haru Korean › Grammar › Level 1B › V-겠-
V-겠- — polite intention — 'I will …'
Polite intention — 'I will …'. Korean grammar for beginner learners — Level 1B, lesson 8: 회사에서 일합니다 (I work at a company — formal speech).
What it means
-겠- after a verb stem shows what the speaker means to do. With 저 or 제가 it is 'I will …', a polite promise or offer, and at work it is the usual way to take on a job: 이 일은 제가 하겠습니다. It goes straight onto the stem, with or without 받침, and nothing drops: 하겠습니다, 먹겠습니다, 알겠습니다 (compare 압니다). Add 습니다 for the formal style or 어요 for the polite style: 하겠어요. In a question it asks what the listener will do, with 시 for a guest: 몇 시에 오시겠습니까? Learn three everyday phrases whole: 네, 알겠습니다 ('yes, I understand', the answer to a senior), 잘 먹겠습니다 (before a meal someone gives you) and 처음 뵙겠습니다 ('how do you do'). 제가 할게요 makes the same promise in a lighter polite style, for colleagues and friends. -겠- also has a second meaning, a guess ('that must be …': 맛있겠어요), which comes in Level 2A.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -겠습니다 · -겠습니까? | formal · any stem, 받침 or not (ㄹ stays) | 하다 + 겠습니다 → 하겠습니다 |
| -겠어요 · -겠어요? | polite · any stem, 받침 or not | 가다 + 겠어요 → 가겠어요 |
Key points
- 겠 goes straight onto any verb stem, 받침 or not, and ㄹ stays: 하겠습니다 · 먹겠습니다 · 알겠습니다 · 가겠어요
- With 저 or 제가 it is a polite 'I will …', and it is in set phrases: 제가 하겠습니다 · 알겠습니다 · 잘 먹겠습니다 · 처음 뵙겠습니다
Examples
- 하다 → 하겠습니다. 먹다 → 먹겠습니다. 알다 → 알겠습니다.
- 이 일은 제가 하겠습니다. 오늘 점심은 제가 사겠어요.
- 네, 알겠습니다. 잘 먹겠습니다. 처음 뵙겠습니다.
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 2A, lesson 8; Yonsei University Korean 1-2, lesson 20; Sogang University Korean 2B, lesson 7; Hongik University Korean 2A, lesson 6; Ewha Womans University Korean 2-1, lesson 4; Hanyang University Korean 1-2, lesson 10.
Also in this lesson
- A/V-습니다/습니까 — the formal style — statements and questions with -습니다 · -습니까?
- V-(으)십시오 — formal requests and instructions — 'please …'
- V-(으)ㅂ시다 — formal suggestions — 'let's …'