What Does 하다 Mean? The Most Useful Verb in Korean
Written and reviewed by Jun and Jin, native Korean speakers
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After this page, you can turn a noun into a verb with 하다 (hada), conjugate it, and place 안 and 못 correctly.
10-second answer
What Does 하다 Mean?
하다 (hada) means "to do." On its own it's a complete, common verb — but its real power is combining with nouns to instantly create new verbs: noun + 하다 = "to [noun]." Learn 하다 once, and you unlock hundreds of verbs for free.
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1. 여행 means "travel." What does 여행하다 mean?
하다! This tiny verb builds hundreds of Korean words.
Quick Examples
뭐 해요?
mwo haeyo?
What are you doing?
하다 alone, conjugated as 해요.
공부해요.
gongbuhaeyo.
I'm studying.
공부 (study) + 하다 = 공부하다 (to study).
사랑해요.
saranghaeyo.
I love you.
사랑 (love) + 하다 = 사랑하다 (to love).
See also: 안 vs 못 — two ways to say 'not'
The Formula: Noun + 하다 = New Verb
| Noun | + 하다 = | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 공부 (study) | 공부하다 | to study |
| 운동 (exercise) | 운동하다 | to exercise |
| 일 (work) | 일하다 | to work |
| 요리 (cooking) | 요리하다 | to cook |
| 여행 (travel) | 여행하다 | to travel |
| 사랑 (love) | 사랑하다 | to love |
This is one of the most productive patterns in Korean — thousands of nouns (many borrowed from Chinese or English) can become verbs this way. 쇼핑하다 (to shop), 게임하다 (to game) — even English loanwords plug straight in.
Conjugating 하다
| Form | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Polite present | 해요 |
| Polite past | 했어요 |
| Formal present | 합니다 |
| Casual | 해 |
하다 is irregular in a helpful way — once you memorize 해(요), every 하다-compound verb conjugates the exact same way: 공부해요, 운동해요, 사랑해요 — same ending, different noun in front.
Remember: 안/못 Go Between the Noun and 하다
운동 못 해요.
I can't exercise.
When 안 Goes in Front — and 못 해요 vs 못해요
The rule above — 안 and 못 slot between the noun and 하다 — works for action verbs like 공부하다 and 운동하다. It doesn't carry over to 하다 words that describe a state. Adjectives such as 깨끗하다 (clean), 조용하다 (quiet) and 피곤하다 (tired) can't be split: in everyday speech 안 goes in front of the whole word, though for some, like 깨끗하다, the long form -지 않다 is the grammatically correct choice. 좋아하다, which isn't noun + 하다 at all, also takes 안 in front.
방이 안 깨끗해요.
bang-i an kkaekkeutaeyo.
The room isn't clean.
Fine in everyday conversation. Never 깨끗 안 해요 — 깨끗 isn't a noun you can split off.
방이 깨끗하지 않아요.
bang-i kkaekkeutaji anayo.
The room isn't clean.
The grammatically correct form — use this one in writing and careful speech.
저는 매운 음식을 안 좋아해요.
jeoneun maeun eumsigeul an joahaeyo.
I don't like spicy food.
좋아하다 is 좋다 + -아하다, so 안 goes in front (see 좋다 vs 좋아하다).
저는 요리를 못해요.
jeoneun yorireul motaeyo.
I'm bad at cooking.
Written as one word, 못하다 means "can't do it well / lacks the skill" — the Standard Korean Language Dictionary's example is 노래를 못하다, "to be bad at singing."
오늘은 요리 못 해요.
oneureun yori mot haeyo.
I can't cook today.
With a space, 못 하다 means something is stopping you right now — no time, no ingredients.
The last two sound identical, so in speech the context carries the meaning. In writing, the space is the difference between "I can't right now" and "I'm no good at it." The rest of the negation system is on 안 vs 못, and -지 않다 is the longer way to say 안 — for 깨끗하다, the grammatically correct one: 깨끗하지 않아요.
Common Mistakes
Mistake #1 — Trying to memorize every verb separately
Once you know a topic noun (공부, 운동, 일, 여행…) you often already have the verb — just add 해요.
Mistake #2 — Thinking 공부를 하다 is wrong
공부하다 is one verb, but you can also split it with the object particle: 공부를 해요. Both are correct and equally polite — and the split form is where a word like 많이 can slide in: 공부를 많이 해요.
One 하다 adjective that trips learners up is 편하다 (pyeonhada), 'convenient' and 'comfortable' at once.
Mini Quiz
2 short questions — about 1 minute
2. How do you say "I'm not exercising"?
3. What's the polite present-tense form of 하다?
Part of Korean Grammar Basics — Particles, Tense, and Negation
Related Knowledge
Learn Next
Korean Present Tense: -아요/-어요 Explained
You've seen 해요 everywhere — now see the full pattern that builds it and every other polite present-tense verb.
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