TeacherJoy

You all know the adjective 크다, right? It means “to be big.” When we change this into a causative verb, it becomes 키우다. Literally, it means “to make something bigger,” which translates to “to grow” or “to raise.”

While many things are already big, there are so many things we can make bigger! We use 키우다 for plants like flowers and trees, and also for pets like dogs and cats. Over time, its meaning has expanded even further. 

Now, we use it for things we can’t see or touch, like skills (실력), confidence (자신감), or even volume (소리) and an illness (병).

Here’s a quick side note: there are a few words that share the same root “크”. 

• 크기: This means “size.” Although the loanword 사이즈 is becoming more common, 크기 is still used a lot in daily life.
• 키: This refers to a person’s height. While English uses the single word “tall,” in Korean, you must use the phrase “키가 크다” to complete the meaning.

Back to the main point! Since “키우다” is used in so many contexts, I want to give you plenty of examples.

• 혹시 고양이 키우세요? 온 몸이 고양이 털이네요! – Do you raise a cat? Your whole body is covered in cat hair!
• 그동안 저를 키워 주셔서 감사합니다. – Thank you for raising/growing me all this time.
• 듣기 실력을 좀 더 키우고 싶은데 어떻게 하면 좋을까요? – I want to improve/grow my listening skills; what should I do?
• 실례지만, 글자 크기 좀 더 키워 주실 수 있으세요? – Excuse me, could you make the font size a bit bigger?
• 소리가 좀 작은데, 소리를 조금만 키워 주시면 좋겠어요. – The sound is a bit quiet; I’d appreciate it if you could turn up the volume.
• 병 더 키우지 말고 빨리 병원 가! – Don’t let your illness get any worse; go to the hospital right away!
• 엄마 엄청 화났다! 화 더 키우지 말고 빨리 사과해. – Mom is furious! Don’t make her even angrier; apologize to her now.