있다 and 없다 move as a pair, so it helps to see them in one lookup. 있다 does three jobs English keeps apart — existence ("there is"), location ("is at"), and possession ("have") — and its negative is not built with 안 but is the separate word 없다. The one warning that saves the most grief: 있다 is not the copula 이다. "I am a student" is 학생이에요 (that is 이다); "I have time / there is time" is 시간이 있어요 (that is 있다). English "to be" collapses onto both Korean words, and untangling them is the single most common beginner error. (For the exhaustive level-by-level breakdown of each verb, see the full 있다 paradigm and 없다 paradigm; this page is the fast side-by-side.)
Two stems, one harmony vowel
- 있다 — stem 있- (batchim ㅆ); harmony gives 어 → 있 + 어요 → 있어요 [이써요].
- 없다 — stem 없- (double batchim ㅄ); harmony gives 어 → 없 + 어요 → 없어요 [업써요].
Both pattern as verbs for noun-modification, so both take the verbal -는 attributive: 있는 / 없는 (never ×있은 / ×없은). That is exactly why the everyday adjectives are 맛있는, 재미있는, 멋있는 and their opposites 맛없는, 재미없는 — not ×맛있은.
The side-by-side sheet
| Form / ending | 있다 (there is / have) | 없다 (there isn't / lack) |
|---|---|---|
| 해요체 present | 있어요 isseoyo | 없어요 eopseoyo |
| 합니다체 present | 있습니다 itseumnida | 없습니다 eopseumnida |
| Past | 있었어요 isseosseoyo | 없었어요 eopseosseoyo |
| Future — (으)ㄹ 거예요 | 있을 거예요 isseul geoyeyo | 없을 거예요 eopseul geoyeyo |
| Connective — so / because (-어서) | 있어서 isseoseo | 없어서 eopseoseo |
| Connective — if / when (-(으)면) | 있으면 isseumyeon | 없으면 eopseumyeon |
| Connective — since (-(으)니까) | 있으니까 isseunikka | 없으니까 eopseunikka |
| Attributive — present (verbal -는) | 있는 inneun | 없는 eomneun |
냉장고에 마실 것 좀 있어요?
naengjanggoe masil geot jom isseoyo
Is there anything to drink in the fridge?
미안, 오늘은 시간이 없어.
mian, oneureun sigani eopseo
Sorry, I don't have time today. (casual; possession marked 이/가)
요즘 볼 만한 재미있는 드라마 없어요?
yojeum bol manhan jaemiinneun deurama eopseoyo
Isn't there a fun drama worth watching these days? (있는 inside 재미있는, plus 없어요)
주말에 약속이 있어서 못 갔어요.
jumare yaksogi isseoseo mot gasseoyo
I had plans on the weekend, so I couldn't go. (있어서, cause)
The honorific split — one place 있다 and 없다 each fork in two
When the subject is someone you honor, neither verb simply adds -시-. Each splits by which sense is honored — presence or possession — and Koreans keep the two apart carefully.
| Sense | Plain | Honorific (있다) | Honorific (없다) |
|---|---|---|---|
| existence / location ("is present / is at") | 있어요 / 없어요 | 계세요 gyeseyo | 안 계세요 an gyeseyo |
| possession ("has / lacks") | 있어요 / 없어요 | 있으세요 isseuseyo | 없으세요 eopseuseyo |
An honored person who is present uses the suppletive 계시다 (교실에 계세요, "[the teacher] is in the classroom"); an honored person who has something uses 있으시다 (질문 있으세요?, "do you have a question?"). Reaching for 계시다 to mean "has" is a classic intermediate slip — a question isn't a person who is "present."
지금 교실에 선생님 계세요?
jigeum gyosire seonsaengnim gyeseyo
Is the teacher in the classroom right now? (계세요 — honored person present)
혹시 더 궁금한 점 있으세요?
hoksi deo gunggeumhan jeom isseuseyo
Do you happen to have any further questions? (있으세요 — honored person's possession)
있다 as an aspect auxiliary: -고 있다 and -아/어 있다
Beyond existence, 있다 is the engine of two of Korean's most useful aspect patterns. They look similar but say opposite things.
| Pattern | Aspect | Example | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| -고 있다 | progressive — action in progress | 밥 먹고 있어요 | bap meokgo isseoyo |
| -아/어 있다 | resultative — a state that lingers after the action | 앉아 있어요 | anja isseoyo |
-고 있다 is the ongoing action itself ("is eating"). -아/어 있다 is the result of a completed action still holding ("has sat down and remains seated"; "the door got opened and stays open"). English "-ing" often blurs the two; Korean forces the distinction.
