-아/어지다 - Become | Korean Grammar Documentation

-아/어지다 expresses a natural change of state or transformation. It means "become [adjective]" and indicates a gradual or completed transition from one state to another.

Structure

Adjective stem + -아/어지다

Breakdown:

-아/어: Connective ending (vowel harmony)
지다: To become

Literal meaning: "Become [state]"

Vowel Harmony Rules

Bright Vowels (ㅏ, ㅗ): -아지다

Last vowel is ㅏ or ㅗ:

작다 → 작아지다 (become small)
좋다 → 좋아지다 (become good/better)
많다 → 많아지다 (become many/more)
높다 → 높아지다 (become high/tall)

Dark Vowels: -어지다

Last vowel is NOT ㅏ or ㅗ:

크다 → 커지다 (become big)
적다 → 적어지다 (become few/less)
쉽다 → 쉬워지다 (become easy)
어렵다 → 어려워지다 (become difficult)

하다 Adjectives: -해지다

All 하다 adjectives:

건강하다 → 건강해지다 (become healthy)
행복하다 → 행복해지다 (become happy)
편하다 → 편해지다 (become comfortable)
깨끗하다 → 깨끗해지다 (become clean)

Politeness Levels

Formal (합니다체)

좋아집니다 (becomes good)
커집니다 (becomes big)
행복해집니다 (becomes happy)

Polite (해요체)

좋아져요 (becomes good)
커져요 (becomes big)
행복해져요 (becomes happy)

Casual (반말)

좋아져 (becomes good)
커져 (becomes big)
행복해져 (becomes happy)

Core Meaning: Natural Change

Expressing Transformation

The state changes naturally:

날씨가 좋아져요 (The weather is getting better)
키가 커져요 (Height is getting taller)
한국어가 쉬워져요 (Korean is becoming easier)
날이 추워져요 (The day is becoming cold)

Without -아/어지다: Describes the state

날씨가 좋아요 (The weather is good)
키가 커요 (Height is tall)

With -아/어지다: Describes the change

날씨가 좋아져요 (The weather is becoming good)
키가 커져요 (Height is becoming tall)

Common Usage Patterns

Weather Changes

Natural transitions:

따뜻해져요 (It's getting warm)
추워져요 (It's getting cold)
더워져요 (It's getting hot)
시원해져요 (It's getting cool)
맑아져요 (It's getting clear)

Physical Changes

Body and objects:

커져요 (get bigger)
작아져요 (get smaller)
길어져요 (get longer)
짧아져요 (get shorter)
무거워져요 (get heavier)
가벼워져요 (get lighter)

Emotional Changes

Feelings and moods:

행복해져요 (become happy)
슬퍼져요 (become sad)
화가 나져요 (become angry)
편안해져요 (become comfortable)
불안해져요 (become anxious)

Skill Improvement

Abilities getting better/worse:

실력이 좋아져요 (skill improves)
한국어가 늘어져요 (Korean improves)
발음이 나빠져요 (pronunciation gets worse)

Tense Conjugations

Present Tense

Polite: -아/어져요

좋아져요 (is becoming good)
커져요 (is becoming big)
행복해져요 (is becoming happy)

Past Tense

Polite: -아/어졌어요

좋아졌어요 (became good)
커졌어요 (became big)
행복해졌어요 (became happy)

Future Tense

Polite: -아/어질 거예요

좋아질 거예요 (will become good)
커질 거예요 (will become big)
행복해질 거예요 (will become happy)

Common Expressions

Daily Life

밝아져요 (get bright)
어두워져요 (get dark)
조용해져요 (get quiet)
시끄러워져요 (get noisy)
바빠져요 (get busy)
한가해져요 (get free/idle)

Quantity Changes

많아져요 (increase/get more)
적어져요 (decrease/get less)
늘어져요 (increase)
줄어져요 (decrease)

Quality Changes

나빠져요 (get worse)
좋아져요 (get better)
깨끗해져요 (get clean)
더러워져요 (get dirty)

Time Expressions

늦어져요 (get late)
빨라져요 (get fast/early)
길어져요 (get long - time)
짧아져요 (get short - time)

