Breakdown of chinguege gireul mureobwayo.
~을~eul
object particle
친구chingu
friend
~에게~ege
dative particle
물어보다muleoboda
to ask
길gil
directions
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Questions & Answers about chinguege gireul mureobwayo.
Why is 에게 used after 친구? Could I use 한테 instead?
에게 marks the indirect object or recipient of an action – here, the person you’re asking. In spoken, casual Korean you can indeed use 한테:
- 친구에게 길을 물어봐요. (neutral/polite)
- 친구한테 길을 물어봐요. (colloquial)
Why is 길 followed by 을 instead of 를 or another particle?
을 is the object particle attached to nouns ending in a consonant (길 ends in “ㄹ”). It tells you that 길 (“way” or “road”) is the direct object of 물어보다. If the noun ended in a vowel (e.g., 가게), you’d use 를.
What’s the difference between 묻다 and 물어보다?
- 묻다 alone can mean both “to ask” and “to bury,” so it’s ambiguous in speech.
- 물어보다 is a compound verb literally “ask-and-see,” meaning “to ask (a question).” It’s the standard everyday expression.
Koreans rarely say 묻어요 for “ask”; they say 물어봐요.
How is 물어봐요 formed from 물어보다?
- Start with the dictionary form 물어보다.
- Drop -다 → 물어보.
- The final vowel of the stem is 오, so add -아요 → 물어보아요.
- Contract -보아요 to -봐요 → 물어봐요.
Why is there no subject like “I” in 친구에게 길을 물어봐요?
Korean often omits the subject when it’s clear from context. Here, it’s understood that the speaker (I) is the one asking: “(저는) 친구에게 길을 물어봐요.”
Can I change the word order, for example 길을 친구에게 물어봐요?
Yes. Because 에게 and 을 mark the roles, you can swap them for emphasis:
- 친구에게 길을 물어봐요.
- 길을 친구에게 물어봐요.
Both mean “I ask my friend the way.”
How do I make this sentence more honorific?
Use the honorific indirect‐object marker 께 and the polite imperative or suggestive ending -세요:
“(저는) 할아버지께 길을 물어보세요.”
Here 께 shows respect, and -세요 is the honorific polite form.
Does 물어봐요 mean I’m asking right now, or that I ask regularly?
The -아요/어요 ending is simple present or habitual tense. So 물어봐요 can mean either:
- “I ask (regularly).”
- “I’m going to ask (soon).”
For ongoing action (“I am asking now”), use the progressive: 물어보고 있어요.