sikdangeseo gyesanhaeyo.

I pay at the restaurant.

Breakdown of sikdangeseo gyesanhaeyo.

• ~에서: location particle
• 식당: restaurant
• 계산하다: to pay

Questions & Answers about sikdangeseo gyesanhaeyo.

What does the particle 에서 in 식당에서 tell us?

• 에서 marks the location where an action occurs. In 식당에서 계산해요, it means “paying happens at the restaurant.”
• If you used 에 instead (as in 식당에 계산해요), it would sound like “to the restaurant I pay,” which is unnatural here.

What does 계산해요 mean? Can you break it down?

• 계산 comes from 계산하다, meaning “to calculate” or “to pay (the bill).”
• -해요 is the polite present-tense ending of 하다, so 계산해요 literally means “I do the calculating,” but in context it means “I pay the bill.”

Why is there no subject in 식당에서 계산해요? Who is doing the action?

• Korean often omits the subject when it’s clear from context. Here, it’s understood that I (or we) am paying.
• If you need to specify, you could say 제가 식당에서 계산해요 (“I pay at the restaurant”) or 우리가 식당에서 계산해요 (“We pay at the restaurant”).

What level of politeness is used in 계산해요? Is it formal or informal?

• The -해요 ending is the polite-informal style (often called “haeyo-form”).
• It’s suitable for use with strangers, restaurant staff, or coworkers—more polite than casual but less formal than -합니다.

Can I say 계산해 instead of 계산해요? What’s the difference?

• 계산해 is the casual form (used with close friends or younger people).
• In a restaurant or with people you don’t know well, 계산해요 is the safer, more polite choice.

How would I make this sentence more formal?

• Switch -해요 to the formal declarative -합니다:
  식당에서 계산합니다.
• This style is common in formal announcements or written communication.

How do I say “I paid” (past tense) at the restaurant?

• Change 해요 to the past polite 했어요:
  식당에서 계산했어요.
• This means “I paid at the restaurant.”

Is there another verb I can use instead of 계산하다 for “to pay”?

• Yes. 결제하다 is often used for making a payment, especially with credit/debit cards or in technical contexts.
• Example: 식당에서 결제해요 (“I pay at the restaurant,” with an emphasis on card payment).

Can I say 식당에 계산해요 by dropping the 서?

• No. 식당에 계산해요 implies direction (“pay to the restaurant”), which sounds odd.
• 식당에서 계산해요 correctly indicates the location of the action.

Are there any synonyms for 식당?

• Yes. You could use 음식점, 레스토랑, or more colloquially 밥집, depending on the context and style.