There are many verb-glues in Korean, and in grammar terms, we call them connective endings. Let’s learn another one: ‘-고.’
‘-고’ connects two clauses that each describe a different action or state. Each clause can express a separate event, and the subjects don’t even have to match.
Look at these. The verbs end in the dictionary form.
- 저는 한국어를 배우다
- 민수는 일본어를 배우다
‘-고’ doesn’t start with a vowel, so it doesn’t change the verb stem. To the verb stem “배우-,” you simply add “-고.” Now you can connect the two clauses like this: “저는 한국어를 배우고, 민수는 일본어를 배워요. (I learn Korean, and Minsu learns Japanese.)”
Let’s try another one:
- 저는 집에서 쉬었다
- 미나는 학교에 갔다
Add ‘-고’ to the stem “쉬었-,” and you get: “저는 집에서 쉬었고, 미나는 학교에 갔어요. (I rested at home, and Mina went to school.)”
If the same person does multiple actions, you don’t have to repeat the subject again in every clause. For example, “I drink coffee and work out every morning.”
In this case, the sentence should start with “저는” because the whole sentence describes your general activities.
In Korean, the typical word order usually goes “time – place – doer – action” since an action can’t really exist without time, place, and doer.
But sometimes, a sentence can start with the doer. That happens when you’re describing the doer’s general routine.
And that’s exactly when you use the particle “-은/-는” to mark the topic and show that the sentence is about that person’s overall pattern or habit. So you can start with “저는,” then add the time, and finally describe the actions.
Let’s build it.
- Drink coffee – 커피를 마시다
- Work out – 운동을 하다
Put them together. “저는 매일 아침에 커피를 마시고 운동을 해요. (I drink coffee and work out every morning.)”
Now when you talk about what you did. “I drank coffee and worked out this morning.” It should be “오늘 아침에 커피를 마시고 운동을 했어요.”
By the way, “오늘 아침에 커피도 마시고 운동도 했어요.” sounds even more natural and smooth. By adding “-도” to each object, like 커피도 and 운동도, you’re signaling from the very beginning that you did more than one thing. And it’s a common habit in Korean speech.
And you can also say “오늘 아침에 커피도 마셨고 운동도 했어요,” it feels like two separate actions, maybe done at different time or in different places.
