Learning grammar is one of the most difficult things for Korean language learners. On this blog, we will try to help you learn Korean grammar in the quickest and easiest way possible. This blog will be helpful for those who are studying the Korean language and want to improve their grammar skills.

Today, we’ll look at how to form sentences using the grammar patterns “Verb/Adj. + 아/어/해도 되다” and “(으)면 되다” with some example sentences.

되다, as you already know, can also mean “to be allowed / to be okay / no problem with something.”
We create the pattern 아/어/해도 되다 by replacing -아/어/해 + 야 with -아/어/해 + 도 after the verb stem. This expresses the meaning “regardless of…”, “it’s okay if…”, or “you may…”.

For example:

• 가다 - 가 + 아도 되다 - 가도 돼요.
• 먹다 - 먹 + 어도 되다 - 먹어도 돼요.

되다 (in the usage described in this lesson) is commonly used after ~아/어/해도 to indicate that there is no problem with the action being done.

For example:

• 일찍 가도 돼요 = It’s okay if you leave early.
• 이거 너무 싸네요. 사도 돼요. - This is so cheap. You can buy it.

The same expression can be used to ask questions. These types of questions typically translate to “May…?” or “Is it alright if…” For example :

• 일찍 가도 돼요 ? - Is it okay to leave early? OR,
• 이거 너무 비싸네요. 사도 돼요? - This is so expensive. Is it okay if I buy it ? 

The final clause of all of these example sentences has been in the present tense. You can conjugate ‘되다’ to indicate that there would have been no problem if any action had been done in the past or future tenses. For example:

• 그때 사도 되었어요 = It would have been okay if you bought at that time.
• 그때 사도 될 거예요 = It will be okay if you buy it at that time.
• 문을 열어도 되었어요 = It would have been okay if you opened the door.
• 문을 열어도 될 거예요 = It will be okay if you open the door.

‘아/어/해도 되다’ is used to give permission, and its opposite form ‘안 아/어/해도 되다’ is used to say that doing something is not necessary.

This typically translates to “it’s okay if one doesn’t…” or “one doesn’t have to…”

For example:
빨리 안 먹어도 돼요 = It’s okay if you don’t eat quickly / You don’t have to eat quickly.

‘(으)면 되다’ is the combination of ‘(으)면’ and ‘되다’. It attaches after an adjective or verb stem.

• When the adjective/verb stem ends with a final consonant, you use ‘으면 되다’.
• When the stem does not have a final consonant, you use ‘면 되다’.

For example :

• Verb ‘먹다 remove ‘다’. Then there is the final consonant. Then you can add ‘으면 되다.’ So it becomes ‘먹으면 되다’
• For the adjective ‘좋다 ’ (to be good).’ Remove 다 and it becomes 좋으면 되다.

When using (으)면 되다, it is formed by attaching (으)면 to a verb or adjective stem, followed by 되다.

• If the verb/adjective stem ends with a final consonant, use 으면 되다.

• If the stem does NOT end with a final consonant, use 면 되다.

• If the stem ends with ㄹ, you also use 면 되다.

For example, take the adjective 길다 (to be long).
Remove 다, and the stem 길 ends with ㄹ, so you add 면 되다, resulting in:

길면 되다

Now let’s compare ‘도 되다’ with ‘(으)면 되다.’
The former expresses “It’s okay regardless of what you do.”
The latter simply means “It’s okay if you do something in a given circumstance.”

Both patterns do not emphasize obligation or necessity.

There is a slight difference in nuance, which you’ll understand better as you listen to conversations and slowly get used to how they’re used in real situations.

Let’s look at some examples.

• 내일 집에 6시까지 와도 돼요.  - Even if you come home by 6 tomorrow, it’s okay.
• 내일 집에 6시까지 오면 돼요. - It’s okay if you come home by 6 tomorrow.

Today we learnt about 아/어/해도 되다 and 아/어/하 (으)면 되다

Learning Korean can be tricky, especially when the goal of your learning is conversation. If you’ve ever attempted to speak Korean but were unable to, then hopefully you’ll find this post helpful.

Thank you for reading. If you have any questions or suggestions. Comment down below.