-(으)ㄹ까(요)? is one of the most useful — and most misread — endings in everyday Korean, because a single shape does three different jobs and the grammar never tells you which. The listener works it out from who the subject is. With us as the subject it proposes ("shall we?"); with me as the subject it offers ("shall I?"); with a third party or a state of the world as the subject it speculates ("I wonder if…"). English keeps these three ideas in separate words — shall we, shall I, I wonder — so the reframing you need is to stop translating the ending and start reading the subject.
The shape
-(으)ㄹ까요? attaches to a verb or adjective stem and splits by 받침 (final consonant) exactly like its relatives -(으)ㄹ게요 and -(으)ㄹ 거예요. Drop the final -요 for 반말 (-(으)ㄹ까?).
| Stem ends in… | Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a vowel | -ㄹ까요? | 가다 → 갈까요? |
| ㄹ (already) | -ㄹ까요? (keep the ㄹ) | 만들다 → 만들까요? |
| any other consonant | -을까요? | 먹다 → 먹을까요? |
The 까 is written and pronounced tense throughout — the whole ending carries a slightly tentative, "floating-the-idea" feel, which is the thread connecting all three of its jobs.
Job 1 — Proposal: "shall we?" (first person plural)
When the subject is 우리 ("we") — stated or, far more often, silently understood — -(으)ㄹ까요? floats a joint plan and asks the listener whether they're in. It is softer and more consultative than the firm "let's" of -(으)ㅂ시다 / -자: you're not declaring that we're doing this, you're checking that we both want to.
우리 같이 갈까요?
uri gachi galkkayo?
Shall we go together?
점심 뭐 먹을까요?
jeomsim mwo meogeulkkayo?
What should we have for lunch?
주말에 같이 영화 볼까?
jumare gachi yeonghwa bolkka?
Wanna watch a movie together this weekend? (banmal)
Because it invites rather than tells, this proposal reading is the polite, low-pressure way to suggest almost anything — and, crucially, it is the safe upward alternative to -(으)ㅂ시다, which can sound presumptuous aimed at a superior.
Job 2 — Offer: "shall I?" (first person singular)
Flip the subject to 제가 / 내가 ("I") and the very same ending becomes an offer — "shall I…? / do you want me to…?" You are proposing to do something for the listener and asking their leave.
제가 도와드릴까요?
jega dowadeurilkkayo?
Shall I help you? / Would you like me to help?
창문 좀 열까요?
changmun jom yeolkkayo?
Shall I open the window?
제가 먼저 시작할까요?
jega meonjeo sijakalkkayo?
Shall I go first?
Job 3 — Wondering: "I wonder if…" (third person or a state)
When the subject is someone or something other than the speaker and listener, or when you're guessing about a state of the world, -(으)ㄹ까요? stops proposing anything and becomes pure speculation — "do you think…? / I wonder whether…" You're inviting the listener to guess along with you, not to act.
내일 비가 올까요?
naeil biga olkkayo?
Do you think it'll rain tomorrow? / I wonder if it'll rain.
시험이 어려울까요?
siheomi eoryeoulkkayo?
Do you think the exam will be hard?
이거 진짜 맞을까?
igeo jinjja majeulkka?
Is this actually right, I wonder? (banmal, to oneself)
그 사람이 날 좋아할까?
geu sarami nal joahalkka?
I wonder if he likes me.
Notice that adjectives (어렵다 → 어려울까요?) and the copula (-일까요?) freely take this ending — because you can only wonder about a state, never propose one. So an adjective + -(으)ㄹ까요? is always the wondering job. For where this speculation sits among Korean's other guessing tools (-겠-, -나 보다, -(으)ㄹ 것 같다), see the certainty spectrum.
Replying to a proposal-까요
A -(으)ㄹ까요? that proposes or offers expects a reply that either agrees or commits — not another -(으)ㄹ까요?. To accept a proposal, reach for -아/어요, -(으)ㅂ시다, or a simple 좋아요; to promise your own part, use -(으)ㄹ게요.
좋아요, 그럼 같이 가요.
joayo, geureom gachi gayo
Sounds good, let's go together then.
그래요, 그렇게 합시다.
geuraeyo, geureoke hapsida
Okay, let's do that.
네, 그럼 제가 예약할게요.
ne, geureom jega yeyakalgeyo
Sure, I'll make the reservation then.
A wondering-까요, by contrast, gets a guess back: 글쎄요, 올 것 같아요 ("Hmm, I think it will").
