-아/어서 (and)

-아/어서 (and)

-아/어서 is used to connect endings, indicating a temporal prior relationship. So, it’s used to indicate the occurrence of the action in the first clause and the action in the second clause.

You have already learned –고 나서 (and), which is similar to -아/어서, but it is also a bit different. The difference between –고 나서 and 아/어서 is that 아/어서 focuses on representing behavior in chronological order, while '-고 나서' focuses on indicating that the preceding behavior is over.

*When used with verbs related to the ‘wearing of clothes and accessories (e.g., 입다 or 쓰다)', -고 is used instead of 아/어서.

• 저는 안경을 써서 공부해요. (incorrect)
• 저는 안경을 쓰고 공부해요. (correct) -I study with glasses on.

*아/어서 is normally used with some specific verbs.

• 가다 = to go
• 오다 = to come,
• 올라가다 = to go up
• 내려가다 = to go down
• 일어나다 = to wake up
• 앉다 = to sit,
• 눕다 = to lie down
• 만나다 = to meet

1. When the word ends with 'ㅏ' or 'ㅗ', use '아서'.

가다 (to go)

1. 가다 -> 가
2. 가 + 아서
3. 가서.

만나다 (to meet)

1. 만나다 -> 만나
2. 만나 + 아서
3. 만나서.

오다 (to come)

1. 오다 -> 오
2. 오 + 아서
3. 와서.

• 학원에 가서 그 친구를 만났어요. (I met that friend at the academy.)
• 동생을 만나서 영화관에 갔어요. (I met my younger sibling and went to the movie theater.)
• 여자친구가 부산에 와서 같이 놀았어요 (My girlfriend came to Busan, and we hung out together.)

2. When the word ends with a vowel other than 'ㅏ' or 'ㅗ', use '어서'.

펴다 (to unfold)

1. 펴다 -> 펴
2. 펴 + 어서
3. 펴서.

들다 (to pick up)

1. 들다 -> 들
2. 들 + 어서
3. 들어서.

열다 (to open)

1. 열다 -> 열
2. 열 + 어서
3. 열어서.

• 지도를 펴서 여행 계획을 세웠어요. (I unfolded the map and made a travel plan.)
• 책을 들어서 읽고 있어요. (I'm reading a book that I picked up.)
• 문을 열어서 쓰레기를 버렸어요. (I opened the door and threw away the trash.)