Adjectives · 르 irregular

빠르다 conjugation

to be fast · ppareuda · sounds like [빠르다]

Short answer: “Fast” in Korean is 빠르다 (ppareuda). Polite present: 빨라요 (ppallayo); past: 빨랐어요 (ppallasseoyo); future: 빠를 거예요. It is a 르 irregular adjective.

Present빨라요[빨라요] · ppallayo
Past빨랐어요[빨라써요] · ppallasseoyo
Future빠를 거예요[빠를 꺼예요] · ppareul geoyeyo
Negative안 빨라요[안 빨라요] · an ppallayo

Opposite: 느리다 — to be slow

빠르다 in sentences

지하철이 빨라요.The subway is fast.
빠른 배송을 선택했어요.I chose fast delivery.

All forms of 빠르다

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	빨라요	[빨라요]	ppallayo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다	빠릅니다	[빠름니다]	ppareumnida
casual-아/어	빨라	[빨라]	ppalla
plain (written)-다	빠르다	[빠르다]	ppareuda
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?	빠릅니까?	[빠름니까]	ppareumnikka?

Past
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-았/었어요	빨랐어요	[빨라써요]	ppallasseoyo
formal-았/었습니다	빨랐습니다	[빨랃씀니다]	ppallatseumnida
casual-았/었어	빨랐어	[빨라써]	ppallasseo
plain (written)-았/었다	빨랐다	[빨랃따]	ppallatda

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

Negative
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
not (short)안 …	안 빨라요	[안 빨라요]	an ppallayo
did not안 …았/었어요	안 빨랐어요	[안 빨라써요]	an ppallasseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요	빠르지 않아요	[빠르지 아나요]	ppareuji 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	빠르세요	[빠르세요]	ppareuseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요	빠르셨어요	[빠르셔써요]	ppareusyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다	빠르십니다	[빠르심니다]	ppareusimnida

Connecting
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
… and-고	빠르고	[빠르고]	ppareugo
… so / and then-아/어서	빨라서	[빨라서]	ppallaseo
if …-(으)면	빠르면	[빠르면]	ppareumyeon
… but-지만	빠르지만	[빠르지만]	ppareujiman
because …-(으)니까	빠르니까	[빠르니까]	ppareunikka
… and / but (background)-(으)ㄴ데	빠른데	[빠른데]	ppareunde
even if …-아/어도	빨라도	[빨라도]	ppallado
while …-(으)면서	빠르면서	[빠르면서]	ppareumyeonseo

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	빠른	[빠른]	ppareun
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ	빠를	[빠를]	ppareul

Useful patterns
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
can be …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요	빠를 수 있어요	[빠를 쑤 이써요]	ppareul su isseoyo
cannot be …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요	빠를 수 없어요	[빠를 쑤 업써요]	ppareul su eopseoyo
have to be …-아/어야 해요	빨라야 해요	[빨라야 해요]	ppallaya haeyo
it’s OK if it’s …-아/어도 돼요	빨라도 돼요	[빨라도 돼요]	ppallado dwaeyo
…ly (adverb)-게	빠르게	[빠르게]	ppareuge
becomes …-아/어지다	빨라져요	[빨라저요]	ppallajeoyo
…ing (noun)-기	빠르기	[빠르기]	ppareugi

How 빠르다 changes

르 irregular: before 아/어, 르 loses its vowel and an extra ㄹ appears → 빨라요, 빨랐어요. Other endings are regular: 빠르면, 빠릅니다.

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

Questions

How do you say “fast” in Korean?

“Fast” is 빠르다 (ppareuda), pronounced [빠르다]. In a sentence: 지하철이 빨라요. — The subway is fast.

What is the past tense of 빠르다?

빨랐어요 (ppallasseoyo) is the polite past tense of 빠르다 (“to be fast”). Formal: 빨랐습니다; casual: 빨랐어.

How do you say 빠르다 politely?

Everyday polite: 빨라요 (ppallayo). Formal: 빠릅니다. Casual, with close friends: 빨라.

How do you say “not fast” in Korean?

안 빨라요 or 빠르지 않아요. Both mean the same; the first is more common in speech.

Is 빠르다 irregular?

Yes — 르 irregular: before 아/어, 르 loses its vowel and an extra ㄹ appears → 빨라요, 빨랐어요. Other endings are regular: 빠르면, 빠릅니다.

More 르 irregular words like 빠르다

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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