Learn Hardcore Korean: bange chaekjangi isseoyo. - There is a bookshelf in the room.

The particle 에 here is a location marker, meaning “in,” “at,” or “on,” depending on context. In 방에 책장이 있어요, 방에 literally means “in the room,” so the sentence says “(There) is a bookshelf in the room.”

Why do we use 있어요 instead of a verb that means “to have” in English?

Korean uses the verb 있다 (in polite form 있어요) to express both existence and possession. When you say 방에 책장이 있어요, you’re literally saying, “In the room, a bookshelf exists.” To talk about having something, you’d say 저는 책이 있어요 (“As for me, a book exists”), which we translate as “I have a book.”

Why isn’t there a subject like “I” or “there” in this sentence?

Korean often omits subjects when they’re clear from context or not important. Here, the focus is on the existence of a bookshelf in the room, so neither “I” nor a dummy pronoun like “it” or “there” is needed. The sentence simply states the situation.

What role does the ending -요 in 있어요 play?

The ending -요 makes the verb polite (선 polite speech level). Without it, in very casual speech, you might hear 있어. In formal writing or very polite speech you’d use 있습니다.

Why is 책장 marked with 이 (책장이) instead of 가?

Korean has two subject markers: 이 and 가. You use 이 after a noun ending in a consonant and 가 after a noun ending in a vowel. Since 책장 ends in the consonant “ㅇ,” you attach 이 to make 책장이.

Why is 책장 not plural? Can we say 책장들?

Korean doesn’t require a plural marker (들) when the number or plurality is obvious or unimportant. 책장 can mean “a bookshelf” or “bookshelves” depending on context. Adding 들 explicitly marks multiples—책장들이 있어요 would mean “(There) are multiple bookshelves in the room,” but it’s often unnecessary unless you need to stress “more than one.”

Is the word order in Korean flexible? Could I say 책장이 방에 있어요?

Yes, thanks to particles like 에 and 이/가, Korean has relatively flexible word order. You could say 책장이 방에 있어요, which still means “There is a bookshelf in the room.” However, putting 방에 first highlights the location (“In the room, a bookshelf exists”), while starting with 책장이 highlights the subject (“As for a bookshelf, it is in the room”).

How would this sentence change in casual (친구 사이) speech?

You can drop the polite ending -요 and even omit the particle 이/가 in very casual speech:
• 방에 책장 있어
• Or even 방 책장 있어? (often used in quick, informal conversations)