ㄹ irregular verbs (ㄹ 불규칙) are verbs whose stem ends in ㄹ and drop this final consonant when followed by certain grammatical endings that start with consonants, specifically ㄴ, ㅂ, or ㅅ.
What Makes Them Irregular
Regular verbs maintain their stem throughout conjugation. ㄹ irregular verbs drop the final ㄹ before specific consonant-starting endings.
Rule
The final ㄹ drops before endings starting with:
- ㄴ (ㄴ/는, -ㄴ다)
- ㅂ (-ㅂ니다, -ㅂ시오)
- ㅅ (-ㅅ니다)
The final ㄹ is kept before:
- Vowel-starting endings (-아/어, -으면, -을)
- Other consonant-starting endings
Common ㄹ Irregular Verbs
Verbs
- 알다 (alda) - to know
- 살다 (salda) - to live
- 팔다 (palda) - to sell
- 만들다 (mandeulda) - to make
- 놀다 (nolda) - to play
- 열다 (yeolda) - to open
- 멀다 (meolda) - to be far
- 길다 (gilda) - to be long
- 불다 (bulda) - to blow
Adjectives
- 달다 (dalda) - to be sweet
- 빠르다 (ppareuda) - to be fast
- 어렵다 (eoryeopda) - to be difficult
- 아름답다 (areumdapda) - to be beautiful
Conjugation Patterns
Pattern 1: ㄹ Drops Before -ㅂ니다/-습니다
Regular verb (먹다 - to eat):
- 먹 + 습니다 → 먹습니다
ㄹ irregular (알다 - to know):
- 알 + ㅂ니다 → 아ㅂ니다 (ㄹ drops)
- 만들 + ㅂ니다 → 만드ㅂ니다 (ㄹ drops)
- 살 + ㅂ니다 → 사ㅂ니다 (ㄹ drops)
Examples:
- 알다 → 압니다 (know)
- 팔다 → 팝니다 (sell)
- 만들다 → 만듭니다 (make)
- 놀다 → 놉니다 (play)
Pattern 2: ㄹ Drops Before -ㄴ/는
Present tense modifier -는:
- 알다 → 아는 (knowing)
- 살다 → 사는 (living)
- 만들다 → 만드는 (making)
- 팔다 → 파는 (selling)
Past tense modifier -ㄴ:
- 알다 → 안 (known)
- 살다 → 산 (lived)
- 만들다 → 만든 (made)
- 열다 → 연 (opened)
Pattern 3: ㄹ Kept Before Vowel Endings
-아/어요 ending:
Since these start with vowels, the ㄹ is kept:
- 알다 → 알 + 아요 → 알아요 (know)
- 살다 → 살 + 아요 → 살아요 (live)
- 만들다 → 만들 + 어요 → 만들어요 (make)
- 팔다 → 팔 + 아요 → 팔아요 (sell)
- 놀다 → 놀 + 아요 → 놀아요 (play)
Pattern 4: ㄹ Kept Before -으면
Conditional -으면:
- 알다 → 알면 (if know)
- 살다 → 살면 (if live)
- 만들다 → 만들면 (if make)
- 멀다 → 멀면 (if far)
Note: After ㄹ, use -면 not -으면 (으 is dropped).
