-ㅂ니다/습니다
formal polite present
The formal register: presentations, announcements, interviews, the news. Simpler to form than -아요/어요 — no vowel harmony, no merging — with one irregular stem type.
Build it
Pick a verb
When to use it
The rule has two lines. A stem ending in a vowel takes -ㅂ니다, and the ㅂ tucks into the last syllable: 가 becomes 갑니다. A stem ending in a consonant takes -습니다: 먹 becomes 먹습니다. Questions swap 다 for 까: 갑니까, 먹습니까.
One stem type breaks the pattern. Verbs ending in ㄹ drop it before this ending: 만들다 becomes 만듭니다, not 만들습니다. 살다, 알다, 놀다, 팔다 all behave this way.
Choosing between this and -아요/어요 is a question of setting rather than politeness. Both are polite. -ㅂ니다 creates distance and authority; used with a friend it sounds like a joke or a rebuke. Note also that this ending is written 니다 but pronounced closer to [nida] with the ㅂ assimilating — 갑니다 sounds like [감니다].
How to attach it
| Stem type | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Ends in a vowel | -ㅂ니다 | 가다 → 갑니다 |
| Ends in a consonant | -습니다 | 먹다 → 먹습니다 |
| Ends in ㄹ | ㄹ drops | 만들다 → 만듭니다 |
| 하다 verbs | -ㅂ니다 | 공부하다 → 공부합니다 |
| Question | -ㅂ니까 / -습니까 | 가ㅂ니까? / 먹습니까? |
| 이다 | 입니다 | 학생입니다 |
In use
안녕하십니까? 처음 뵙겠습니다.
Hello. It’s a pleasure to meet you.
지금부터 발표를 시작하겠습니다.
I will now begin the presentation.
어디에서 오셨습니까?
Where have you come from?
감사합니다. 수고하셨습니다.
Thank you. Well done today.
저는 회사원입니다.
I’m an office worker.
내일 다시 연락드리겠습니다.
I’ll contact you again tomorrow.
Compared with
-아요/어요
Same politeness, different distance. Use -ㅂ니다 when you are addressing a room, a customer, or a superior in a formal setting; use -아요 for ordinary conversation, including with people you respect.
발표를 시작하겠습니다. (to an audience) / 이제 시작해요. (to a colleague)
-(으)십시오
The formal imperative that belongs with this register. Its everyday counterpart is -(으)세요, which pairs with -아요/어요.
이쪽으로 오십시오. (formal) / 이쪽으로 오세요. (everyday)
Mixed registers
Korean speakers do move between the two inside one conversation, softening a formal talk with occasional -아요. What sounds wrong is switching mid-sentence or mid-thought.
감사합니다. 그럼 시작할게요. (natural) / 감사해요. 그럼 시작하겠습니다. (jarring)
Watch out
이 제품은 한국에서 만들습니다.
이 제품은 한국에서 만듭니다.
Stems ending in ㄹ drop it before -ㅂ니다. The same applies to 삽니다, 압니다, 놉니다, 팝니다.
저는 학교에 가습니다.
저는 학교에 갑니다.
가 ends in a vowel, so it takes -ㅂ니다 and the ㅂ joins the syllable. -습니다 is only for consonant stems.
친구야, 우리 밥 먹습니다.
친구야, 우리 밥 먹자.
The formal ending clashes with casual address. Register has to stay consistent across the whole sentence.
Next
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