괜찮다 conjugation

to be okay; fine · gwaenchanta · sounds like [괜찬타]

Short answer: “Okay” in Korean is 괜찮다 (gwaenchanta), which also means fine. Polite present: 괜찮아요 (gwaenchanayo); past: 괜찮았어요 (gwaenchanasseoyo); future: 괜찮을 거예요. It is regular.

Present괜찮아요[괜차나요] · gwaenchanayo
Past괜찮았어요[괜차나써요] · gwaenchanasseoyo
Future괜찮을 거예요[괜차늘 꺼예요] · gwaenchaneul geoyeyo
Negative안 괜찮아요[안 괜차나요] · an gwaenchanayo

괜찮다 in sentences

괜찮아요?Are you OK?
저는 괜찮아요. 걱정하지 마세요.I’m fine. Don’t worry.

All forms of 괜찮다

Present
Polite (해요) is the everyday safe choice; formal (합니다) is for news, announcements and work; casual (반말) is for close friends and younger people.
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-아/어요	괜찮아요	[괜차나요]	gwaenchanayo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다	괜찮습니다	[괜찬씀니다]	gwaenchanseumnida
casual-아/어	괜찮아	[괜차나]	gwaenchana
plain (written)-다	괜찮다	[괜찬타]	gwaenchanta
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?	괜찮습니까?	[괜찬씀니까]	gwaenchanseumnikka?

Past
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-았/었어요	괜찮았어요	[괜차나써요]	gwaenchanasseoyo
formal-았/었습니다	괜찮았습니다	[괜차낟씀니다]	gwaenchanatseumnida
casual-았/었어	괜찮았어	[괜차나써]	gwaenchanasseo
plain (written)-았/었다	괜찮았다	[괜차낟따]	gwaenchanatda

Future
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite — will probably be-(으)ㄹ 거예요	괜찮을 거예요	[괜차늘 꺼예요]	gwaenchaneul geoyeyo
formal-(으)ㄹ 겁니다	괜찮을 겁니다	[괜차늘 껌니다]	gwaenchaneul geomnida
casual-(으)ㄹ 거야	괜찮을 거야	[괜차늘 꺼야]	gwaenchaneul geoya

Negative
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
not (short)안 …	안 괜찮아요	[안 괜차나요]	an gwaenchanayo
did not안 …았/었어요	안 괜찮았어요	[안 괜차나써요]	an gwaenchanasseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요	괜찮지 않아요	[괜찬치 아나요]	gwaenchanchi anayo

Honorific
Add -(으)시- when the subject is someone you respect (a teacher, a customer, an older person) — not yourself.
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
honorific — present-(으)세요	괜찮으세요	[괜차느세요]	gwaenchaneuseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요	괜찮으셨어요	[괜차느셔써요]	gwaenchaneusyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다	괜찮으십니다	[괜차느심니다]	gwaenchaneusimnida

Connecting
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
… and-고	괜찮고	[괜찬코]	gwaenchanko
… so / and then-아/어서	괜찮아서	[괜차나서]	gwaenchanaseo
if …-(으)면	괜찮으면	[괜차느면]	gwaenchaneumyeon
… but-지만	괜찮지만	[괜찬치만]	gwaenchanchiman
because …-(으)니까	괜찮으니까	[괜차느니까]	gwaenchaneunikka
… and / but (background)-(으)ㄴ데	괜찮은데	[괜차는데]	gwaenchaneunde
even if …-아/어도	괜찮아도	[괜차나도]	gwaenchanado
while …-(으)면서	괜찮으면서	[괜차느면서]	gwaenchaneumyeonseo

Describing a noun
These go before a noun: “the food (that) I ate”, “a cold day”.
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
(that is) …-(으)ㄴ	괜찮은	[괜차는]	gwaenchaneun
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ	괜찮을	[괜차늘]	gwaenchaneul

Useful patterns
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
can be …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요	괜찮을 수 있어요	[괜차늘 쑤 이써요]	gwaenchaneul su isseoyo
cannot be …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요	괜찮을 수 없어요	[괜차늘 쑤 업써요]	gwaenchaneul su eopseoyo
have to be …-아/어야 해요	괜찮아야 해요	[괜차나야 해요]	gwaenchanaya haeyo
it’s OK if it’s …-아/어도 돼요	괜찮아도 돼요	[괜차나도 돼요]	gwaenchanado dwaeyo
…ly (adverb)-게	괜찮게	[괜찬케]	gwaenchanke
becomes …-아/어지다	괜찮아져요	[괜차나저요]	gwaenchanajeoyo
…ing (noun)-기	괜찮기	[괜찬키]	gwaenchanki

How 괜찮다 changes

괜찮 ends in a consonant, so 아/어 endings are added as they are → 괜찮아요, and endings written -(으) add 으 → 괜찮으면, 괜찮을. 괜찮다 is regular.

How every verb type works → · Why it sounds like that →

Questions

How do you say “okay” in Korean?

“Okay” is 괜찮다 (gwaenchanta), pronounced [괜찬타]. In a sentence: 괜찮아요? — Are you OK?

What is the past tense of 괜찮다?

괜찮았어요 (gwaenchanasseoyo) is the polite past tense of 괜찮다 (“to be okay”). Formal: 괜찮았습니다; casual: 괜찮았어.

How do you say 괜찮다 politely?

Everyday polite: 괜찮아요 (gwaenchanayo). Formal: 괜찮습니다. Casual, with close friends: 괜찮아.

How do you say “not okay” in Korean?

안 괜찮아요 or 괜찮지 않아요. Both mean the same; the first is more common in speech.

Is 괜찮다 irregular?

No. 괜찮 ends in a consonant, so 아/어 endings are added as they are → 괜찮아요, and endings written -(으) add 으 → 괜찮으면, 괜찮을. 괜찮다 is regular.

More regular words like 괜찮다

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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