Pattern 5: ㄹ Kept Before -을 거예요
Future -을 거예요:
- 알다 → 알 거예요 (will know)
- 살다 → 살 거예요 (will live)
- 만들다 → 만들 거예요 (will make)
- 팔다 → 팔 거예요 (will sell)
Full Conjugation Example: 알다 (to know)
Formal Polite (-ㅂ니다/습니다)
Present:
- 압니다 (know) - ㄹ drops before ㅂ
Past:
- 알았습니다 (knew) - ㄹ kept before vowel 았
Future:
- 알겠습니다 (will know) - ㄹ kept before 겠
Informal Polite (-아/어요)
Present:
- 알아요 (know) - ㄹ kept before vowel
Past:
- 알았어요 (knew) - ㄹ kept before vowel
Future:
- 알 거예요 (will know) - ㄹ kept before 을
Present Tense Modifiers
-는 (present active):
- 아는 (knowing) - ㄹ drops before ㄴ
-ㄴ/은 (past):
- 안 (known) - ㄹ drops before ㄴ
Full Conjugation Example: 만들다 (to make)
Formal Polite
Present:
- 만듭니다 (make) - ㄹ drops
Past:
- 만들었습니다 (made) - ㄹ kept
Future:
- 만들겠습니다 (will make) - ㄹ kept
Informal Polite
Present:
- 만들어요 (make) - ㄹ kept
Past:
- 만들었어요 (made) - ㄹ kept
Future:
- 만들 거예요 (will make) - ㄹ kept
Present Tense Modifiers
-는:
- 만드는 (making) - ㄹ drops
-ㄴ:
- 만든 (made) - ㄹ drops
Common Expressions
알다 (to know)
- 알아요 (I know)
- 압니다 (I know - formal)
- 아는 사람 (person who knows / acquaintance)
- 몰라요 (I don't know) - from 모르다, not irregular
살다 (to live)
- 살아요 (live)
- 사는 곳 (place where one lives)
- 살았어요 (lived)
만들다 (to make)
- 만들어요 (make)
- 만드는 방법 (method of making)
- 만들었어요 (made)
팔다 (to sell)
- 팔아요 (sell)
- 파는 가게 (store that sells)
- 팔았어요 (sold)
With Different Endings
-고 싶다 (want to)
ㄹ is kept before vowel -고:
- 알고 싶어요 (want to know)
- 만들고 싶어요 (want to make)
- 팔고 싶어요 (want to sell)
-지 않다 (negative)
ㄹ is kept before vowel -지:
- 알지 않아요 (don't know)
- 만들지 않아요 (don't make)
- 살지 않아요 (don't live)
-(으)ㄹ 수 있다 (can)
ㄹ is kept before ㄹ:
- 알 수 있어요 (can know)
- 만들 수 있어요 (can make)
- 팔 수 있어요 (can sell)
-아/어서 (so, because)
ㄹ is kept before vowel:
- 알아서 (because know)
- 만들어서 (because make)
- 멀어서 (because far)
In Relative Clauses
Present modifier -는:
- 아는 사람 (person who knows)
- 사는 집 (house where one lives)
- 파는 물건 (things being sold)
- 만드는 음식 (food being made)
Past modifier -ㄴ/은:
- 안 사람 (person who knew)
- 산 경험 (experience of living)
- 만든 케이크 (cake that was made)
- 연 문 (door that was opened)
Identifying ㄹ Irregular Verbs
Check if verb stem ends in ㄹ:
- 알다 → stem: 알 (ends in ㄹ) ✓
- 살다 → stem: 살 (ends in ㄹ) ✓
- 만들다 → stem: 만들 (ends in ㄹ) ✓
Not all verbs ending in ㄹ are irregular, but most are.
Exceptions: Regular ㄹ Verbs
Some verbs ending in ㄹ follow regular patterns:
- 들다 (to hold) - often regular in some conjugations
- 흐르다 (to flow) - regular
Summary of When ㄹ Drops
Drops before:
- -ㅂ니다/-습니다 (formal present)
- -ㅂ시오 (formal imperative)
- -는 (present modifier)
- -ㄴ (past modifier)
- -ㄴ다 (plain present)
Kept before:
- -아/어요 (polite present/past)
- -았/었 (past tense)
- -겠 (future/will)
- -고 (and)
- -지 (negative)
- -(으)면 (conditional)
- -(으)ㄹ (future modifier)
- -아/어서 (because)
Key Points
- ✅ ㄷ final ㄹ drops before ㄴ, ㅂ, ㅅ
- ✅ ㄹ stays before vowel endings like -아/어요
- ✅ Common verbs: 알다, 살다, 만들다, 팔다, 놀다
- ✅ Present modifier: -는 not -은
- ✅ Formal present: -ㅂ니다 not -습니다
- ✅ Most verbs ending in ㄹ are irregular
Understanding ㄹ irregular verbs is essential for natural Korean conjugation, as these are among the most commonly used verbs in everyday conversation.