Describing Your Daily Routine in Korean: Verbs, Time, and Particles
Describing Your Daily Routine in Korean
Talking about your daily routine is one of the most useful real-world skills you'll build in the first few months of Korean study. Unit 4 covers this topic, combining present tense verb conjugation with time expressions and location particles.
Morning Routine Vocabulary
| Korean | Romanization | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 일어나다 | ireonada | To wake up / get up |
| 씻다 | ssitda | To wash |
| 세수하다 | sesuhada | To wash your face |
| 샤워하다 | syawohada | To shower |
| 옷을 입다 | oseul ipda | To get dressed |
| 아침을 먹다 | achimeul meokda | To eat breakfast |
| 출근하다 | chulgeunhada | To go to work |
| 등교하다 | deunggyohada | To go to school |
Time Expressions
Korean uses two number systems for time. Hours use Native Korean numbers, minutes use Sino-Korean:
- 7시 (ilgop si) — 7 o'clock
- 7시 30분 (ilgop si samsip bun) — 7:30
- 7시 반 (ilgop si ban) — 7:30 (casual)
Time words that connect your routine:
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 아침에 | In the morning |
| 오후에 | In the afternoon |
| 저녁에 | In the evening |
| 밤에 | At night |
| 먼저 | First |
| 그리고 | And then |
| 그 다음에 | After that |
| 보통 | Usually |
| 매일 | Every day |
Building Sentences: Time + Place + Action
A daily routine sentence follows this pattern:
Time + Place + Object + Verb
- 아침 7시에 일어나요. (I wake up at 7 AM.)
- 8시에 학교에서 공부해요. (I study at school at 8.)
- 저녁에 집에서 한국어를 공부해요. (I study Korean at home in the evening.)
Location Particles: 에 vs 에서
This is where many learners get confused:
-
에 = destination or static location (where something exists)
- 학교에 가요 (I go to school)
- 집에 있어요 (I'm at home)
-
에서 = where an action happens
- 학교에서 공부해요 (I study at school)
- 카페에서 커피를 마셔요 (I drink coffee at the cafe)
Rule of thumb: If you're doing something there → 에서. If you're just going there or being there → 에.
Sample Daily Routine
Here's a complete routine you can practice:
저는 보통 아침 7시에 일어나요. (I usually wake up at 7 AM.)
먼저 세수하고 옷을 입어요. (First I wash my face and get dressed.)
8시에 아침을 먹어요. (I eat breakfast at 8.)
9시에 학교에 가요. (I go to school at 9.)
학교에서 한국어를 공부해요. (I study Korean at school.)
12시에 점심을 먹어요. (I eat lunch at 12.)
오후에 도서관에서 숙제를 해요. (In the afternoon I do homework at the library.)
6시에 집에 가요. (I go home at 6.)
저녁에 운동해요. (I exercise in the evening.)
밤 11시에 자요. (I sleep at 11 PM.)
The Conjunction -고 (and then)
To connect two actions by the same person, use -고:
- 세수하고 옷을 입어요 (I wash my face and get dressed)
- 아침을 먹고 학교에 가요 (I eat breakfast and then go to school)
- 운동하고 샤워해요 (I exercise and then shower)
Simply attach -고 to the verb stem (remove 다, add 고). No vowel harmony rules to worry about.
Practice on Chamelingo
Unit 4's daily life exercises include sentence building where you arrange time + place + verb into correct Korean sentences, dialogue exercises where you describe your routine to the AI tutor, and listening comprehension where you hear someone's schedule and answer questions about it. The tap-to-build exercise type is especially effective here — you see English "I study Korean at the library" and tap Korean tokens in the correct SOV order to build the sentence.
Two grammar points are essential for daily routine sentences: the -아요/어요 present tense for describing what you do, and the -고 conjunction for chaining actions together like "I eat breakfast and go to school." Practice both with interactive exercises.