Adjectives · 하다 word

필요하다 conjugation

to be needed; necessary · piryohada · sounds like [피료하다]

Short answer: “Needed” in Korean is 필요하다 (piryohada), which also means necessary. Polite present: 필요해요 (piryohaeyo); past: 필요했어요 (piryohaesseoyo); future: 필요할 거예요. It is a 하다 adjective: 하 + 아/어 always becomes 해.

Present필요해요[피료해요] · piryohaeyo
Past필요했어요[피료해써요] · piryohaesseoyo
Future필요할 거예요[피료할 꺼예요] · piryohal geoyeyo
Negative안 필요해요[안 피료해요] · an piryohaeyo

필요하다 in sentences

도움이 필요해요.I need help.
여권이 필요할 거예요.You’ll need your passport.

All forms of 필요하다

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	필요해요	[피료해요]	piryohaeyo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다	필요합니다	[피료함니다]	piryohamnida
casual-아/어	필요해	[피료해]	piryohae
plain (written)-다	필요하다	[피료하다]	piryohada
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?	필요합니까?	[피료함니까]	piryohamnikka?

Past
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-았/었어요	필요했어요	[피료해써요]	piryohaesseoyo
formal-았/었습니다	필요했습니다	[피료핻씀니다]	piryohaetseumnida
casual-았/었어	필요했어	[피료해써]	piryohaesseo
plain (written)-았/었다	필요했다	[피료핻따]	piryohaetda

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

Negative
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
not (short)안 …	안 필요해요	[안 피료해요]	an piryohaeyo
did not안 …았/었어요	안 필요했어요	[안 피료해써요]	an piryohaesseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요	필요하지 않아요	[피료하지 아나요]	piryohaji 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	필요하세요	[피료하세요]	piryohaseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요	필요하셨어요	[피료하셔써요]	piryohasyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다	필요하십니다	[피료하심니다]	piryohasimnida

Connecting
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
… and-고	필요하고	[피료하고]	piryohago
… so / and then-아/어서	필요해서	[피료해서]	piryohaeseo
if …-(으)면	필요하면	[피료하면]	piryohamyeon
… but-지만	필요하지만	[피료하지만]	piryohajiman
because …-(으)니까	필요하니까	[피료하니까]	piryohanikka
… and / but (background)-(으)ㄴ데	필요한데	[피료한데]	piryohande
even if …-아/어도	필요해도	[피료해도]	piryohaedo
while …-(으)면서	필요하면서	[피료하면서]	piryohamyeonseo

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	필요한	[피료한]	piryohan
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ	필요할	[피료할]	piryohal

Useful patterns
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
can be …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요	필요할 수 있어요	[피료할 쑤 이써요]	piryohal su isseoyo
cannot be …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요	필요할 수 없어요	[피료할 쑤 업써요]	piryohal su eopseoyo
have to be …-아/어야 해요	필요해야 해요	[피료해야 해요]	piryohaeya haeyo
it’s OK if it’s …-아/어도 돼요	필요해도 돼요	[피료해도 돼요]	piryohaedo dwaeyo
…ly (adverb)-게	필요하게	[피료하게]	piryohage
becomes …-아/어지다	필요해져요	[피료해저요]	piryohaejeoyo
…ing (noun)-기	필요하기	[피료하기]	piryohagi

How 필요하다 changes

Every 하다 word works the same way: 하 + 여 becomes 해 → 필요해요, 필요했어요. With other endings 하 stays as it is: 필요합니다, 필요하면.

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

Questions

How do you say “needed” in Korean?

“Needed” is 필요하다 (piryohada), pronounced [피료하다]. In a sentence: 도움이 필요해요. — I need help.

What is the past tense of 필요하다?

필요했어요 (piryohaesseoyo) is the polite past tense of 필요하다 (“to be needed”). Formal: 필요했습니다; casual: 필요했어.

How do you say 필요하다 politely?

Everyday polite: 필요해요 (piryohaeyo). Formal: 필요합니다. Casual, with close friends: 필요해.

How do you say “not needed” in Korean?

안 필요해요 or 필요하지 않아요. Both mean the same; the first is more common in speech.

Is 필요하다 irregular?

No. Every 하다 word works the same way: 하 + 여 becomes 해 → 필요해요, 필요했어요. With other endings 하 stays as it is: 필요합니다, 필요하면.

More 하다 words like 필요하다

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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