KoreanSum

Verbs · Regular

오다 conjugation

to come · oda · sounds like [오다]

Short answer: “To come” in Korean is 오다 (oda). Polite present: 와요 (wayo); past: 왔어요 (wasseoyo); future: 올 거예요. It is regular.

Opposite: 가다 — to go

오다 in sentences

All forms of 오다

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.
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
polite-아/어요와요[와요]wayo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다옵니다[옴니다]omnida
casual-아/어와[와]wa
plain (written)-(느)ㄴ다온다[온다]onda
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?옵니까?[옴니까]omnikka?
is …ing (polite)-고 있어요오고 있어요[오고 이써요]ogo isseoyo
Past
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
polite-았/었어요왔어요[와써요]wasseoyo
formal-았/었습니다왔습니다[왇씀니다]watseumnida
casual-았/었어왔어[와써]wasseo
plain (written)-았/었다왔다[왇따]watda
Future
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
polite — will-(으)ㄹ 거예요올 거예요[올 꺼예요]ol geoyeyo
formal-(으)ㄹ 겁니다올 겁니다[올 껌니다]ol geomnida
casual-(으)ㄹ 거야올 거야[올 꺼야]ol geoya
formal — I will (intention)-겠습니다오겠습니다[오겓씀니다]ogetseumnida
Negative
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
not (short)안 …안 와요[안 와요]an wayo
did not안 …았/었어요안 왔어요[안 와써요]an wasseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요오지 않아요[오지 아나요]oji anayo
cannot못 …못 와요[몯 와요]mot wayo
Honorific
Add -(으)시- when the subject is someone you respect (a teacher, a customer, an older person) — not yourself.
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
honorific — present-(으)세요오세요[오세요]oseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요오셨어요[오셔써요]osyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다오십니다[오심니다]osimnida
Requests
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
please …-(으)세요오세요[오세요]oseyo
please … (for me)-아/어 주세요와 주세요[와 주세요]wa juseyo
please don’t …-지 마세요오지 마세요[오지 마세요]oji maseyo
let’s … (formal)-(으)ㅂ시다옵시다[옵씨다]opsida
let’s … (casual)-자오자[오자]oja
do … ! (casual command)-아/어라와라[와라]wara
Connecting
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
… and-고오고[오고]ogo
… so / and then-아/어서와서[와서]waseo
if …-(으)면오면[오면]omyeon
… but-지만오지만[오지만]ojiman
because …-(으)니까오니까[오니까]onikka
… and / but (background)-는데오는데[오는데]oneunde
even if …-아/어도와도[와도]wado
while …-(으)면서오면서[오면서]omyeonseo
in order to …-(으)려고오려고[오려고]oryeogo
(go) to …-(으)러오러[오러]oreo
before …-기 전에오기 전에[오기 저네]ogi jeone
after …-(으)ㄴ 후에온 후에[온 후에]on hue
Describing a noun
These go before a noun: “the food (that) I ate”, “a cold day”.
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
(that) … now-는오는[오는]oneun
(that) …ed-(으)ㄴ온[온]on
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ올[올]ol
Useful patterns
FormKoreanSounds likeRomanized
I want to …-고 싶어요오고 싶어요[오고 시퍼요]ogo sipeoyo
can …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요올 수 있어요[올 쑤 이써요]ol su isseoyo
cannot …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요올 수 없어요[올 쑤 업써요]ol su eopseoyo
have to …-아/어야 해요와야 해요[와야 해요]waya haeyo
may … / it’s OK to …-아/어도 돼요와도 돼요[와도 돼요]wado dwaeyo
must not …-(으)면 안 돼요오면 안 돼요[오면 안 돼요]omyeon an dwaeyo
…ing (noun)-기오기[오기]ogi

How 오다 changes

오 ends in a vowel, so 오 + 아/어 becomes 와 → 와요, 왔어요. Endings written -(으) attach directly → 오면, 올. 오다 is regular.

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

Questions

How do you say “come” in Korean?

“To come” is 오다 (oda), pronounced [오다]. In a sentence: 친구가 한국에 와요. — My friend is coming to Korea.

What is the past tense of 오다?

왔어요 (wasseoyo) is the polite past tense of 오다 (“to come”). Formal: 왔습니다; casual: 왔어.

How do you say 오다 politely?

Everyday polite: 와요 (wayo). Formal: 옵니다. Casual, with close friends: 와.

How do you say “I want to come” in Korean?

오고 싶어요 (ogo sipeoyo), pronounced [오고 시퍼요].

Is 오다 irregular?

No. 오 ends in a vowel, so 오 + 아/어 becomes 와 → 와요, 왔어요. Endings written -(으) attach directly → 오면, 올. 오다 is regular.

More regular words like 오다

Look up another word

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