Learn Hardcore Korean: chinguege chaegeul billyeojwoyo.

-에게 is a dative (indirect object) marker that shows the recipient or beneficiary of an action. In English it corresponds to “to” or “for.” So 친구에게 literally means “to a friend.”

Can I use 한테 instead of 에게?

Yes. Both 에게 and 한테 mark the indirect object. 에게 is a bit more formal or written, while 한테 is common in casual spoken Korean. For example, 친구한테 책을 빌려줘요 is perfectly natural in conversation.

Why do we use 책을, and what role does -을 play?

책 (book) is the direct object of the verb “lend.” The particle -을 marks the direct object when the noun ends in a consonant. So 책을 빌려줘요 means “lend a book.”

What is the difference between 빌리다 and 빌려주다?

빌리다 means “to borrow” (I receive something).
빌려주다 combines 빌리다 + 주다 and means “to lend” (I give something for someone else to use). Korean distinguishes borrowing vs. lending by using these two verbs.

How do you conjugate 빌려주다 to 빌려줘요?

Drop the dictionary ending -다 → 빌려주
Add the polite present ending -어요 → 빌려주어요
Contract 주+어요 to 줘요
So you get 빌려줘요.

Why is there no explicit subject in the sentence?

Korean often omits the subject when it’s clear from context. Here, the implied subject is “I” (저는). You could say 저는 친구에게 책을 빌려줘요, but it’s normal to drop 저는 if you’ve already established who you’re talking about.

Why do we add the -요 ending?

The -요 ending is part of the polite 해요 style, which shows respect and friendliness. It’s the standard way to speak politely to people you’re not extremely close with.

Can I change the word order, like 책을 친구에게 빌려줘요? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you can swap 친구에게 and 책을 freely because particles mark their grammatical roles. 책을 친구에게 빌려줘요 still means “I lend a book to a friend.” Rearranging can shift emphasis, but the core meaning remains the same.