쩔쩔매다 Korean verb conjugation
to be at a loss, be confused
Every form of 쩔쩔매다 across the four speech levels. It is a regular stem, so the endings below attach without changing it.
기본형Principal parts
The four forms the dictionary prints. Every other form on this page is derived from them.
- 관형사형Modifier
- 쩔쩔매는
- 아/어Infinitive
- 쩔쩔매
- -으니Since
- 쩔쩔매니
- 합니다Formal
- 쩔쩔맵니다
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 | 쩔쩔매요 | 쩔쩔맵니다 | 쩔쩔매 | 쩔쩔맨다 |
과거Past
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 서술Statement | 쩔쩔맸어요 | 쩔쩔맸습니다 | 쩔쩔맸어 | 쩔쩔맸다 |
미래·추측Future & presumptive
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -겠-Will / must be | 쩔쩔매겠어요 | 쩔쩔매겠습니다 | 쩔쩔매겠어 | 쩔쩔매겠다 |
| -을 것이다Going to | 쩔쩔맬 거예요 | 쩔쩔맬 것입니다 | 쩔쩔맬 거야 | 쩔쩔맬 것이다 |
의문Questions
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Present | 쩔쩔매요? | 쩔쩔맵니까? | 쩔쩔매? | 쩔쩔매니? |
| 과거Past | 쩔쩔맸어요? | 쩔쩔맸습니까? | 쩔쩔맸어? | 쩔쩔맸니? |
명령Commands
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 명령Do it | 쩔쩔매세요 | 쩔쩔매십시오 | 쩔쩔매 | 쩔쩔매라 |
| 청유Let's | 쩔쩔매요 | 쩔쩔맵시다 | 쩔쩔매 | 쩔쩔매자 |
부정Negation
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 안Not (short) | 안 쩔쩔매요 | 안 쩔쩔맵니다 | 안 쩔쩔매 | 안 쩔쩔맨다 |
| -지 않다Not (long) | 쩔쩔매지 않아요 | 쩔쩔매지 않습니다 | 쩔쩔매지 않아 | 쩔쩔매지 않는다 |
| 못Cannot | 못 쩔쩔매요 | 못 쩔쩔맵니다 | 못 쩔쩔매 | 못 쩔쩔맨다 |
높임Honorific
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Present | 쩔쩔매세요 | 쩔쩔매십니다 | 쩔쩔매셔 | 쩔쩔매신다 |
| 과거Past | 쩔쩔매셨어요 | 쩔쩔매셨습니다 | 쩔쩔매셨어 | 쩔쩔매셨다 |
관형사형Modifying a noun
- 현재Present
- 쩔쩔매는
- 과거Past
- 쩔쩔맨
- 미래Future
- 쩔쩔맬
- 회상Used to
- 쩔쩔매던
연결Joining clauses
- -고and
- 쩔쩔매고
- -게-ly / so that
- 쩔쩔매게
- -어서so / and then
- 쩔쩔매서
- -으니까since
- 쩔쩔매니까
- -으면if / when
- 쩔쩔매면
- -지만but
- 쩔쩔매지만
- -는데and / but (setting up)
- 쩔쩔매는데
- -어도even if
- 쩔쩔매도
진행In progress
| 해요체Polite | 합니다체Formal | 해체Casual | 한다체Plain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 현재Is doing | 쩔쩔매고 있어요 | 쩔쩔매고 있습니다 | 쩔쩔매고 있어 | 쩔쩔매고 있다 |
| 과거Was doing | 쩔쩔매고 있었어요 | 쩔쩔매고 있었습니다 | 쩔쩔매고 있었어 | 쩔쩔매고 있었다 |
문형Sentence patterns
How the dictionary says this verb is used. The numbers are slots: 1 is the subject, 2 the object.
- 1이 쩔쩔매다
- 1이 2에/에게 쩔쩔매다
예문In real sentences
From the dictionary, each with its translation.
AV: 저는 그가 너무 쩔쩔매지 않길 바래요. 그렇지만 전 딱 3초만 줄 겁니다.
I don't want to embarrass him too much. But I am going to give him three seconds.
지금 가면 식당 자리 잡느라 쩔쩔매고 택시 승차 거부당하고 휠체어 충전하느라 애쓰겠죠
I don't want those memories erased by the struggle to fit behind a table, the taxi drivers who refuse to take me, and my wheelchair power pack that won't charge in a French socket.
자주 묻는 질문Common questions
How do you conjugate 쩔쩔매다 in Korean?
쩔쩔매다 (to be at a loss, be confused) is 쩔쩔매요 in the polite 해요체, 쩔쩔맵니다 in formal 합니다체, 쩔쩔매 in casual 반말 and 쩔쩔맨다 in the plain written style. The past is 쩔쩔맸어요.
What is the past tense of 쩔쩔매다?
쩔쩔맸어요 in everyday polite speech, 쩔쩔맸습니다 formally. It is built from the 아/어 form 쩔쩔매 plus ㅆ, which is why an irregular stem shows its irregularity here.
Is 쩔쩔매다 a regular verb?
Yes. Its stem never changes shape: 쩔쩔맵니다, 쩔쩔매, 쩔쩔매니 all keep 쩔쩔매 intact. Only the ending moves.
What TOPIK level is 쩔쩔매다?
6급 — TOPIK 6, mastery.
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.