Adjectives · ㅂ irregular

맵다 conjugation

to be spicy · maepda · sounds like [맵따]

Short answer: “Spicy” in Korean is 맵다 (maepda). Polite present: 매워요 (maewoyo); past: 매웠어요 (maewosseoyo); future: 매울 거예요. It is a ㅂ irregular adjective.

Present매워요[매워요] · maewoyo
Past매웠어요[매워써요] · maewosseoyo
Future매울 거예요[매울 꺼예요] · maeul geoyeyo
Negative안 매워요[안 매워요] · an maewoyo

맵다 in sentences

이 김치는 매워요.This kimchi is spicy.
매운 음식 잘 먹어요?Can you handle spicy food?

All forms of 맵다

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	매워요	[매워요]	maewoyo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다	맵습니다	[맵씀니다]	maepseumnida
casual-아/어	매워	[매워]	maewo
plain (written)-다	맵다	[맵따]	maepda
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?	맵습니까?	[맵씀니까]	maepseumnikka?

Past
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-았/었어요	매웠어요	[매워써요]	maewosseoyo
formal-았/었습니다	매웠습니다	[매웓씀니다]	maewotseumnida
casual-았/었어	매웠어	[매워써]	maewosseo
plain (written)-았/었다	매웠다	[매웓따]	maewotda

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

Negative
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
not (short)안 …	안 매워요	[안 매워요]	an maewoyo
did not안 …았/었어요	안 매웠어요	[안 매워써요]	an maewosseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요	맵지 않아요	[맵찌 아나요]	maepji 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	매우세요	[매우세요]	maeuseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요	매우셨어요	[매우셔써요]	maeusyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다	매우십니다	[매우심니다]	maeusimnida

Connecting
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
… and-고	맵고	[맵꼬]	maepgo
… so / and then-아/어서	매워서	[매워서]	maewoseo
if …-(으)면	매우면	[매우면]	maeumyeon
… but-지만	맵지만	[맵찌만]	maepjiman
because …-(으)니까	매우니까	[매우니까]	maeunikka
… and / but (background)-(으)ㄴ데	매운데	[매운데]	maeunde
even if …-아/어도	매워도	[매워도]	maewodo
while …-(으)면서	매우면서	[매우면서]	maeumyeonseo

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	매운	[매운]	maeun
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ	매울	[매울]	maeul

Useful patterns
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
can be …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요	매울 수 있어요	[매울 쑤 이써요]	maeul su isseoyo
cannot be …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요	매울 수 없어요	[매울 쑤 업써요]	maeul su eopseoyo
have to be …-아/어야 해요	매워야 해요	[매워야 해요]	maewoya haeyo
it’s OK if it’s …-아/어도 돼요	매워도 돼요	[매워도 돼요]	maewodo dwaeyo
…ly (adverb)-게	맵게	[맵께]	maepge
becomes …-아/어지다	매워져요	[매워저요]	maewojeoyo
…ing (noun)-기	맵기	[맵끼]	maepgi

How 맵다 changes

ㅂ irregular: before a vowel, ㅂ turns into 우 — so 맵 + 어 → 매워요, and -(으) endings use 우: 매우면, 매울. Before a consonant the ㅂ stays: 맵습니다, 맵고. Not every ㅂ word does this — 입다 → 입어요 and 잡다 → 잡아요 are regular.

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

Questions

How do you say “spicy” in Korean?

“Spicy” is 맵다 (maepda), pronounced [맵따]. In a sentence: 이 김치는 매워요. — This kimchi is spicy.

What is the past tense of 맵다?

매웠어요 (maewosseoyo) is the polite past tense of 맵다 (“to be spicy”). Formal: 매웠습니다; casual: 매웠어.

How do you say 맵다 politely?

Everyday polite: 매워요 (maewoyo). Formal: 맵습니다. Casual, with close friends: 매워.

How do you say “not spicy” in Korean?

안 매워요 or 맵지 않아요. Both mean the same; the first is more common in speech.

Is 맵다 irregular?

Yes — ㅂ irregular: before a vowel, ㅂ turns into 우 — so 맵 + 어 → 매워요, and -(으) endings use 우: 매우면, 매울. Before a consonant the ㅂ stays: 맵습니다, 맵고. Not every ㅂ word does this — 입다 → 입어요 and 잡다 → 잡아요 are regular.

More ㅂ irregular words like 맵다

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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