TOPIK I · LEVEL 1
-(으)세요
-(으)세요 is the polite honorific ending: it shows respect to the subject in statements and questions (선생님은 책을 읽으세요), and with action verbs it politely tells or asks the listener to do something (앉으세요).
문장 끝·말투Endings & speech styleHan: 안 가세요 sounds like 'you are not going', a statement or question; a negative request needs -지 마세요.
Examples
내일 아침 아홉 시까지 학교에 오세요.Please come to school by nine tomorrow morning.
안녕히 가세요.Goodbye (fixed greeting, said to the person leaving).
여기에 앉으세요.Please sit here.
선생님은 지금 책을 읽으세요.The teacher is reading a book now.
Don’t mix up
-(으)세요vs-(으)십시오Same request but more formal, used in announcements and official speech: 안전선 안으로 들어오십시오.-(으)세요vs-아/어 주세요Asks a favor that benefits the speaker, while -(으)세요 just directs the listener: 문 좀 열어 주세요 (open it for me).
-(으)세요vs-지 마세요The negative command 'please don't': 여기에서 사진을 찍지 마세요.How to build it
V/A (vowel stem)+세요
V/A (consonant stem)+으세요
V/A (ㄹ stem: drop ㄹ)+세요
가다 → 가세요, 읽다 → 읽으세요, 만들다 → 만드세요
- It is an honorific ending: the subject is the person you respect (선생님이 오세요). When the subject is the listener ('you') and the verb is an action verb, it works as a polite request or command.
- As a command it is used only with action verbs (adjectives cannot be commands, except set wishes like 건강하세요, 행복하세요); in statements adjectives are fine (선생님은 친절하세요). For 'don't do' use -지 마세요, not 안 + -(으)세요.
- As a request it never takes past tense -았/었-; the action is in the future. To say an honored person did something, use -(으)셨어요: 선생님이 오셨어요.
- Some verbs use special honorific forms: 먹다/마시다 → 드세요, 자다 → 주무세요, 있다 → 계세요, 말하다 → 말씀하세요. Some greetings are fixed expressions, e.g. 안녕히 가세요, 안녕히 계세요.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 위험해요. 거기에 안 가세요.
Right: 위험해요. 거기에 가지 마세요.
안 가세요 sounds like 'you are not going', a statement or question; a negative request needs -지 마세요.
Practise -(으)세요 on real TOPIK questions
Hannim plans each day up to your exam date: questions on this pattern, reviews, full mock papers and graded writing. 7 days free, no card.
Start 7-day free trialMore level 1 grammar
All TOPIK grammar- -(으)시--(으)시- goes inside a verb or adjective to show respect to the person doing the action (the subject).
- -(으)ㅂ시다-(으)ㅂ시다 suggests doing something together: 'let's …' in a formal, polite style.
- -(으)ㄹ까요?Use -(으)ㄹ까요? to suggest something ("Shall we…?"), offer help ("Shall I…?"), or ask someone's guess ("Do you think…?").
- -이/가 아니다Negates a noun: 'is not N'. It is the negative of 이다 and conjugates like an adjective: 아니에요, 아닙니다, 아니야.
- -이다이다 is the copula 'to be': attached to a noun, it says what something is (X is Y). It conjugates like an adjective into every speech style.
- -아요/어요-아요/어요 is the everyday polite ending: add it to a verb or adjective stem to speak politely to almost anyone, about the present or habits.
- -이에요/예요-이에요/예요 means 'to be' and links a noun to the subject in polite everyday speech, as in 'X is Y.'
- -ㅂ니까/습니까Asks a question in the formal polite style (하십시오체): interviews, announcements, customer service, presentations, the military.
- -ㅂ니다/습니다-ㅂ니다/습니다 ends a statement in the formal polite style (하십시오체), as in news, speeches, presentations and when talking to strangers or superiors.