Learn Hardcore Korean: jumare chinguwa jajeongeoreul tal geoyeyo. - On weekends I will ride a bicycle with a friend.

In Korean, 에 is a time-locative particle used to mark “when” something happens. So 주말에 literally means “on the weekend.” Without 에, you’d just have the noun 주말 (“weekend”) without indicating its role as the time of the action.

What does 친구와 mean, and why not use 하고 or 랑 instead?

와 is a connective particle that follows nouns ending in a vowel. Here it means “with” (친구와 = “with a friend”). You could also say 친구하고 or 친구랑, which are more colloquial but carry exactly the same meaning (“with a friend”). The choice often comes down to register: 와/과 is slightly more formal than 하고/랑.

Why is 를 attached to 자전거?

를 (or 을 after consonants) is the direct-object marker. It tells you that 자전거 (“bicycle”) is the thing being ridden. In English you’d use word order or verb complements; in Korean you use particles to mark subject, object, location, etc.

What does 탈 거예요 mean, and how is it formed?

탈 거예요 is the standard polite-future construction. You take the verb stem 타- (“to ride”), add the future marker -(으)ㄹ, then add 거예요 to soften and make it polite. Literally it’s “will ride” or “am going to ride.”

Could you say 타요 instead of 탈 거예요? What’s the difference?

Yes, 타요 is the simple present/polite form and can mean “I ride,” “I am riding,” or even “I will ride” in context. But 탈 거예요 explicitly marks a future plan or intention (“I am going to ride”). Use 탈 거야 for informal speech, or 탈 겁니다 for very formal contexts.

Why isn’t there an explicit subject like 저는 or 나는 at the beginning?

Korean often drops the subject when it’s clear from context. Here, since you’re talking about what you will do, it’s understood to be first person (“I”). If you needed to clarify, you could say 저는 주말에 친구와 자전거를 탈 거예요, but it sounds more natural to omit 저는 if it’s obvious.

Can I rearrange the word order, like putting 자전거를 first?

Yes, Korean is relatively flexible because particles mark each word’s role. You could say 자전거를 주말에 친구와 탈 거예요 or 친구와 주말에 자전거를 탈 거예요, and the meaning stays the same. However, the most neutral order for spoken Korean is [Time] + [Companion] + [Object] + [Verb].