~려고 하다

§ What does it mean and when do people use it?

Definition

To intend or plan to do something.

The Korean grammar pattern ~려고 하다 is a really useful phrase for expressing your intentions or plans. Think of it as saying, "I intend to..." or "I plan to..." in English. It's used when you have a thought or a decision about doing something in the future, whether it's immediate or further off. This is a common phrase that you'll hear and use a lot in everyday Korean conversations.

You attach ~려고 하다 to the stem of a verb. The conjugation rules are pretty straightforward:

• If the verb stem ends in a vowel or 'ㄹ' (like 가다, 살다), you add ~려고 하다.
• If the verb stem ends in a consonant (like 먹다, 읽다), you add ~으려고 하다.

Let's look at some examples to make this clearer:

This means, "I intend to eat lunch." or "I'm going to eat lunch." You've made a plan in your mind.

Here, it means, "I plan to watch a movie on the weekend." Again, it's about a future intention.

It's important to understand that ~려고 하다 expresses a soft intention or plan, not a strict command or an absolute certainty. It's what you are *thinking* of doing. This makes it different from other future tense expressions like ~(으)ㄹ 거예요 which can sometimes express a more definite plan or prediction.

You can use ~려고 하다 in various situations:

• Talking about your personal plans: "I'm going to study Korean tonight." (저는 오늘 밤에 한국어를 공부하려고 해요.)
• Asking about someone else's intentions: "What are you planning to do this weekend?" (주말에 뭐 하시려고 해요?)
• Expressing an attempt or effort: Sometimes, it can imply that you are *trying* to do something, even if you're not sure you'll succeed. For example, if you say "문을 열려고 했어요," it means "I tried to open the door."

This translates to, "I was going to drink coffee, but I didn't have time." Here, it shows a past intention that wasn't fulfilled.

Remember, the 하다 part of ~려고 하다 can be conjugated into different tenses and politeness levels, just like any other verb. So you'll commonly hear ~려고 해요 (present polite), ~려고 합니다 (present formal), ~려고 했어요 (past polite), and so on.

Mastering ~려고 하다 will significantly improve your ability to express your thoughts and plans in Korean. It's a fundamental expression for any Korean learner at the A2 level and beyond. Start practicing it with various verbs, and you'll find yourself using it naturally very soon!

§ Understanding -려고 하다

The Korean phrase '~려고 하다' is super useful. It means 'to intend or plan to do something.' Think of it like saying 'I'm going to...' or 'I plan to...' in English. This isn't about something you just decided to do on a whim. It's for actions you've thought about and have some intention behind.

DEFINITION

To intend or plan to do something.

§ Basic Conjugation Rules

Attaching '~려고 하다' to a verb is straightforward. You just need to check the last syllable of the verb stem.

• If the verb stem ends in a vowel or 'ㄹ' (like '가다' or '만들다'), you add '~려고 하다'.
• If the verb stem ends in a consonant (not 'ㄹ'), you add '~으려고 하다'.

Let's look at some examples to make this clear:

§ Using -려고 하다 in Sentences

Now, let's see this in action with full sentences. This is where it gets practical!

Notice how the '하다' part is conjugated to fit the tense and politeness level you need. This is super flexible!

§ Common Uses and Nuances

While '~려고 하다' mainly expresses intention, it can also be used to ask about someone else's intentions, or even to state that something is 'about to happen' if the subject is not a person.

So, while the core meaning is 'to intend/plan,' be aware of these extended uses, especially when you encounter them in conversations or writing.

§ Prepositions with -려고 하다

When using '~려고 하다', you'll often combine it with other particles or prepositions to form more complex sentences. However, '~려고 하다' itself is a grammatical structure attached directly to a verb stem. It doesn't typically take prepositions directly before it in the same way a noun might.

Instead, any 'preposition-like' elements will be part of the preceding phrase. For example, location particles like '에' (to/at) or '에서' (from/at) will come before the verb that '~려고 하다' is attached to.

Here, '도서관에' (to the library) sets the destination for the verb '가다' (to go), and then '~려고 하다' is applied to '가다'. The key is that '~려고 하다' modifies the verb, not a noun or preposition.

Keep practicing these structures, and you'll soon be expressing your intentions like a pro!

§ Mistake 1: Not understanding the nuance of 'intention'

Many learners incorrectly use ~려고 하다 when they mean to express a simple future action without a strong sense of intention or planning. Remember, ~려고 하다 specifically highlights a speaker's intent or a planned action. If you're just talking about something that will happen, there are other future tense expressions that are more appropriate, such as (으)ㄹ 거예요.

DEFINITION

To intend or plan to do something.

Let's look at an example to clarify this. If you simply want to say 'I will eat lunch,' using (으)ㄹ 거예요 is more natural.

However, if you're expressing your intention or plan to eat lunch, especially if there's a decision behind it, then ~려고 하다 fits perfectly.

§ Mistake 2: Incorrect conjugation with verbs ending in a vowel or ㄹ

This is a common grammatical error. Remember the rules for attaching ~려고 하다:

• If the verb stem ends in a vowel or the consonant ㄹ, you attach ~려고 하다.
• If the verb stem ends in any other consonant, you attach ~(으)려고 하다.

For example, with a verb like '가다' (to go), which ends in a vowel:

Many learners mistakenly try to add '으' even when it's not needed, leading to '가으려고 하다' which is incorrect. With verbs ending in ㄹ, like '만들다' (to make), the ㄹ is dropped, and then ~려고 하다 is attached.

A common mistake here is '만들으려고 하다' which is wrong. Just remove the ㄹ and add ~려고 하다.

§ Mistake 3: Using ~려고 하다 with verbs that don't express action or intention

~려고 하다 is used with action verbs. It doesn't typically combine with descriptive verbs (adjectives) or verbs that inherently describe a state rather than an action or intention.

For instance, you wouldn't say '예쁘려고 해요' (I intend to be pretty) in the same way you would express an action. While you could say '예뻐지려고 해요' (I intend to become pretty), that's using the action verb '예뻐지다' (to become pretty).

Focus on verbs that involve a deliberate action or plan.

'공부하다' (to study) is an action verb, making this sentence correct. Trying to force ~려고 하다 onto non-action verbs or descriptive verbs will sound unnatural.