힘들다 Korean adjective conjugation
to be hard, difficult
Every form of 힘들다 across the four speech levels. It is ㄹ dropping — ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ: 살다 → 삽니다. Regular, but universal.
기본형Principal parts
The four forms the dictionary prints. Every other form on this page is derived from them.
- 관형사형Modifier
- 힘든
- 아/어Infinitive
- 힘들어
- -으니Since
- 힘드니
- 합니다Formal
- 힘듭니다
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 | 힘들어요 | 힘듭니다 | 힘들어 | 힘들다 |
과거Past
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 서술Statement | 힘들었어요 | 힘들었습니다 | 힘들었어 | 힘들었다 |
미래·추측Future & presumptive
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -겠-Will / must be | 힘들겠어요 | 힘들겠습니다 | 힘들겠어 | 힘들겠다 |
| -을 것이다Going to | 힘들 거예요 | 힘들 것입니다 | 힘들 거야 | 힘들 것이다 |
의문Questions
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Present | 힘들어요? | 힘듭니까? | 힘들어? | 힘드니? |
| 과거Past | 힘들었어요? | 힘들었습니까? | 힘들었어? | 힘들었니? |
부정Negation
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 안Not (short) | 안 힘들어요 | 안 힘듭니다 | 안 힘들어 | 안 힘들다 |
| -지 않다Not (long) | 힘들지 않아요 | 힘들지 않습니다 | 힘들지 않아 | 힘들지 않다 |
높임Honorific
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Present | 힘드세요 | 힘드십니다 | 힘드셔 | 힘드시다 |
| 과거Past | 힘드셨어요 | 힘드셨습니다 | 힘드셨어 | 힘드셨다 |
관형사형Modifying a noun
- 현재Present
- 힘든
- 과거Past
- 힘든
- 미래Future
- 힘들
- 회상Used to
- 힘들던
연결Joining clauses
- -고and
- 힘들고
- -게-ly / so that
- 힘들게
- -어서so / and then
- 힘들어서
- -으니까since
- 힘드니까
- -으면if / when
- 힘들면
- -지만but
- 힘들지만
- -는데and / but (setting up)
- 힘든데
- -어도even if
- 힘들어도
문형Sentence patterns
How the dictionary says this verb is used. The numbers are slots: 1 is the subject, 2 the object.
- 1이 힘들다
- 1이 2가 힘들다
예문In real sentences
From the dictionary, each with its translation.
톰은 힘든 시간을 보내고 있어.
Tom is having a tough time.
힘든 부분이 여기 있죠.
And herein lies the challenge.
물론 힘들 때도 있습니다.
Of course there are challenges.
매우 읽기 힘든 것들이죠.
And it's really tough.
자주 묻는 질문Common questions
How do you conjugate 힘들다 in Korean?
힘들다 (to be hard, difficult) is 힘들어요 in the polite 해요체, 힘듭니다 in formal 합니다체, 힘들어 in casual 반말 and 힘들다 in the plain written style. The past is 힘들었어요.
What is the past tense of 힘들다?
힘들었어요 in everyday polite speech, 힘들었습니다 formally. It is built from the 아/어 form 힘들어 plus ㅆ, which is why an irregular stem shows its irregularity here.
Is 힘들다 irregular?
Yes — it is ㄹ dropping (ㄹ 탈락). ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ and ㅅ: 살다 → 삽니다. Regular, but universal. That is why the stem looks different in 힘들어 and 힘드니 but unchanged in 힘듭니다.
What TOPIK level is 힘들다?
1급 — TOPIK 1, beginner.
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.