-면 - If/When (natural)

-면 expresses natural conditions and hypothetical situations. It means "if" or "when" and introduces a condition that leads to a consequence.

Structure

Verb/Adjective stem + -(으)면

Breakdown:

• -(으)면: Conditional ending
• Attaches directly to verb/adjective stems

Literal meaning: "If/when [condition], then [result]"

Formation Rules

Stems Ending in Vowel: -면

No final consonant:

• 가다 → 가면 (if/when go)
• 오다 → 오면 (if/when come)
• 크다 → 크면 (if/when big)
• 예쁘다 → 예쁘면 (if/when pretty)

Stems Ending in Consonant: -으면

Has final consonant:

• 먹다 → 먹으면 (if/when eat)
• 입다 → 입으면 (if/when wear)
• 듣다 → 들으면 (if/when listen)
• 작다 → 작으면 (if/when small)

ㄹ Irregular: Drop ㄹ + -면

Stems ending in ㄹ:

• 살다 → 사(ㄹ)면 → 살면 (if/when live)
• 만들다 → 만들면 (if/when make)
• 팔다 → 팔면 (if/when sell)

하다 Verbs: -하면

All 하다 verbs:

• 공부하다 → 공부하면 (if/when study)
• 일하다 → 일하면 (if/when work)
• 사랑하다 → 사랑하면 (if/when love)

Core Meaning: Natural Conditions

Real Conditions

Likely or possible situations:

• 비가 오면 집에 있을게요 (If it rains, I'll stay home)
• 시간이 있으면 만나요 (If you have time, let's meet)
• 배고프면 먹어요 (If you're hungry, eat)

Habitual "When"

Regular occurrences:

• 아침에 일어나면 커피를 마셔요 (When I wake up in the morning, I drink coffee)
• 집에 가면 샤워해요 (When I go home, I shower)
• 주말이 되면 쉬어요 (When it becomes weekend, I rest)

Hypothetical Situations

Imaginary scenarios:

• 돈이 많으면 좋겠어요 (I wish I had a lot of money - lit. If I had money, it would be good)
• 한국에 가면 뭐 할 거예요? (What will you do if you go to Korea?)
• 시간을 되돌릴 수 있으면... (If I could turn back time...)

Common Usage Patterns

Cause and Effect

Natural consequences:

• 열심히 공부하면 성공해요 (If you study hard, you'll succeed)
• 운동하면 건강해져요 (If you exercise, you become healthy)
• 많이 먹으면 배불러요 (If you eat a lot, you get full)

Requests and Suggestions

Conditional requests:

• 시간 있으면 도와주세요 (If you have time, please help)
• 괜찮으면 같이 가요 (If it's okay, let's go together)
• 필요하면 말해요 (If you need it, tell me)

Questions

Asking about conditions:

• 뭐 먹고 싶으면 말해요 (If you want to eat something, tell me)
• 어디 가면 돼요? (Where should I go? - lit. If I go where, will it be okay?)
• 언제 오면 좋아요? (When should I come? - lit. If I come when, is it good?)

Tense with -면

Present/Future Reference

Most common usage:

• 내일 비가 오면 안 가요 (If it rains tomorrow, I won't go)
• 지금 가면 늦어요 (If you go now, you'll be late)

Past Reference: -(았/었)으면

Counterfactual past:

• 공부했으면 합격했을 거예요 (If you had studied, you would have passed)
• 일찍 왔으면 만났을 텐데 (If you had come early, we would have met)

Common Expressions

Daily Conditions

• 시간 있으면 전화해요 (If you have time, call me)
• 배고프면 먹어요 (If you're hungry, eat)
• 피곤하면 쉬어요 (If you're tired, rest)
• 아프면 병원에 가요 (If you're sick, go to the hospital)

Polite Requests

• 괜찮으면 질문 있어요 (If it's okay, I have a question)
• 시간 되면 만나요 (If you have time, let's meet)
• 좋으면 같이 해요 (If you'd like, let's do it together)

Weather and Situations

• 날씨가 좋으면 산책해요 (If the weather is nice, I'll walk)
• 눈이 오면 예뻐요 (If/when it snows, it's beautiful)
• 주말이 오면 쉬어요 (When the weekend comes, I rest)

Politeness Levels

Formal (합니다체)

• 시간이 있으면 연락하겠습니다 (If I have time, I'll contact you)
• 질문이 있으면 말씀하십시오 (If you have questions, please speak)

Polite (해요체)

• 시간 있으면 연락할게요 (If I have time, I'll contact you)
• 괜찮으면 도와줄게요 (If it's okay, I'll help you)

Casual (반말)

• 시간 있으면 연락할게 (If I have time, I'll contact you)
• 괜찮으면 도와줄게 (If it's okay, I'll help you)

Negative Forms

Negative Condition

안 + Verb + -면:

• 안 오면 연락해요 (If you don't come, contact me)
• 안 좋으면 바꿔요 (If it's not good, change it)

Verb + -지 않으면:

• 오지 않으면 연락해요 (If you don't come, contact me)
• 좋지 않으면 바꿔요 (If it's not good, change it)

Can't/Unable

못 + Verb + -면:

• 못 가면 미리 말해요 (If you can't go, tell me in advance)
• 못 먹으면 다른 거 시켜요 (If you can't eat it, order something else)

Special Pattern: -면 되다

"It's okay if" / "You just need to"

Expressing sufficiency:

• 10시까지 오면 돼요 (You just need to come by 10)
• 이름만 쓰면 돼요 (You just need to write your name)
• 여기서 기다리면 돼요 (You just need to wait here)

Question form:

• 뭐 하면 돼요? (What should I do? - lit. If I do what, will it be okay?)
• 어떻게 하면 돼요? (How should I do it?)
• 어디 가면 돼요? (Where should I go?)

-면 vs Similar Patterns

-면 vs -(으)니까

-면: Neutral condition (if/when)

• 비가 오면 우산 써요 (If it rains, use an umbrella)

-(으)니까: Emphasizes cause/reason (since/because)

• 비가 오니까 우산 써요 (Since it's raining, use an umbrella)

-면 vs -아/어서

-면: Condition (if/when)

• 돈이 있으면 살게요 (If I have money, I'll buy it)

-아/어서: Sequential action/cause

• 돈이 있어서 샀어요 (I had money, so I bought it)

Question Forms

Seeking Conditions

• 어떻게 하면 돼요? (What should I do? / How do I do it?)
• 뭐 먹으면 좋아요? (What should I eat? / What would be good to eat?)
• 언제 가면 좋을까요? (When should I go? / When would be good to go?)

Hypothetical Questions

• 1억 원이 생기면 뭐 할 거예요? (If you got 100 million won, what would you do?)
• 한국에 살면 어떨까요? (What would it be like if you lived in Korea?)

Summary Table

Verb Type	Stem	-면 Form	Meaning
Vowel ending	가다	가면	if/when go
Consonant	먹다	먹으면	if/when eat
ㄹ irregular	살다	살면	if/when live
하다 verb	공부하다	공부하면	if/when study
Adjective (vowel)	크다	크면	if/when big
Adjective (consonant)	작다	작으면	if/when small

Key Takeaways

• ✅ Natural conditions: If/when something happens
• ✅ Habitual actions: Regular "when" statements
• ✅ Hypothetical situations: Imaginary scenarios
• ✅ Simple formation: -(으)면 based on final consonant
• ✅ Very common: Essential daily expression
• ✅ Neutral tone: Neither formal nor casual

-면 is one of the most fundamental and frequently used grammatical patterns in Korean, essential for expressing conditions, making suggestions, and discussing possibilities in everyday conversation.