Verbs · ㄷ irregular
듣다 conjugation
to listen; to hear · deutda · sounds like [듣따]
Short answer: “To listen” in Korean is 듣다 (deutda), which also means to hear. Polite present: 들어요 (deureoyo); past: 들었어요 (deureosseoyo); future: 들을 거예요. It is a ㄷ irregular verb.
- Present들어요[드러요] · deureoyo
- Past들었어요[드러써요] · deureosseoyo
- Future들을 거예요[드를 꺼예요] · deureul geoyeyo
- Negative안 들어요[안 드러요] · an deureoyo
듣다 in sentences
- 음악을 들어요.I’m listening to music.
- 제 말 좀 들어 주세요.Please listen to me.
All forms of 듣다
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| polite-아/어요 | 들어요 | [드러요] | deureoyo |
| formal-(스)ㅂ니다 | 듣습니다 | [듣씀니다] | deutseumnida |
| casual-아/어 | 들어 | [드러] | deureo |
| plain (written)-(느)ㄴ다 | 듣는다 | [든는다] | deunneunda |
| formal question-(스)ㅂ니까? | 듣습니까? | [듣씀니까] | deutseumnikka? |
| is …ing (polite)-고 있어요 | 듣고 있어요 | [듣꼬 이써요] | deutgo isseoyo |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| polite-았/었어요 | 들었어요 | [드러써요] | deureosseoyo |
| formal-았/었습니다 | 들었습니다 | [드럳씀니다] | deureotseumnida |
| casual-았/었어 | 들었어 | [드러써] | deureosseo |
| plain (written)-았/었다 | 들었다 | [드럳따] | deureotda |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| polite — will-(으)ㄹ 거예요 | 들을 거예요 | [드를 꺼예요] | deureul geoyeyo |
| formal-(으)ㄹ 겁니다 | 들을 겁니다 | [드를 껌니다] | deureul geomnida |
| casual-(으)ㄹ 거야 | 들을 거야 | [드를 꺼야] | deureul geoya |
| formal — I will (intention)-겠습니다 | 듣겠습니다 | [듣껟씀니다] | deutgetseumnida |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| not (short)안 … | 안 들어요 | [안 드러요] | an deureoyo |
| did not안 …았/었어요 | 안 들었어요 | [안 드러써요] | an deureosseoyo |
| not (long)-지 않아요 | 듣지 않아요 | [듣찌 아나요] | deutji anayo |
| cannot못 … | 못 들어요 | [몯 뜨러요] | mot deureoyo |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| honorific — present-(으)세요 | 들으세요 | [드르세요] | deureuseyo |
| honorific — past-(으)셨어요 | 들으셨어요 | [드르셔써요] | deureusyeosseoyo |
| honorific — formal-(으)십니다 | 들으십니다 | [드르심니다] | deureusimnida |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| please …-(으)세요 | 들으세요 | [드르세요] | deureuseyo |
| please … (for me)-아/어 주세요 | 들어 주세요 | [드러 주세요] | deureo juseyo |
| please don’t …-지 마세요 | 듣지 마세요 | [듣찌 마세요] | deutji maseyo |
| let’s … (formal)-(으)ㅂ시다 | 들읍시다 | [드릅씨다] | deureupsida |
| let’s … (casual)-자 | 듣자 | [듣짜] | deutja |
| do … ! (casual command)-아/어라 | 들어라 | [드러라] | deureora |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| … and-고 | 듣고 | [듣꼬] | deutgo |
| … so / and then-아/어서 | 들어서 | [드러서] | deureoseo |
| if …-(으)면 | 들으면 | [드르면] | deureumyeon |
| … but-지만 | 듣지만 | [듣찌만] | deutjiman |
| because …-(으)니까 | 들으니까 | [드르니까] | deureunikka |
| … and / but (background)-는데 | 듣는데 | [든는데] | deunneunde |
| even if …-아/어도 | 들어도 | [드러도] | deureodo |
| while …-(으)면서 | 들으면서 | [드르면서] | deureumyeonseo |
| in order to …-(으)려고 | 들으려고 | [드르려고] | deureuryeogo |
| (go) to …-(으)러 | 들으러 | [드르러] | deureureo |
| before …-기 전에 | 듣기 전에 | [듣끼 저네] | deutgi jeone |
| after …-(으)ㄴ 후에 | 들은 후에 | [드른 후에] | deureun hue |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| (that) … now-는 | 듣는 | [든는] | deunneun |
| (that) …ed-(으)ㄴ | 들은 | [드른] | deureun |
| (that) will …-(으)ㄹ | 들을 | [드를] | deureul |
| Form | Korean | Sounds like | Romanized |
|---|---|---|---|
| I want to …-고 싶어요 | 듣고 싶어요 | [듣꼬 시퍼요] | deutgo sipeoyo |
| can …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요 | 들을 수 있어요 | [드를 쑤 이써요] | deureul su isseoyo |
| cannot …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요 | 들을 수 없어요 | [드를 쑤 업써요] | deureul su eopseoyo |
| have to …-아/어야 해요 | 들어야 해요 | [드러야 해요] | deureoya haeyo |
| may … / it’s OK to …-아/어도 돼요 | 들어도 돼요 | [드러도 돼요] | deureodo dwaeyo |
| must not …-(으)면 안 돼요 | 들으면 안 돼요 | [드르면 안 돼요] | deureumyeon an dwaeyo |
| …ing (noun)-기 | 듣기 | [듣끼] | deutgi |
How 듣다 changes
ㄷ irregular: before a vowel, ㄷ becomes ㄹ → 들어요, 들으면, 들을. Before a consonant ㄷ stays: 듣습니다, 듣고. Regular ㄷ verbs such as 받다 (받아요) and 닫다 (닫아요) keep the ㄷ.
Questions
How do you say “listen” in Korean?
“To listen” is 듣다 (deutda), pronounced [듣따]. In a sentence: 음악을 들어요. — I’m listening to music.
What is the past tense of 듣다?
들었어요 (deureosseoyo) is the polite past tense of 듣다 (“to listen”). Formal: 들었습니다; casual: 들었어.
How do you say 듣다 politely?
Everyday polite: 들어요 (deureoyo). Formal: 듣습니다. Casual, with close friends: 들어.
How do you say “I want to listen” in Korean?
듣고 싶어요 (deutgo sipeoyo), pronounced [듣꼬 시퍼요].
Is 듣다 irregular?
Yes — ㄷ irregular: before a vowel, ㄷ becomes ㄹ → 들어요, 들으면, 들을. Before a consonant ㄷ stays: 듣습니다, 듣고. Regular ㄷ verbs such as 받다 (받아요) and 닫다 (닫아요) keep the ㄷ.
More ㄷ irregular words like 듣다
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Forms follow 한글 맞춤법 (Korean spelling rules); pronunciation follows 표준 발음법 and romanization follows 국어의 로마자 표기법 (Revised Romanization). Last updated October 16, 2026. How we check