LEARN + KOREAN / Note 40 TOPIK I

Right Now (-고 있어요)

a

-고 있다 is the same -고 from 날씨가 어때요?’s “summer is hot and winter is cold,” now paired with 있다. Literally it reads as “doing [verb] and existing in that state,” which is exactly what a progressive tense describes.

지금 뭐 하고 있어요?
jigeum mwo hago isseoyo?
What are you doing right now?
요리하고 있어요.
yorihago isseoyo.
I am cooking.
In Real Life
저는 요리해요 states a general fact, I cook, as a hobby or a habit. 저는 요리하고 있어요 means it’s happening this exact moment. English draws the same line between “I cook” and “I’m cooking”; Korean just makes the grammar do more of the work.
음악을 듣고 있어요.
eumageul deutgo isseoyo.
I am listening to music.
친구를 기다리고 있어요.
chingureul gidarigo isseoyo.
I am waiting for a friend.
누가 메시지를 보내고 있어요?
nuga mesijireul bonaego isseoyo?
Who is sending a message?
마리 씨가 메시지를 보내고 있어요.
mari ssiga mesijireul bonaego isseoyo.
Marie is sending a message.
In Real Life
Wear-verbs from 입다 vs 신다 get genuinely ambiguous with -고 있다. 티셔츠를 입고 있어요 can mean “I’m putting a t-shirt on right now” or simply “I’m wearing a t-shirt” as a state, and only context tells you which. That’s because clothing verbs describe both the act of putting something on and the resulting state of having it on.

Vocabulary

KoreanEnglish
기다리다
gidarida
to wait
메시지
mesiji
message
보내다
bonaeda
to send
받다
batda
to receive
쓰다
sseuda
to write
찾다
chatda
to look for, to find
울다
ulda
to cry
웃다
utda
to laugh, to smile
자다
jada
to sleep
통화하다
tonghwahada
to be on a phone call
검색하다
geomsaekhada
to search (online)
게임하다
geimhada
to play games
인터넷
inteonet
internet
대화하다
daehwahada
to converse
준비하다
junbihada
to prepare
확인하다
hwaginhada
to check, confirm
정리하다
jeongnihada
to organize
청소하다
cheongsohada
to clean
요리하다
yorihada
to cook
씻다
ssitda
to wash up