느리다 conjugation

to be slow · neurida · sounds like [느리다]

Short answer: “Slow” in Korean is 느리다 (neurida). Polite present: 느려요 (neuryeoyo); past: 느렸어요 (neuryeosseoyo); future: 느릴 거예요. It is regular.

Present느려요[느려요] · neuryeoyo
Past느렸어요[느려써요] · neuryeosseoyo
Future느릴 거예요[느릴 꺼예요] · neuril geoyeyo
Negative안 느려요[안 느려요] · an neuryeoyo

Opposite: 빠르다 — to be fast

느리다 in sentences

인터넷이 느려요.The internet is slow.
느린 음악을 좋아해요.I like slow music.

All forms of 느리다

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	느려요	[느려요]	neuryeoyo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다	느립니다	[느림니다]	neurimnida
casual-아/어	느려	[느려]	neuryeo
plain (written)-다	느리다	[느리다]	neurida
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?	느립니까?	[느림니까]	neurimnikka?

Past
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-았/었어요	느렸어요	[느려써요]	neuryeosseoyo
formal-았/었습니다	느렸습니다	[느렫씀니다]	neuryeotseumnida
casual-았/었어	느렸어	[느려써]	neuryeosseo
plain (written)-았/었다	느렸다	[느렫따]	neuryeotda

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

Negative
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
not (short)안 …	안 느려요	[안 느려요]	an neuryeoyo
did not안 …았/었어요	안 느렸어요	[안 느려써요]	an neuryeosseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요	느리지 않아요	[느리지 아나요]	neuriji 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	느리세요	[느리세요]	neuriseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요	느리셨어요	[느리셔써요]	neurisyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다	느리십니다	[느리심니다]	neurisimnida

Connecting
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
… and-고	느리고	[느리고]	neurigo
… so / and then-아/어서	느려서	[느려서]	neuryeoseo
if …-(으)면	느리면	[느리면]	neurimyeon
… but-지만	느리지만	[느리지만]	neurijiman
because …-(으)니까	느리니까	[느리니까]	neurinikka
… and / but (background)-(으)ㄴ데	느린데	[느린데]	neurinde
even if …-아/어도	느려도	[느려도]	neuryeodo
while …-(으)면서	느리면서	[느리면서]	neurimyeonseo

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	느린	[느린]	neurin
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ	느릴	[느릴]	neuril

Useful patterns
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
can be …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요	느릴 수 있어요	[느릴 쑤 이써요]	neuril su isseoyo
cannot be …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요	느릴 수 없어요	[느릴 쑤 업써요]	neuril su eopseoyo
have to be …-아/어야 해요	느려야 해요	[느려야 해요]	neuryeoya haeyo
it’s OK if it’s …-아/어도 돼요	느려도 돼요	[느려도 돼요]	neuryeodo dwaeyo
…ly (adverb)-게	느리게	[느리게]	neurige
becomes …-아/어지다	느려져요	[느려저요]	neuryeojeoyo
…ing (noun)-기	느리기	[느리기]	neurigi

How 느리다 changes

느리 ends in a vowel, so 느리 + 아/어 becomes 느려 → 느려요, 느렸어요. Endings written -(으) attach directly → 느리면, 느릴. 느리다 is regular.

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

Questions

How do you say “slow” in Korean?

“Slow” is 느리다 (neurida), pronounced [느리다]. In a sentence: 인터넷이 느려요. — The internet is slow.

What is the past tense of 느리다?

느렸어요 (neuryeosseoyo) is the polite past tense of 느리다 (“to be slow”). Formal: 느렸습니다; casual: 느렸어.

How do you say 느리다 politely?

Everyday polite: 느려요 (neuryeoyo). Formal: 느립니다. Casual, with close friends: 느려.

How do you say “not slow” in Korean?

안 느려요 or 느리지 않아요. Both mean the same; the first is more common in speech.

Is 느리다 irregular?

No. 느리 ends in a vowel, so 느리 + 아/어 becomes 느려 → 느려요, 느렸어요. Endings written -(으) attach directly → 느리면, 느릴. 느리다 is regular.

More regular words like 느리다

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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