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Explanation

Intention before another action.

Common spoken purpose.

Start with “먹으려고 앉았어요.” (I sat down to eat.). Say the whole sentence first, then identify exactly what -(으)려고 contributes before changing any other words.

Compare “사려고 해요.” with “자려고 해요.”. Keep the function of -(으)려고 the same while noticing what changes around it; then rebuild one of the examples with vocabulary you already know.

Examples

먹으려고 앉았어요.

I sat down to eat.

사려고 해요.

I intend to buy it.

자려고 해요.

I'm about to sleep.

Common mistakes

  • Do not choose -(으)려고 only because an English translation contains “intending to”. Check the Korean function, attachment, and speech level in the full sentence.
  • Do not memorize -(으)려고 as an isolated ending. Mark the stem or phrase it attaches to in one example, then rebuild that example with new vocabulary.

How to practice

  1. Production check: say “먹으려고 앉았어요.” naturally, then change one content word without changing the job -(으)려고 is doing.
  2. When a related pattern is listed below, compare both forms in the same situation instead of memorizing two English glosses separately.

Related

Core grammar guides: 동사 + -(으)려고 하다Core grammar mapMore grammar patternsParticle checker

Keep learning

-는데-잖아요밖에조차마저뿐이다아서/어서 vs (으)니까-고 있어요

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