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Plans and the future

Day 27 of 90~10 minSay what you are going to do
Romanisation help

Today you talk about plans with one ending, -(으)ㄹ 거예요 (-(eu)l geoyeyo), which covers both 'I am going to' and 'I will'. You also learn which time words take 에 and which never do. By the end you can answer the question everyone asks on a Friday, 주말에 뭐 할 거예요?

Stem + ㄹ 거예요

Add ㄹ 거예요 to a stem ending in a vowel, and 을 거예요 to one ending in a consonant:

gal geoyeyo
I am going to go
From 가다. The ㄹ joins the stem's last syllable, so 가 becomes 갈. In speech the 거 is tensed, close to 갈 꺼예요, but it is written 거.
meogeul geoyeyo
I am going to eat
From 먹다. A consonant stem, so 을, with the same buffer 으 as 앉으세요 on day 26.
hal geoyeyo
I am going to do (it)
From 하다. Every 하다 verb works the same way: 일할 거예요 'I am going to work'.
seoureseo sal geoyeyo
I am going to live in Seoul
From 살다, day 17. A stem that already ends in ㄹ just adds 거예요, with no second ㄹ and no 을.
Why it works

The ending is three pieces. -(으)ㄹ turns the verb into a description of something still to come, 거 is the spoken form of 것 'thing', and 예요 is the copula from day 2. So 갈 거예요 is, underneath, 'it is a thing that will be done', a plan announced as a fact. The spelling is always 거예요, because 거 ends in a vowel and day 2's rule gives 예요, even though many Koreans write 거에요 by mistake.

Time words, with and without 에

Most time words take 에, but a few everyday ones never do:

jumare mwo hal geoyeyo?
What are you doing at the weekend?
주말 from day 19, with 에 for time as in 몇 시에 on day 18.
toyoire yeonghwareul bol geoyeyo
I am going to see a film on Saturday
Days of the week take 에. 보다 gives 볼.
naeil chingureul mannal geoyeyo
I am meeting a friend tomorrow
친구 (chingu) 'friend'. There is no 에 after 내일.
naenyeone hanguge gal geoyeyo
I am going to Korea next year
내년 (naenyeon) 'next year' takes 에. Two 에 in one sentence, one for time and one for destination, and nobody minds.
Why it works

에 pins an event to a point on the calendar or the clock: 세 시에, 토요일에, 주말에. 오늘, 내일, 어제 and 지금 point to a time by themselves and work like adverbs, so they never take 에. 내년 'next year' looks as if it belongs with them, but it is an ordinary noun and takes 에, so the safe approach is to learn the four that do not as a short list. English makes the same split without noticing: 'on Saturday', but just 'tomorrow'.

Answering, and saying no

The ending combines with everything from earlier this month:

jibeseo swil geoyeyo
I am going to rest at home
쉬다 from day 17, with 에서 for the place of the action. The most honest weekend answer there is.
gongbuhal geoyeyo
I am going to study
The whole stem 공부하 takes ㄹ.
an gal geoyeyo
I am not going to go
안 from day 21 goes in front as usual. 못 갈 거예요 'I will not be able to go' works the same way.
ajik mollayo
I do not know yet
아직 (ajik) 'yet, still' plus 몰라요 from day 5. The right answer when nothing is decided.
Why it works

Because -(으)ㄹ 거예요 is a single ending on the verb, nothing else in the sentence changes: particles, 안 and 못 all behave exactly as before. The plain -요 present can also talk about the future, 내일 가요 'I am going tomorrow', much as English uses a present form for arrangements. The difference is emphasis: -(으)ㄹ 거예요 presents the plan as your intention, while the present sounds like a settled fact on the calendar. Both are correct, and you will hear both every day.

dowajuseyo
Please help me
anjeuseyo
Please sit down
keoyo
It is big
dongsaeng
younger sibling

📋 Today’s words 12

gal geoyeyo
I am going to go
meogeul geoyeyo
I am going to eat
hal geoyeyo
I am going to do (it)
seoureseo sal geoyeyo
I am going to live in Seoul
jumare mwo hal geoyeyo?
What are you doing at the weekend?
toyoire yeonghwareul bol geoyeyo
I am going to see a film on Saturday
naeil chingureul mannal geoyeyo
I am meeting a friend tomorrow
naenyeone hanguge gal geoyeyo
I am going to Korea next year
jibeseo swil geoyeyo
I am going to rest at home
gongbuhal geoyeyo
I am going to study
an gal geoyeyo
I am not going to go
ajik mollayo
I do not know yet

Check yourself

8 questions. Get 5 right to finish the day.

🖌 Writing practice optional