TOPIK II · LEVEL 3
-아/어 가다/오다
-아/어 가다 means a change continuing from now into the future; -아/어 오다 means a change that has continued up to now.
시제·상Tense & aspectHan: 'Up to now' looks back, so use -아/어 오다, not 가다.
Examples
숙제가 거의 다 끝나 가요.My homework is almost finished.
날씨가 점점 추워져 가요.The weather is gradually getting colder.
10년 동안 이 회사에서 일해 왔어요.I've been working at this company for ten years.
Don’t mix up
-아/어 가다/오다vs-고 있다-고 있다 = in progress now; -아/어 가다/오다 adds the direction of change over time.How to build it
V+아/어/해 가다 / 오다
변하다 → 변해 가다, 살다 → 살아 오다
- 가다 looks forward (from now on), 오다 looks back (up to now).
- Common with 변하다, 늘다, 줄다, 지내다, 살다, 노력하다.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 지금까지 열심히 공부해 가요.
Right: 지금까지 열심히 공부해 왔어요.
'Up to now' looks back, so use -아/어 오다, not 가다.
Practise -아/어 가다/오다 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -던-던 describes a noun with an action that was ongoing, repeated or left unfinished in the past: 'that I used to / was doing'.
- -고 말다Says that something ended up happening in the end, usually against one's wishes or expectations (often with regret); with -겠다 it expresses strong determination.
- -곤 하다-곤 하다 says something was done repeatedly, as a habit: 'used to / would often'.
- -는 중이다Shows that someone is right in the middle of an action, either now or at a given moment in the past.
- -아/어 오다 (화자 쪽으로)Shows that someone else's action is directed toward the speaker or the speaker's side: 'X contacted us, X proposed to me, X came asking'. Common in reports and news.
- -아/어 두다(놓다)-아/어 두다(놓다) means you do something on purpose and leave the result in place, usually so it is ready for later.
- -아/어 버리다-아/어 버리다 shows that an action is completely finished and gone, usually adding the speaker's feeling of regret ("ended up") or relief ("got it over with").
- -았/었었--았/었었- is the 'more past' form: something was true or done in the past but is no longer so.
- -(으)ㅁ-(으)ㅁ turns a verb or adjective into a noun; it is used in notes, notices, memos and written records.