Learn Hardcore Korean: chinguege sajineul boyeo jwoyo.

에게 is the dative particle that marks the indirect object or recipient of an action. In 친구에게, it means “to (a) friend.” You could also say 친구한테 in casual speech—both mean “to my friend.”

Why is 사진 marked with -을 in 사진을?

-을 is the object particle attached to nouns ending in a consonant. It indicates that 사진 is the direct object of the verb 보여 주다—the thing being shown.

Why is it 보여 줘요 instead of just 보여요?

보여 주다 is a compound verb meaning “to show (for someone).”

보이다 means “to be visible” or “to appear.”
보다 means “to see/look.”
You need 보여 주다 (show + give/do for someone) to express “show to someone.” Dropping 주다 changes the meaning.

Can 보여 줘요 be contracted to 보여줘요, and is there any difference?

Yes. In spoken and casual written Korean, 보여 줘요 is often written and pronounced as one word—보여줘요. There’s no change in meaning or formality; it’s just smoother in speech.

Who is the subject of this sentence?

The subject is omitted but understood contextually—usually I (저/나). Korean often drops the pronoun when it’s clear from context. So it means “I show (it) to my friend.”

What is the politeness level conveyed by the -요 ending?

The -요 ending is the polite, informal style (해요체). It’s appropriate for most everyday conversations with people who are not super close (like acquaintances) or when you want to be politely neutral.

What tense does 보여 줘요 express?

With just -요 and no past/future suffix, it’s simple present tense. It can mean:

a habitual action (“I show pictures to my friend [regularly]”)
a near-future intention (“I will show the photo to my friend [soon]”)
Context clarifies the nuance.

How flexible is the word order in this sentence?

Korean word order is relatively flexible due to particles. You could say:

친구에게 사진을 보여 줘요. (IO–DO–Verb)
사진을 친구에게 보여 줘요. (DO–IO–Verb)
Both are correct; the choice depends on which element you want to emphasize or the flow of conversation.