Learn Hardcore Korean: seonsaengnim, sukjereul dowa juseyo. - Teacher, please help me with my homework.

선생님: A title with the honorific suffix -님, used as a polite way to address a teacher. Here it’s used vocatively (calling the person you’re speaking to).
(comma): Marks a pause after the vocative, like “Teacher,” in English.
숙제: “homework.”
-를: Object marker; 숙제를 = “(the) homework” as the direct object.
도와: From the verb 돕다 (“to help”), conjugated with the connective -아 to link to the next verb (see ㅂ-irregular below).
주세요: Polite request form of 주다 (“to give”) functioning as a benefactive auxiliary, making it “Please [do X] for me.” Together, 도와 주세요 = “Please help (me).”

Where is the word “me”? Why isn’t it said?

Korean frequently drops pronouns when they’re clear from context. In a request like this, the understood object is “me.” If you want to include it for emphasis or clarity, you can say:

저를 도와 주세요. (Please help me.)
With the original: 선생님, 저를 숙제(를) 하는 데 도와 주세요. (Teacher, please help me with my homework.)

Do I need to say “my” homework (e.g., 제 숙제)?

Not necessarily. Possessives are often omitted when obvious. 숙제를 도와 주세요 is naturally understood as “help me with my homework.” You can add 제 to be explicit:

선생님, 제 숙제를 도와 주세요.

Is 숙제를 도와 주세요 natural, or should it be 숙제하는 것을/숙제하는 데 도와 주세요?

All are used.

Everyday speech often says 숙제를 도와 주세요, and Koreans will accept it.
More explicit/precise:
- 숙제하는 것을 도와 주세요 (“help [me] in doing homework”), or
- 숙제하는 데 도와 주세요 (“help with doing homework”).
Another very natural option: 숙제하는 데 좀 도와 주세요 or 숙제를 하도록 도와 주세요 (“please help me to do my homework”).

Why is there a space in 도와 주세요? Can I write 도와주세요?

Both are acceptable. 주다 is a benefactive auxiliary verb. According to standard spacing rules, auxiliary verbs can be written either spaced or unspaced:

도와 주세요 (spaced) and 도와주세요 (unspaced) are both correct. You’ll see the unspaced form very commonly in signs and messages.

What is 주세요 doing here? Isn’t 주다 “to give”?

As an auxiliary, -아/어 주다 means “do [the action] for (someone).” So 도와 주다 = “help (someone) as a favor.” With -세요, 주세요 makes a polite request: “Please [do it] (for me).” Hence 도와 주세요 = “Please help (me).”

What’s the difference among 도와 주세요, 도와줘요, 도와줘, 도와 주시겠어요?, and 도와주십시오?

도와 주세요: Standard polite request; appropriate to say to a teacher.
도와줘요: Slightly more casual feeling; still polite, but less formal than 주세요 to many ears.
도와줘: Casual/informal; use with close friends or younger people.
도와 주시겠어요? / 도와주실 수 있으세요?: Softer, more deferential (“Could you help me?”); very polite to a teacher.
도와주십시오: Formal polite (announcement-level/formal situations); respectful but stiffer in everyday conversation.

Can I just say 도와요 to ask for help?

No. 도와요 is normally a statement (“[someone] helps”) or can sound incomplete as a request. For a request, use -(으)세요 or the benefactive -아/어 주세요:

도와 주세요.
도와주세요.
Or the softer 도와 주시겠어요?

Why use a comma after 선생님 instead of adding a particle like 께?

Here 선생님 is a direct address (vocative), so a comma is natural: 선생님, ...
If you add 께, you’re marking the indirect object (“to the teacher”), which doesn’t fit a direct address. Compare:

선생님, 숙제를 도와 주세요. (Teacher, please help with the homework.)
선생님께 숙제를 도와 주세요. (Unnatural: “Please help the homework to the teacher.”) If you needed the teacher as the subject in a description (not a request), you could say:
선생님께서 숙제를 도와 주세요. (The teacher helps [me] with the homework.) — descriptive, not a direct call for help.

What’s the role of -를/을 in 숙제를? Why -를 and not -을?

-를/을 marks the direct object. Use -를 after a vowel and -을 after a consonant. 숙제 ends in a vowel sound, so 숙제를 is correct.

Is there a way to make the request even more polite to a teacher?

Yes. Options that sound softer/more deferential:

선생님, 숙제 좀 도와 주시겠어요?
선생님, 제 숙제를 도와주실 수 있으세요? Adding 좀 also softens the tone (see next Q&A).

What does 좀 add if I say 숙제 좀 도와 주세요?

좀 literally means “a little,” but in requests it softens the tone, making it sound more polite and less blunt:

선생님, 숙제 좀 도와 주세요. ≈ “Could you please help me with my homework?”

How is this pronounced? Can I see a romanization?

Revised Romanization: Seonsaengnim, sukjereul dowa juseyo.
Pronunciation tips:

선생님: “seon-saeng-nim” (the ㄴ in 님 is clear; say it as one flow: seon-saeng-nim).
숙제를: “suk-je-reul” (the ㄹ in 를 is a flap [r] between vowels).
도와 주세요: “do-wa ju-se-yo” (smoothly link 도와
- 주세요).

Why is it 도와 and not something like 돕아?

돕다 is a ㅂ‑irregular verb. Before a vowel, the ㅂ changes to 오 and you add -아/어:

돕다 → 도와요 → 도와 주세요 → 도왔어요 (past)
With formal endings: 돕습니다 (no vowel following, so the ㅂ stays).

Can I move the words around, like putting 선생님 at the end?

Yes. Word order is flexible, especially for vocatives:

선생님, 숙제를 도와 주세요. (neutral)
숙제를 도와 주세요, 선생님. (also fine) You can also foreground different parts for emphasis:
숙제를 좀 도와 주세요.
저를 좀 도와 주세요.

Is 도와서 주세요 correct?

Not in this meaning. For benefactive requests, use -아/어 주세요 directly after the verb stem: 도와 주세요.
Forms like -아서/어서 주세요 are only for true “do X and then give (me)” sequences (e.g., 열어 주세요 = “please open (it for me)”). 도와서 주세요 is not idiomatic for “please help me.”

Is 선생님 the only way to address a teacher? What about 교사 or 쌤?

선생님: The normal, polite way to address a teacher directly.
교사: Means “teacher” as a job title; not used to address someone in conversation.
쌤: Casual/slangy contraction of 선생님; students may use it with teachers they’re close to, but it’s safer and more respectful to stick with 선생님 in most situations.

Could I use a different verb instead of 도와 주세요 to be more specific?

Yes, depending on what help you want:

봐 주세요: “Please take a look (at it).”
설명해 주세요: “Please explain (it).”
가르쳐 주세요: “Please teach (me)/show me how.”
검사해 주세요 / 확인해 주세요: “Please check it.”
Examples: 선생님, 제 숙제 좀 봐 주세요. / 선생님, 이 문제를 설명해 주세요.