저 지금 밥 먹고 있어요. 이따 전화할게요.
jeo jigeum bap meokgo isseoyo. itta jeonhwahalgeyo
I'm eating right now. I'll call you later. (-고 있다, action in progress)
문이 열려 있어요. 그냥 들어오세요.
muni yeollyeo isseoyo. geunyang deureo-oseyo
The door is (standing) open. Just come in. (-어 있다, lingering result)
할아버지는 소파에 앉아 계세요.
harabeojineun sopa-e anja gyeseyo
Grandfather is sitting on the sofa. (resultative + honorific 계시다)
Common Mistakes
1. Using 이다 to mean "there is." 이다 equates ("A is B"); existence and location are 있다.
❌ 여기 화장실이에요?
Means 'Is this a restroom?' — for 'Is there a restroom here?' use 화장실 있어요?
✅ 여기 화장실 있어요?
yeogi hwajangsil isseoyo
Is there a restroom here?
2. Saying ×안 있어요 for "there isn't." The negative is the lexical word 없어요.
❌ 지금 시간이 안 있어요.
Wrong — 'there isn't / don't have' is 없어요, not ×안 있어요.
✅ 지금 시간이 없어요.
jigeum sigani eopseoyo
I don't have time right now.
3. Writing the modifier as ×있은 / ×없은. Both take the verbal -는.
❌ 재미있은 영화 추천해 주세요.
Wrong — 있다's present attributive is the verbal 있는: 재미있는 영화.
✅ 재미있는 영화 추천해 주세요.
jaemiinneun yeonghwa chucheonhae juseyo
Please recommend a fun movie.
4. Over-honoring possession with 계세요. A thing someone has isn't "present"; use 있으세요.
❌ 선생님, 질문 계세요?
Wrong — a question is possessed, not a person present: 질문 있으세요?
✅ 선생님, 질문 있으세요?
seonsaengnim, jilmun isseuseyo
Teacher, do you have a question?
Key Takeaways
- 있다 = there is / is at / have; 없다 = its dedicated negative (not ×안 있다). Both take harmony 어 → 있어요 / 없어요.
- Neither is the copula 이다: "am a student" = 학생이에요; "have time" = 시간이 있어요.
- Both take the verbal -는 attributive → 있는 / 없는 (맛있는, 재미없는), never ×있은.
- The honorific splits by sense: presence → 계시다 (계세요) / 안 계시다; possession → 있으시다 (있으세요) / 없으시다.
- As an auxiliary, 있다 builds -고 있다 (action in progress) and -아/어 있다 (a lingering result) — Korean keeps the two apart where English "-ing" blurs them.
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- 있다 (to exist / to have): Full ParadigmTOPIK 1 — The complete look-up paradigm of 있다 — Korean's one verb for both 'there is / is at' and 'I have' — across all four speech levels, with the crucial detail that it takes the verbal -는 attributive (있는, never ×있은), which is exactly why it's 재미있는, not ×재미있은.
- 없다 (to not exist / to not have): ParadigmTOPIK 1 — The full look-up paradigm of 없다, the suppletive negative of 있다 — Korean has no productive 'not-있다,' you switch to the separate word 없다 — across all four speech levels, with the verbal -는 attributive (없는, never ×없은) and the key warning that ×안 있어요 is not how you say 'there isn't.'
- 계시다 vs 있으시다: Honorific Existence TableTOPIK 3 — The two honorific counterparts of 있다 that English collapses into one 'be': 계시다 honors a PERSON who is present, while 있으시다 honors an OWNER whose possession exists — so a question or an amount of time can be 있으시다 but can never 계시다.
- Auxiliaries -고 있다 / -고 싶다 / -게 되다: Reference TableTOPIK 2 — Three of the highest-frequency Korean auxiliaries in one grid: -고 있다 for the progressive 'be ~ing', -고 싶다 for desire 'want to' (which inflects like an adjective), and -게 되다 for the change of state 'come to / end up'.
- Auxiliary Verbs on -아/어 (주다·보다·버리다·놓다·두다·있다): Reference TableTOPIK 3 — The -아/어 + auxiliary-verb construction in one grid: the main verb takes the 아/어 connective, and a light verb (주다·보다·버리다·놓다·두다·있다) rides on top to add benefactive, attemptive, completive, resultative, or preparatory aspect.