-(으)ㅂ시다: Formal Proposals ('Let's') | Korean Grammar

-(으)ㅂ시다 is the "let's" of 합니다체 — the fourth and final ending in the formal-polite set, after the statement, question, and command. It is the ending you see on rallying signage (함께 지킵시다, "let's protect it together") and hear from someone proposing a course of action to a group. But it comes with a social catch that textbooks routinely under-warn about, and getting that catch wrong is one of the fastest ways to accidentally sound presumptuous to a Korean superior. This page teaches both the form and the trap.

Building the ending

Attach the ending to the stem. A vowel/ㄹ-stem takes -ㅂ시다 (the ㄹ dropping); a consonant stem takes -읍시다.

Stem ends in…	Add	Example	Proposal
a vowel	-ㅂ시다	가다 (go)	갑시다
a vowel	-ㅂ시다	만나다 (meet)	만납시다
a vowel (ㄹ-stem)	-ㅂ시다 (ㄹ drops)	말다 (stop/not do)	맙시다
a consonant	-읍시다	먹다 (eat)	먹읍시다
a consonant	-읍시다	앉다 (sit)	앉읍시다

이제 시작합시다.

ije sijakapsida

Let's begin now.

다음 주에 다시 만납시다.

daeum jue dasi mannapsida

Let's meet again next week.

배고픈데 뭐 좀 먹읍시다.

baegopeunde mwo jom meogeupsida

I'm hungry — let's grab something to eat.

Pronunciation: 갑시다 keeps its [p] — unlike 갑니다

Here is a subtlety worth pausing on, because it separates this ending from the three before it. In 갑니다 the ㅂ sits before ㄴ, so it nasalizes to But in 갑시다 the ㅂ sits before ㅅ — not a nasal — so it does not nasalize. It stays a real [p] and tenses the following ㅅ: [갑씨다].

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Compare the whole family by ear: 갑니다 [감니다], 갑니까 [감니까] — but 갑시다 [갑씨다]. The rule is mechanical: ㅂ before ㄴ becomes [ㅁ]; ㅂ before ㅅ stays [p]. So the propositive is the one 합니다체 ending where you do pronounce a clear stop. Say 먹읍시다 as [머급씨다], 앉읍시다 as [안즙씨다] — the -읍- liaises onto the next syllable, and the ㅂ+ㅅ gives a crisp, clearly voiced stop.

The catch: -(으)ㅂ시다 is not safe upward

You would reasonably assume that a 합니다체 ending, being formal, is the "safe" polite choice for anyone — including your boss. It is not. Despite its formality, -(으)ㅂ시다 carries a faint downward or peer vector: proposing something with 갑시다 subtly positions you as the one directing the joint action. Said to an equal or a junior, that is perfectly natural. Said to a clear superior — 사장님, 갑시다 ("boss, let's go") — it can land as presumptuous, as if you were steering them.

This surprises English speakers because English "let's" is socially flat. You can say "let's go" to your closest friend, your grandmother, or the CEO with no change in tone. Korean's formal "let's" is not flat: it has a built-in slope.

자, 우리 팀 파이팅! 열심히 해 봅시다.

ja, uri tim paiting! yeolsimhi hae bopsida

All right, team — let's give it our all!

시간이 없으니까 이제 출발합시다.

sigani eopseunikka ije chulbalhapsida

We're short on time, so let's head out now.

Both of these are natural: the first to a team you lead or are peers with, the second among colleagues of equal standing. Neither would be your move upward to a senior.

Proposing upward: -(으)시죠 and -(으)ㄹ까요?

So how do you say "let's…" to a superior? Not with 합니다체 at all. You reach for a tentative, honorific form — one that softens the proposal into a suggestion and honors the addressee. The two go-to patterns are -(으)시죠 and -(으)ㄹ까요?.

사장님, 이제 그만 들어가시죠.

sajangnim, ije geuman deureogasijo

Sir, shall we head out now?

부장님, 점심 같이 하실까요?

bujangnim, jeomsim gachi hasilkkayo

Sir, would you like to have lunch together?

