목적격 조사 을/를: rules, examples & exercises | Korean Grammar A1

목적격 조사 을/를

A1 — 조사

Object marker particles 을/를 — marking the direct object of a verb

Can use 을/를 to mark the direct object of action verbs

Object marker particles 을/를 — marking the direct object of a verb

Examples

밥을 먹어요. — I eat rice.
영화를 봐요. — I watch a movie.
음악을 좋아해요. — I like music.
친구를 만나요. — I meet a friend.

조사A1

Object Marker 을/를

Object marker particles 을/를 — marking the direct object of a verb

Learning Goal

Can use 을/를 to mark the direct object of action verbs

Exam Skills:쓰기읽기

Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?

밥을 먹어요.

I eat rice.

영화를 봐요.

I watch a movie.

음악을 좋아해요.

I like music.

친구를 만나요.

I meet a friend.

Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?

목적격 조사 을/를 — Object Marker

The object markers 을 and 를 mark the direct object — the thing being acted upon by the verb.

Form:

Condition	Marker	Example
After consonant (받침)	을	밥을 먹어요 (eat rice)
After vowel (no 받침)	를	커피를 마셔요 (drink coffee)

SOV structure with 을/를:

Subject	Object	Verb	Meaning
저는	물을	마셔요.	I drink water.
저는	한국어를	배워요.	I learn Korean.
민수는	책을	읽어요.	Minsu reads a book.

Dropping 을/를: In casual spoken Korean, the object marker is often dropped: 밥 먹어요 = 밥을 먹어요. This is very common and natural.

Common verbs with 을/를:

먹다 (eat): 밥을 먹어요
마시다 (drink): 물을 마셔요
보다 (see/watch): 영화를 봐요
읽다 (read): 책을 읽어요
좋아하다 (like): 음악을 좋아해요
만나다 (meet): 친구를 만나요

Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises

Practice Exercises

Learners forget 을/를 or confuse it with 이/가. In many European languages, word order alone marks the object. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English uses word order (SVO) to mark objects, not particles. Speakers forget to add 을/를, or confuse it with 이/가. Tip: 을/를 answers 'what?' (object), 이/가 answers 'who/what?' (subject). 🇩🇪 German speakers: German accusative case (den/einen) is conceptually similar to 을/를. 'Ich trinke den Kaffee' → 커피를 마셔요. The accusative analogy helps.

Common Error Patterns

Used 이/가 instead of 을/를 for the object (or vice versa)

을/를 = what is being acted on (object). 이/가 = who is doing the action (subject)

Used 을 after vowel or 를 after consonant

을 after 받침: 밥을. 를 after vowel: 커피를

밥을 먹어요.

I eat rice.

밥 (rice) + 을 (object, after consonant ㅂ) + 먹어요 (eat). The object comes before the verb in Korean (SOV).

영화를 봐요.

I watch a movie.

영화 (movie) + 를 (object, after vowel ㅏ) + 봐요 (watch). 를 is used because 화 has no 받침.

음악을 좋아해요.

I like music.

좋아하다 (to like) takes 을/를: 음악 (music) + 을 (object) + 좋아해요 (like). Note: 좋아요 (is good) uses 이/가, but 좋아해요 (like) uses 을/를.

친구를 만나요.

I meet a friend.

친구 (friend) + 를 (object, after vowel) + 만나요 (meet). In casual speech, 친구 만나요 (dropping 를) is also natural.

Practice in course

Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises

A1 Course

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Put it into practice

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Frequently asked questions

When is 목적격 조사 을/를 used?: The object markers 을 and 를 mark the direct object — the thing being acted upon by the verb.
How is 목적격 조사 을/를 formed?: Dropping 을/를: In casual spoken Korean, the object marker is often dropped: 밥 먹어요 = 밥을 먹어요. This is very common and natural.
What are common mistakes with 목적격 조사 을/를?: Learners forget 을/를 or confuse it with 이/가. In many European languages, word order alone marks the object. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English uses word order (SVO) to mark objects, not particles. Speakers forget to add 을/를, or confuse it with 이/가. Tip: 을/를 answers 'what?' (object), 이/가 answers 'who/what?' (subject). 🇩🇪 German speakers: German accusative case (den/einen) is conceptually similar to 을/를. 'Ich trinke den Kaffee' → 커피를 마셔요. The accusative analogy helps. 🇷🇺 Russian speakers: Russian accusative case (воду, книгу) directly parallels 을/를. This is an advantage — think of 을/를 as the accusative marker. 🇨🇿 Czech speakers: Czech accusative (vodu, knihu) also parallels 을/를 well.