How it differs from -(으)ㄹ래요?
Both invite, but they point at different things. -(으)ㄹ래요? consults the listener's raw wish ("do you feel like going?"), while -(으)ㄹ까요? proposes a joint action you'd do together ("shall we go?"). 갈래요? asks about you; 갈까요? asks about us. That is why a waiter offering help says 도와드릴까요? (an offer of joint benefit), not 도와드릴래요? (which would oddly ask whether you feel like being helped).
Common Mistakes
1. Using -(으)ㄹ까요? as a plain yes/no question. This is the number-one error. To simply ask someone something they know, use -아/어요? or -습니까?. -(으)ㄹ까요? adds "I wonder," so pointing it at your listener as a direct question sounds like you're musing to yourself instead of asking them.
❌ 화장실이 어디일까요?
Wrong as a direct question — this means 'I wonder where the bathroom is,' not 'where is it?'
✅ 화장실이 어디예요?
hwajangsiri eodiyeyo?
Where's the bathroom?
2. Answering a proposal with another -(으)ㄹ까요?. When someone proposes with 까요, agree — don't echo the ending back.
❌ (같이 점심 먹을까요? 에 대답하며) 네, 먹을까요.
Off — you can't accept a proposal by re-asking it.
✅ 네, 좋아요. 같이 먹어요.
ne, joayo. gachi meogeoyo
Yes, sounds good. Let's eat together.
3. Using it to ask about the listener's own plan. First-person -(으)ㄹ까요? offers your action; it can't ask what the listener intends. For their plan, use -(으)ㄹ 거예요?.
❌ 내일 학교에 갈까요?
If you mean 'are you going to school tomorrow?', this misfires — it reads as 'shall I/we go?'
✅ 내일 학교에 갈 거예요?
naeil hakgyoe gal geoyeyo?
Are you going to school tomorrow?
4. Botching the 받침 split. Consonant stems take -을까; vowel and ㄹ stems take -ㄹ까 (with no extra 을).
❌ 뭘 만들을까요?
Wrong — 만들다 is a ㄹ-stem, so no 을 is added.
✅ 뭘 만들까요?
mwol mandeulkkayo?
What shall I/we make?
Key Takeaways
- -(으)ㄹ까(요)? is one ending doing three jobs, sorted by the subject: 우리 → proposal ("shall we?"), 제가 → offer ("shall I?"), third person or a state → wondering ("I wonder if…").
- Adjectives and the copula + -(으)ㄹ까요? are always the wondering reading — you can only speculate about a state.
- It consults rather than commands, so it's the gentle, upward-safe alternative to -(으)ㅂ시다.
- Reply to a proposal/offer with agreement (-아/어요, -(으)ㅂ시다, 좋아요) or a commitment (-(으)ㄹ게요) — never another -(으)ㄹ까요?.
- It is not a plain yes/no question: 어디예요? asks, 어디일까요? wonders.
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Start learning Korean→Related Topics
- -(으)ㄹ래(요): I'd Rather / Wanna …?TOPIK 2 — The volition ending -(으)ㄹ래요 — voicing your own preference as a statement and consulting the listener's wish as a question — and how it differs from the commitment -(으)ㄹ게요.
- -(으)ㄹ게요: The Speaker's Promise / CommitmentTOPIK 2 — The first-person 'I'll do it (so don't worry)' ending — how -(으)ㄹ게요 frames your own action as a commitment to the listener, and why it can never take a third-person subject or a question.
- Degrees of Certainty: A Map of Korean ConjectureTOPIK 4 — A hub page ranking Korean's guessing endings from tentative to near-certain — and, more importantly, sorting them by evidential source, because Korean grammaticalises both how sure you are and where the guess came from.
- Proposals & Commands as Advice: -(으)ㅂ시다 / -자 / -(으)세요TOPIK 2 — How Korean's propositive and imperative endings do the work of English 'let's' and 'you should' — with the register cautions that decide which one is safe to use, and on whom.
- Let's: -(으)ㅂ시다 / -자 (and Everyday -아/어요)TOPIK 1 — The propositive ('let's ~') has one form per speech level: formal -(으)ㅂ시다 (갑시다), plain/intimate -자 (가자), and, in ordinary polite talk, the plain -아/어요 doubles as it (같이 가요). The catch: -(으)ㅂ시다, despite being 'polite,' can sound bossy aimed at a superior.