겸손하다 Korean adjective conjugation
modest, humble
Every form of 겸손하다 across the four speech levels. It is 여 irregular — 하다 and every verb built on it: 하다 → 하여 → 해요.
기본형Principal parts
The four forms the dictionary prints. Every other form on this page is derived from them.
- 관형사형Modifier
- 겸손한
- 아/어Infinitive
- 겸손해
- -으니Since
- 겸손하니
- 합니다Formal
- 겸손합니다
현재Present
The tense that does the most work. 해요체 is the one to learn first — it is polite without being formal, and it is what most conversation is in.
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 서술Statement | 겸손해요 | 겸손합니다 | 겸손해 | 겸손하다 |
과거Past
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 서술Statement | 겸손했어요 | 겸손했습니다 | 겸손했어 | 겸손했다 |
미래·추측Future & presumptive
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -겠-Will / must be | 겸손하겠어요 | 겸손하겠습니다 | 겸손하겠어 | 겸손하겠다 |
| -을 것이다Going to | 겸손할 거예요 | 겸손할 것입니다 | 겸손할 거야 | 겸손할 것이다 |
의문Questions
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Present | 겸손해요? | 겸손합니까? | 겸손해? | 겸손하니? |
| 과거Past | 겸손했어요? | 겸손했습니까? | 겸손했어? | 겸손했니? |
부정Negation
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 안Not (short) | 안 겸손해요 | 안 겸손합니다 | 안 겸손해 | 안 겸손하다 |
| -지 않다Not (long) | 겸손하지 않아요 | 겸손하지 않습니다 | 겸손하지 않아 | 겸손하지 않다 |
높임Honorific
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Present | 겸손하세요 | 겸손하십니다 | 겸손하셔 | 겸손하시다 |
| 과거Past | 겸손하셨어요 | 겸손하셨습니다 | 겸손하셨어 | 겸손하셨다 |
관형사형Modifying a noun
- 현재Present
- 겸손한
- 과거Past
- 겸손한
- 미래Future
- 겸손할
- 회상Used to
- 겸손하던
연결Joining clauses
- -고and
- 겸손하고
- -게-ly / so that
- 겸손하게
- -어서so / and then
- 겸손해서
- -으니까since
- 겸손하니까
- -으면if / when
- 겸손하면
- -지만but
- 겸손하지만
- -는데and / but (setting up)
- 겸손한데
- -어도even if
- 겸손해도
문형Sentence patterns
How the dictionary says this verb is used. The numbers are slots: 1 is the subject, 2 the object.
- 1이 겸손하다
예문In real sentences
From the dictionary, each with its translation.
세 번째로 겸손해야 합니다.
That third thing is: have a little humility.
겸손한 자세로 여러분의 지식을 서로 나눠주세요.
Humbly share your knowledge with each other.
그리고 겸손함은 우리 모두가 사람이기 때문입니다.
And humility because we are all human. We all make mistakes.
저는 겸손하게 됐고, 저는 노동의 가치를 알게 됐습니다.
I was humbled; I was shown the value of hard work.
자주 묻는 질문Common questions
How do you conjugate 겸손하다 in Korean?
겸손하다 (modest, humble) is 겸손해요 in the polite 해요체, 겸손합니다 in formal 합니다체, 겸손해 in casual 반말 and 겸손하다 in the plain written style. The past is 겸손했어요.
What is the past tense of 겸손하다?
겸손했어요 in everyday polite speech, 겸손했습니다 formally. It is built from the 아/어 form 겸손하여 plus ㅆ, which is why an irregular stem shows its irregularity here.
Is 겸손하다 irregular?
Yes — it is 여 irregular (여 불규칙). 하다 and every verb built on it: 하다 → 하여 → 해요. That is why the stem looks different in 겸손하여 and 겸손하니 but unchanged in 겸손합니다.
What TOPIK level is 겸손하다?
4급 — TOPIK 4, upper intermediate.
Dictionary form, meaning, sentence patterns, examples and audio from the 국립국어원 한국어기초사전, used under CC BY-SA 2.0 KR.
Conjugations are generated by this site's own engine and checked against the 9,380 forms the dictionary publishes on every build.