Adjectives · ㅂ irregular

싱겁다 conjugation

to be bland; not salty enough · singgeopda · sounds like [싱겁따]

Short answer: “Bland” in Korean is 싱겁다 (singgeopda), which also means not salty enough. Polite present: 싱거워요 (singgeowoyo); past: 싱거웠어요 (singgeowosseoyo); future: 싱거울 거예요. It is a ㅂ irregular adjective.

Present싱거워요[싱거워요] · singgeowoyo
Past싱거웠어요[싱거워써요] · singgeowosseoyo
Future싱거울 거예요[싱거울 꺼예요] · singgeoul geoyeyo
Negative안 싱거워요[안 싱거워요] · an singgeowoyo

싱겁다 in sentences

국이 좀 싱거워요.The soup is a bit bland.
싱거우면 소금을 넣으세요.If it’s bland, add some salt.

All forms of 싱겁다

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	싱거워요	[싱거워요]	singgeowoyo
formal-(스)ㅂ니다	싱겁습니다	[싱겁씀니다]	singgeopseumnida
casual-아/어	싱거워	[싱거워]	singgeowo
plain (written)-다	싱겁다	[싱겁따]	singgeopda
formal question-(스)ㅂ니까?	싱겁습니까?	[싱겁씀니까]	singgeopseumnikka?

Past
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
polite-았/었어요	싱거웠어요	[싱거워써요]	singgeowosseoyo
formal-았/었습니다	싱거웠습니다	[싱거웓씀니다]	singgeowotseumnida
casual-았/었어	싱거웠어	[싱거워써]	singgeowosseo
plain (written)-았/었다	싱거웠다	[싱거웓따]	singgeowotda

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

Negative
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
not (short)안 …	안 싱거워요	[안 싱거워요]	an singgeowoyo
did not안 …았/었어요	안 싱거웠어요	[안 싱거워써요]	an singgeowosseoyo
not (long)-지 않아요	싱겁지 않아요	[싱겁찌 아나요]	singgeopji 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	싱거우세요	[싱거우세요]	singgeouseyo
honorific — past-(으)셨어요	싱거우셨어요	[싱거우셔써요]	singgeousyeosseoyo
honorific — formal-(으)십니다	싱거우십니다	[싱거우심니다]	singgeousimnida

Connecting
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
… and-고	싱겁고	[싱겁꼬]	singgeopgo
… so / and then-아/어서	싱거워서	[싱거워서]	singgeowoseo
if …-(으)면	싱거우면	[싱거우면]	singgeoumyeon
… but-지만	싱겁지만	[싱겁찌만]	singgeopjiman
because …-(으)니까	싱거우니까	[싱거우니까]	singgeounikka
… and / but (background)-(으)ㄴ데	싱거운데	[싱거운데]	singgeounde
even if …-아/어도	싱거워도	[싱거워도]	singgeowodo
while …-(으)면서	싱거우면서	[싱거우면서]	singgeoumyeonseo

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	싱거운	[싱거운]	singgeoun
(that) will …-(으)ㄹ	싱거울	[싱거울]	singgeoul

Useful patterns
Form	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
can be …-(으)ㄹ 수 있어요	싱거울 수 있어요	[싱거울 쑤 이써요]	singgeoul su isseoyo
cannot be …-(으)ㄹ 수 없어요	싱거울 수 없어요	[싱거울 쑤 업써요]	singgeoul su eopseoyo
have to be …-아/어야 해요	싱거워야 해요	[싱거워야 해요]	singgeowoya haeyo
it’s OK if it’s …-아/어도 돼요	싱거워도 돼요	[싱거워도 돼요]	singgeowodo dwaeyo
…ly (adverb)-게	싱겁게	[싱겁께]	singgeopge
becomes …-아/어지다	싱거워져요	[싱거워저요]	singgeowojeoyo
…ing (noun)-기	싱겁기	[싱겁끼]	singgeopgi

How 싱겁다 changes

ㅂ irregular: before a vowel, ㅂ turns into 우 — so 싱겁 + 어 → 싱거워요, and -(으) endings use 우: 싱거우면, 싱거울. Before a consonant the ㅂ stays: 싱겁습니다, 싱겁고. 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 “bland” in Korean?

“Bland” is 싱겁다 (singgeopda), pronounced [싱겁따]. In a sentence: 국이 좀 싱거워요. — The soup is a bit bland.

What is the past tense of 싱겁다?

싱거웠어요 (singgeowosseoyo) is the polite past tense of 싱겁다 (“to be bland”). Formal: 싱거웠습니다; casual: 싱거웠어.

How do you say 싱겁다 politely?

Everyday polite: 싱거워요 (singgeowoyo). Formal: 싱겁습니다. Casual, with close friends: 싱거워.

How do you say “not bland” in Korean?

안 싱거워요 or 싱겁지 않아요. Both mean the same; the first is more common in speech.

Is 싱겁다 irregular?

Yes — ㅂ irregular: before a vowel, ㅂ turns into 우 — so 싱겁 + 어 → 싱거워요, and -(으) endings use 우: 싱거우면, 싱거울. Before a consonant the ㅂ stays: 싱겁습니다, 싱겁고. Not every ㅂ word does this — 입다 → 입어요 and 잡다 → 잡아요 are regular.

More ㅂ irregular words like 싱겁다

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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