Breakdown of doseogwaneseo haksaeng du myeongi gongbuhago isseoyo.
~이~i
subject particle
~에서~eseo
location particle
학생haksaeng
student
도서관doseogwan
library
Questions & Answers about doseogwaneseo haksaeng du myeongi gongbuhago isseoyo.
What is the function of -에서 in 도서관에서?
-에서 is a location particle that tells you where the action takes place. In 도서관에서, it means “at the library.” Whenever you describe an action happening somewhere, use -에서 after the place noun.
Could you use 도서관에 instead of 도서관에서 here? What’s the difference between -에 and -에서?
-에 and -에서 both mark locations but in different contexts:
- -에 marks static existence (I am at the library) or direction (I go to the library).
- -에서 marks the place of an ongoing action (I study at the library).
Because studying is an action, we need 도서관에서.
What is 명 in 두 명, and why do we need it?
명 is a counter (or classifier) used specifically for counting people. Korean numerals alone (두, 세, 네, etc.) cannot directly count nouns—you attach a counter. So 두 명 literally means “two persons.”
Why is it 학생 두 명 and not 두 학생?
In colloquial Korean the common pattern is [noun] + [number + counter]: 학생 두 명. You can also say 두 명의 학생, which is more formal or literary (“students of two persons”), but 학생 두 명 is the direct, everyday way to say “two students.”