Learn Hardcore Korean: hyeongwan yeope sinbaljangi isseoyo. - There is a shoe rack next to the entrance.

In Korean, you mark a location with the particle 에. 옆 by itself just means “side,” but 옆에 means “at the side (of something).” Here 현관 옆에 literally translates to “at the side of the entrance.” Without 에, you wouldn’t be indicating the location properly.

What does 있어요 mean in 신발장이 있어요? Why use 있다 here?

있다 means “to exist” or “to have.” When you want to say “there is/are ...” in Korean, you use 있다. The form 있어요 is the polite informal present tense. So 신발장이 있어요 literally means “(A) shoe cabinet exists.”

Why is the subject marker 이/가 used on 신발장?

When you use 있다 to show existence, the thing that exists takes 이/가. Since 신발장 ends in a consonant, you attach 이: 신발장이 있어요 (“As for the shoe cabinet, it exists”).

Why doesn’t Korean need a word like “there” in “there is a shoe cabinet…”?

English uses a dummy subject “there,” but Korean doesn’t. Instead, you start with the location phrase (현관 옆에) and then state 신발장이 있어요. The combination naturally translates to “There is a shoe cabinet next to the entrance.”

Could I say 신발장이 현관 옆에 있어요 instead? Would that change the meaning?

No, it doesn’t change the meaning. Word order in Korean is flexible thanks to particles. Putting 신발장이 first simply emphasizes the cabinet. However, starting with the location (현관 옆에) is more typical when you want to introduce where something is.

Can I drop 에 after 옆 and say 현관 옆 신발장이 있어요?

No. Dropping 에 removes the location marker, making the phrase sound like a noun-modifier rather than a locative expression. You need 현관 옆에 to clearly mean “next to the entrance.”

What’s the difference between 현관 and 문 here?

문 just means “door,” while 현관 refers to the entrance area or foyer (the small space right inside the front door). Saying 현관 옆에 locates something beside that entryway space, not merely beside the door leaf.

In more formal or more casual speech, can I change 있어요 to another form?

Yes. 있어요 is polite informal (ending in -요). In a formal setting, you’d use 있습니다. With close friends or younger people, you could say 있어 (casual). All mean the same: “exists/is located.”