Particles (Back to Grammar)
Little words that stick to nouns to show their job in the sentence — like “and/with”, “also”, “to someone”, or “by bus”. Korean uses particles instead of changing word order as much as English does.
- -하고 and / with
Connect nouns with “and”, or mark that you do something “with” someone.
- -들 plural marker
Mark people (and sometimes other nouns) as plural. For many inanimate things, prefer number + counter.
- -도 also / even
Additive particle: “also/too”, or “even” in negative or surprising contexts.
- -으로 / -로 by means of / toward
Mark means, method, or direction. Use -으로 after a consonant, -로 after a vowel (and often after ㄹ).
- -한테서 from (a person)
Mark the person something comes from (receive, hear, get).
- -한테 to / for (a person)
Mark the person who receives an action (give, tell, ask).
- -이나 / -나 or / about
Offer alternatives between nouns (“or”), or soften a quantity (“about”).
- -까지 until / up to
Mark an endpoint in time, place, or extent. Often pairs with -부터 or -에서.