1급 문법TOPIK 1 Korean Grammar — 45 Points

Your first Korean: Hangul, greetings, numbers, and the sentence endings that make a phrase polite.

All 45 grammar points the dictionary grades at 1급, grouped by kind. Each links to its own page with the 받침 rule, every sense and real examples.

Particles 조사 19 Sentence Endings 종결 어미 8 Connectives 연결 어미 6 Pre-final Endings 선어말 어미 3 Expressions 표현 9

조사Particles

The bound markers that say what a noun is doing in its sentence — subject, topic, object, place, direction. Korean has no word order to lean on, so these carry the load English does with position.

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종결 어미Sentence Endings

What a Korean sentence ends in, and therefore what it is: a statement, a question, an order, a suggestion — and at which speech level you are saying it.

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연결 어미Connectives

The endings that join two clauses — and, but, so, if, while. Korean puts the join on the first verb rather than between the clauses.

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-고 -go A connective ending used when listing more than two equal facts. -어서 -eoseo -아서 · -여서 · -어 A connective ending used to indicate that the preceding event and the following one happened sequentially. -으니까 -eunikka -니까 A connective ending used to emphasize that the preceding statement is the cause, reason, or premise for the following statement. -으러 -eureo -러 A connective ending used to express the purpose of an action such as going and coming. -으려고 -euryeogo -려고 · 으려 · 려 A connective ending used to indicate that one has an intention or desire of doing a certain act. -지만 -jiman A connective ending used to recognize the truth of the preceding statement and add facts that are the opposite of it or different.

선어말 어미Pre-final Endings

The slot between the stem and the ending, where tense and honorifics live: -으시-, -었-, -겠-.

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-겠- -get- An ending of a word referring to a future event or assumption. -었- -eot- -았- · -였- An ending of a word used to indicate that an event happened in the past. -으시- -eusi- -시- An ending of a word used to indicate the subject honorifics of an action or state.

표현Expressions

Multi-part patterns that behave as one piece of grammar — -을 수 있다, -어야 하다, -은 적이 있다. Most of what a learner calls "grammar" past 2급 is here.

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-고 싶다 -go sipda An expression used to state that the speaker wants to do the act mentioned in the preceding statement. -고 있다 -go itda An expression used to state that the act mentioned in the preceding statement is continued. -기 전에 -gi jeone -기 전 An expression used to state that a certain act occurs earlier than the act in the preceding statement. -어야 되다 -eoya doeda -아야 되다 · -여야 되다 An expression used to indicate that one needs or is obligated to do a certain thing. -은 후에 -eun hu-e -은 후 · -ㄴ 후 An expression used to indicate that one does a certain act mentioned in the preceding statement and a while later, does another thing. -을 수 있다 -eul su itda -ㄹ 수 있다 An expression used to indicate that one has an ability to do something. -지 못하다 -ji motada An expression used to indicate that the speaker cannot do the act mentioned in the preceding statement, or that things did not work out as the… -지 않다 -ji anta An expression used to deny the act or state indicated in the preceding statement. 이 아니다 가 아니다

Other levels:2급 3급 4급 5급 6급

자주 묻는 질문Common questions

How many grammar points are there at TOPIK 1?

45 at 1급 itself — 19 particles, 8 sentence endings, 6 connectives, 3 pre-final endings, 9 expressions — and 45 counting every level below it.

What grammar is on the TOPIK I exam?

TOPIK I covers levels 1 and 2, so the particles and sentence endings on this page and the one below it. Grammar is never tested on its own — it appears inside reading and listening passages.

Which 1급 grammar point should I learn first?

Work down this page in order. It is grouped by kind, and within a kind by the dictionary's own order, so the points that everything else depends on come first: -겠-, -고, -고.

Grammar definitions, usage notes and examples from the 국립국어원 한국어기초사전, used under CC BY-SA 2.0 KR.