Causative Form: -게 하다

Making Something Become

-게 하다: To make something become

크게 하다 (make bigger)
좋게 하다 (make better)
행복하게 하다 (make happy)

Compare:

커져요 (becomes big - naturally)
크게 해요 (make it big - intentionally)

Negative Forms

Not Becoming

안 -아/어지다:

안 좋아져요 (is not getting better)
안 커져요 (is not getting bigger)

-아/어지지 않다:

좋아지지 않아요 (is not getting better)
커지지 않아요 (is not getting bigger)

Can't Become

못 -아/어지다 (rare):

못 좋아져요 (can't get better)

Question Forms

Asking About Changes

Is it becoming?:

좋아져요? (Is it getting better?)
커져요? (Is it getting bigger?)
행복해져요? (Are you becoming happy?)

When Will It Change?

언제 -아/어질까요?:

언제 좋아질까요? (When will it get better?)
언제 따뜻해질까요? (When will it get warm?)

Comparison with Similar Patterns

-아/어지다 vs 되다

-아/어지다: Natural gradual change

날씨가 좋아져요 (Weather is getting better)

되다: Become (identity/role change)

의사가 돼요 (Become a doctor)

-아/어지다 vs -게 되다

-아/어지다: Change of state/quality

한국어가 쉬워져요 (Korean is becoming easier)

-게 되다: Come to do something

한국어를 하게 돼요 (Come to speak Korean)

Common Contractions

Casual Speech

져요 often shortened:

좋아져요 → 좋아져 (gets better - casual)
커져요 → 커져 (gets bigger - casual)

Example Dialogues

Dialogue 1: Weather

A: 날씨가 어때요?
(How's the weather?)

B: 점점 따뜻해져요.
(It's gradually getting warmer.)

Dialogue 2: Progress

A: 한국어 공부 어때요?
(How's your Korean study?)

B: 매일 연습해서 쉬워졌어요.
(I practice every day, so it became easier.)

Dialogue 3: Changes

A: 요즘 바빠요?
(Are you busy these days?)

B: 네, 일이 많아졌어요.
(Yes, my work has increased.)

Dialogue 4: Future Change

A: 언제 날씨가 좋아질까요?
(When will the weather get better?)

B: 내일부터 맑아질 거예요.
(It will clear up from tomorrow.)

Common Mistakes

❌ Incorrect: 의사가 되어지다

Using -아/어지다 with 되다

✅ Correct: 의사가 되다

Just use 되다 for role/identity changes

❌ Incorrect: 먹어지다

Using -아/어지다 with action verbs

✅ Correct: Use with adjectives only

-아/어지다 is for adjectives describing states

❌ Incorrect: 좋아지게 하다

Mixing -아/어지다 with causative

✅ Correct: 좋게 하다

Use -게 하다 for causative meaning

Usage Notes

When to Use -아/어지다

Use when:

Describing gradual changes
Natural transitions in state
Environmental changes (weather, time)
Improvements or deteriorations
Quantity increases/decreases

Don't use with:

Action verbs (use other patterns)
Identity changes (use 되다)
Intentional actions (use -게 하다)

Summary Table

Adjective	-아/어지다 Form	Meaning	Past Tense
좋다	좋아지다	become good	좋아졌어요
크다	커지다	become big	커졌어요
쉽다	쉬워지다	become easy	쉬워졌어요
행복하다	행복해지다	become happy	행복해졌어요
많다	많아지다	become more	많아졌어요
추다	추워지다	become cold	추워졌어요
어렵다	어려워지다	become hard	어려워졌어요
깨끗하다	깨끗해지다	become clean	깨끗해졌어요

Key Takeaways

✅ Natural changes: Expresses gradual or completed transformations
✅ Adjectives only: Used with descriptive verbs, not action verbs
✅ Vowel harmony: -아/-어/-해 지다
✅ Very common: Essential for describing changes
✅ All tenses: Works in present, past, and future
✅ Natural feel: Emphasizes organic, non-intentional change

-아/어지다 is essential for describing how things change naturally over time. Master this pattern to express weather changes, personal growth, improvements, and all kinds of transformations in Korean.