sounds: 새가 울어요 (“a bird is singing”), 매미가 울어요. Its opposite is 웃다 (to laugh). As an ㄹ-stem verb it drops ㄹ before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ: 웁니다, 우세요, 우는 아이.
Common mistake
Keeping the ㄹ before ㄴ: ✗ 울는 아이 → ✓ 우는 아이 (“a crying child”).
Other useful forms
Honorific / Command Polite (-(으)세요)
우세요
oo-sae-yoh
useyo
Suggestion / Let's Polite (요)
울어요
oo-ruh-yoh
ureoyo
Question Polite (요)
울어요?
oo-ruh-yoh-?
ureoyo?
Connective "and" — (고)
울고
ool-goh
ulgo
Conditional "if" — (면)
울면
ool-myuhn
ulmyeon
Progressive (고 있어요)
울고 있어요
ool-goh ee-ssuh-yoh
ulgo isseoyo
Want to (고 싶어요)
울고 싶어요
ool-goh shee-puh-yoh
ulgo sipeoyo
Can / Able to ((으)ㄹ 수 있어요)
울 수 있어요
ool soo ee-ssuh-yoh
ul su isseoyo
Because / So (아/어서)
울어서
oo-ruh-suh
ureoseo
Noun form — (기)
울기
ool-gee
ulgi
Noun form — (음)
욺
oom
um