haru Korean › Grammar › Level 1B › N에게 · N한테
N에게 · N한테 — to someone — giving, sending, calling and telling
To someone — giving, sending, calling and telling. Korean grammar for beginner learners — Level 1B, lesson 9: 어느 게 더 맛있어요? (Which one is tastier? — food and comparing).
What it means
에게 and 한테 mean 'to' a person. They go straight after the person who gets something: 유나 씨한테 초콜릿을 줘요, 'I give Yuna chocolate'. Both are the same with or without 받침, and they mean the same thing: 한테 is what you hear in everyday talk, and 에게 is for writing and formal talk. Use them with verbs such as 주다 (give), 보내다 (send), 전화하다 (call) and 말하다 (tell). The thing you give keeps 을/를: 동생에게 메시지를 보냈어요. 에게 and 한테 are only for people and animals — for a place, use 에: 회사에 전화해요. To ask 'to whom?', say 누구한테.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| N에게 | writing · formal talk | 친구 + 에게 → 친구에게 |
| N한테 | everyday talk | 친구 + 한테 → 친구한테 |
Key points
- N에게 · N한테 — 'to N', right after the person who gets something, the same with or without 받침: 친구에게 · 친구한테
- 한테 in everyday talk, 에게 in writing and formal talk — with 주다 · 보내다 · 전화하다 · 말하다
Examples
- 친구에게 줘요. = 친구한테 줘요.
- 유나 씨한테 초콜릿을 줘요.
- 동생에게 메시지를 보냈어요.
- 민수 씨한테 전화해요. 마크 씨한테 말했어요.
- 누구한테 줄 거예요? — 유나 씨한테 줄 거예요.
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 1B, lesson 14; Yonsei University Korean 1-2, lesson 14; Ewha Womans University Korean 1-2, lesson 8; Hongik University Korean 1B, lesson 7; Hanyang University Korean 1-2, lesson 8.