Both carry the honorific -시-, elevating the superior, and both frame the idea as an invitation the other person is free to accept, rather than a plan you are announcing. 가시죠 ("shall we go") is warmer and slightly more assertive; 가실까요? ("shall we go?") is the most tentative and deferential — see -(으)ㄹ까요? "shall we?".

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"Let's" splits by the direction of respect. Downward and sideways — to juniors, peers, and the public at large — use 합니다체 -(으)ㅂ시다 (갑시다, 시작합시다, 지킵시다). Upward, to a clear senior, drop -(으)ㅂ시다 entirely and use the honorific-tentative 가시죠 / 가실까요?. The formality of -(으)ㅂ시다 does not buy you safety upward; only the honorific-tentative forms do.

Where -(으)ㅂ시다 lives

Rallying a group you lead or belong to — team huddles, class exhortations, "let's do this."
Public calls to action / signage — 함께 지킵시다 ("let's protect it together"), campaign slogans, PSAs.
Meetings among equals — proposing the next step to colleagues of similar rank.
A leader addressing subordinates — a coach, a manager, a captain proposing action.

깨끗한 거리, 우리 함께 만듭시다.

kkaekkeutan geori, uri hamkke mandeupsida

Clean streets — let's build them together.

오늘은 이만 마치고 내일 다시 봅시다.

oneureun iman machigo naeil dasi bopsida

Let's wrap up for today and pick it up again tomorrow.

사소한 약속도 잊지 맙시다.

sasohan yaksokdo itji mapsida

Let's not forget even the small promises.

In 만듭시다 (from ㄹ-stem 만들다) and 맙시다 (from ㄹ-stem 말다), the stem ㄹ drops before -ㅂ시다, exactly as it does before -ㅂ니다.

Common Mistakes

1. Proposing to a superior with 갑시다. "More formal must be safer" is the trap; -(으)ㅂ시다 upward sounds like you are directing your boss.

❌ 사장님, 우리 지금 갑시다.

Presumptuous upward — it positions you as steering the boss.

✅ 사장님, 이제 가시죠.

sajangnim, ije gasijo

Sir, shall we get going now?

2. Using -습시다 on a consonant stem. The propositive's consonant allomorph is -읍시다, not -습시다 — don't borrow the -습- from 먹습니다.

❌ 같이 점심 먹습시다.

Incorrect — the propositive is 먹읍시다; -습- belongs to the statement 먹습니다.

✅ 같이 점심 먹읍시다.

gachi jeomsim meogeupsida

Let's have lunch together.

3. Adding -읍- to a ㄹ-stem instead of dropping the ㄹ. ㄹ-stems take -ㅂ시다 with the ㄹ gone.

❌ 좋은 추억을 많이 만들읍시다.

Incorrect — 만들다 drops its ㄹ: 만듭시다.

✅ 좋은 추억을 많이 만듭시다.

joeun chueogeul mani mandeupsida

Let's make lots of good memories.

4. Pronouncing 갑시다 like 갑니다. The ㅂ before ㅅ stays a [p]; it does not become [ㅁ].

❌ 이제 갑시다.

Don't say [감시다] — the ㅂ+ㅅ keeps the stop.

✅ 이제 갑시다.

ije gapsida

Let's go now. (say [갑씨다])

5. Answering a superior's suggestion with 그럽시다. Even 그럽시다 ("let's do that") in reply to a senior is too directive; soften it.

❌ (부장님께) 네, 그럽시다.

Too directive as a reply upward.

✅ (부장님께) 네, 그렇게 하시죠.

ne, geureoke hasijo

Yes, let's do that.

Key Takeaways

The 합니다체 proposal is -(으)ㅂ시다: vowel/ㄹ-stems take -ㅂ시다 (갑시다; ㄹ drops in 만듭시다), consonant stems take -읍시다 (먹읍시다).
It completes the four-mood set — but unlike a flat English "let's," it carries a downward/peer vector, so it is not safe upward to a clear superior.
Propose upward with the honorific-tentative -(으)시죠 / -(으)ㄹ까요? (가시죠, 가실까요?) instead.
Pronunciation: 갑시다 is [갑씨다] — the ㅂ stays a stop before ㅅ, unlike 갑니다 [감니다].
For the bigger picture of matching level to person, see choosing a speech level.

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