Breakdown of naeil ibeul oseul osgeorie georeo dueosseoyo.
Questions & Answers about naeil ibeul oseul osgeorie georeo dueosseoyo.
Why is 입을 used before 옷? Doesn’t -을 usually mark the object?
Here, 입을 is not the object marker.
It comes from the verb 입다 (to wear) and uses the verb-modifying ending -(으)ㄹ, which describes a noun that follows it.
So:
- 입다 = to wear
- 입을 옷 = the clothes that (someone) will wear
In this sentence, 내일 입을 옷 means:
- the clothes [I will wear tomorrow]
- more naturally: the clothes to wear tomorrow
So the -을 in 입을 is part of the grammar that turns a verb into a noun modifier, not an object particle.
Then what is the -을 in 옷을?
That one is the object particle.
So the sentence contains two different 을 forms:
- 입을: modifier ending from 입다
- 옷을: object marker attached to 옷
Breakdown:
- 내일 입을 옷을
- 내일 = tomorrow
- 입을 옷 = clothes to wear
- 옷을 = marks clothes as the object of the main verb
The main action in the sentence is 걸어 두었어요 (hung up and left ready), so 옷 is the thing that was hung up.
How exactly does 내일 입을 옷 work grammatically?
It is a noun phrase built like this:
- 내일 = tomorrow
- 입을 = will wear / to wear
- 옷 = clothes
Korean often places descriptive information before the noun.
So instead of saying:
- the clothes that I will wear tomorrow
Korean says:
- tomorrow wear-will clothes
That is:
- 내일 입을 옷
This is a very common pattern in Korean:
- 먹을 음식 = food to eat / food that one will eat
- 읽을 책 = book to read / book that one will read
- 만날 사람 = person to meet / person one will meet
Why is the sentence in the past tense if it mentions tomorrow?
Because the sentence is talking about a preparation that was already completed.
- 내일 refers to when the clothes will be worn.
- 두었어요 shows that the action of hanging them up happened already.
So the timeline is:
- I hung the clothes up earlier
- I plan to wear them tomorrow
That is why the sentence can naturally contain both:
- a future idea: 내일 입을
- a past action: 걸어 두었어요
This is very natural in Korean.
What does 걸어 두었어요 mean exactly?
걸어 두었어요 is made from:
- 걸다 = to hang
- -어 두다 = to do something and leave it that way, often for later use, convenience, or preparation
- -었어요 = past polite ending
So 걸어 두었어요 means something like:
- I hung it up and left it there
- I put it on a hanger in advance
- I hung it up ready for later
The important nuance is not just hanging, but hanging it in preparation and leaving it in that state.
How is 걸어 두었어요 different from just 걸었어요?
Great question. The difference is mainly nuance.
- 걸었어요 = I hung it
- simple past action
- 걸어 두었어요 = I hung it up and left it ready / left it that way
- emphasizes preparation or keeping it in that state
In this sentence, 걸어 두었어요 fits well because the speaker is preparing tomorrow’s clothes in advance.
Compare:
- 벽에 그림을 걸었어요.
- I hung a picture on the wall.
- 내일 입을 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요.
- I hung tomorrow’s clothes on a hanger and left them ready.
Why is 옷걸이에 used with 에?
에 marks the location or target where something is placed or attached.
So:
- 옷걸이 = hanger
- 옷걸이에 = on the hanger / onto the hanger
With verbs like 걸다 (to hang), 에 is commonly used to show where something is hung:
- 벽에 걸다 = hang on the wall
- 문에 걸다 = hang on the door
- 옷걸이에 걸다 = hang on a hanger
So in this sentence, 옷걸이에 tells you where the clothes were hung.
What is 옷걸이? Is it related to 걸다?
Yes. 옷걸이 is closely related to 걸다.
- 옷 = clothes
- 걸이 comes from 걸다 and refers to something used for hanging
So 옷걸이 literally means something like:
- clothes-hanger
This is a nice example of how Korean often builds words by combining meaningful parts.
Why isn’t the subject stated? Who is going to wear the clothes?
Korean often omits the subject when it is clear from context.
So although the sentence does not explicitly say I, it is usually understood as something like:
- I put tomorrow’s clothes on a hanger
- or I hung up the clothes I’m going to wear tomorrow
The person who will wear the clothes is inferred from context, usually the speaker.
If you wanted to make it explicit, you could say:
- 제가 내일 입을 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요.
- 나는 내일 입을 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요.
But in everyday Korean, leaving the subject out is very normal.
Could this sentence mean someone else will wear the clothes tomorrow?
Yes, technically it could, depending on context.
입을 옷 just means:
- the clothes that will be worn
The subject of 입을 is not stated directly. In many situations, listeners assume it means I will wear because that is the most natural reading here.
But in the right context, it could also mean:
- the clothes my child will wear tomorrow
- the clothes he/she will wear tomorrow
If Korean wants to make that explicit, it can add a subject before the modifier:
- 아이가 내일 입을 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요.
- I hung up the clothes the child will wear tomorrow.
Is 걸어 두었어요 ever written or said differently?
Yes. In speech and informal writing, it is often contracted.
You may see or hear:
- 걸어 두었어요 → full form
- 걸어 뒀어요 → contracted form
Both mean the same thing.
The contracted form is very common in everyday conversation because it sounds more natural and quicker.
Similarly:
- 해 두었어요 → 해 뒀어요
- 넣어 두었어요 → 넣어 뒀어요
So if you hear 걸어 뒀어요, it is the same grammar.
Can I think of 내일 입을 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요 as having a simpler structure?
Yes. A helpful way to parse it is:
- 입을 옷 = clothes to wear
- 내일 입을 옷 = clothes to wear tomorrow
- 내일 입을 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요 = hung tomorrow’s clothes on a hanger and left them ready
So the core sentence is really:
- 옷을 옷걸이에 걸어 두었어요.
- I hung the clothes on a hanger and left them there.
And 내일 입을 simply adds extra information about which clothes.
That kind of step-by-step parsing is very useful for long Korean noun phrases.
Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor
Start learning KoreanMaster Korean — from naeil ibeul oseul osgeorie georeo dueosseoyo to fluency
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods.
- ✓ Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
- ✓ Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
- ✓ Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
- ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions