Intermediate · Everyday Korean
Make plans in Korean: suggest a time, respond and confirm
Use -(으)ㄹ까요 to suggest a plan, offer an alternative, and confirm your own next step with -(으)ㄹ게요.
Turn a suggestion into a plan both people understand
“Shall we study together?” opens a conversation. It does not settle the time, place, or who will bring the materials. This lesson follows those next few turns so you can move from an idea to a clear arrangement.
You should already be comfortable reading Hangul and using short polite sentences. We will combine a suggestion, a considerate refusal, a different time, and a commitment. Review the polite verb guide if identifying a verb stem is still difficult. The Intermediate label describes the connected conversation task, not an exam level.
Invite the other person to decide with you
| Purpose | Korean | Natural English |
|---|---|---|
| Suggest an activity | 토요일에 같이 공부할까요? | Shall we study together on Saturday? |
| Ask for a time | 몇 시에 만날까요? | What time shall we meet? |
| Ask for a place | 어디에서 만날까요? | Where shall we meet? |
| Suggest a different day | 일요일은 어때요? | How about Sunday? |
In these examples, -(으)ㄹ까요 invites the listener’s view on an action you may take together. 같이 means “together” and makes the shared activity explicit. 우리 can do something similar: 우리 같이 점심 먹을까요? — “Shall we have lunch together?”
English does not always use “shall” in everyday conversation. Depending on the speakers, “Want to study together on Saturday?” may sound more natural. The important point is that you are putting the plan forward for a response, rather than announcing that the other person has already agreed.
Build the suggestion from the stem
| Dictionary form | Stem | Suggestion |
|---|---|---|
| 가다 | 가 | 갈까요? |
| 먹다 | 먹 | 먹을까요? |
| 만나다 | 만나 | 만날까요? |
| 만들다 | 만들 | 만들까요? |
| 공부하다 | 공부하 | 공부할까요? |
Remove 다 to find the stem. After a vowel, add ㄹ까요: 가 → 갈까요. After most final consonants, add 을까요: 먹 → 먹을까요. When the stem already ends in ㄹ, add 까요 without another ㄹ or 으: 만들 → 만들까요. Other irregular stems may change; use the checked forms here before extending the pattern.
Write the ending as part of the verb, with no space before 까요. Keep it separate from a preceding word such as 같이: 같이 공부할까요? The 요 ending makes the question polite conversational Korean; the relationship and the favour involved still matter.
Negotiate one study session
| Speaker | Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Mina | 토요일 오전에 같이 공부할까요? | Shall we study together on Saturday morning? |
| Alex | 좋아요. 그런데 오전에는 약속이 있어요. | That sounds good. But I have plans in the morning. |
| Alex | 오후 세 시는 어때요? | How about three in the afternoon? |
| Mina | 네, 세 시 괜찮아요. 어디에서 만날까요? | Yes, three works. Where shall we meet? |
| Alex | 도서관 앞에서 만나요. | Let’s meet in front of the library. |
| Mina | 그럼 토요일 오후 세 시에 도서관 앞에서 만나요. | Then let’s meet in front of the library at three on Saturday afternoon. |
| Alex | 네. 제가 자료를 준비할게요. | Okay. I will prepare the materials. |
Mina and Alex are fictional classmates using polite speech. Alex accepts the idea of studying together but changes the proposed time. 그런데 introduces the complication. A positive 좋아요 at the beginning does not cancel the information that follows it.
The final confirmation repeats three details: 토요일, 오후 세 시, and 도서관 앞. “The library” alone may be too vague if there is more than one library or entrance. In your own plan, name a meeting point you can both identify.
에 follows the time; 에서 identifies where the meeting happens. 세 시 uses the shortened counting form 세 before 시. Use the numbers guide to review hours and minutes.
Respond without leaving the plan unclear
| What you mean | Korean | How it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Agree to the proposed time | 네, 그 시간 괜찮아요. | Yes, that time works for me. |
| Decline today and suggest tomorrow | 오늘은 어려워요. 내일은 어때요? | Today is difficult for me. How about tomorrow? |
| You need to check first | 일정을 확인하고 다시 연락할게요. | I will check my schedule and get back to you. |
| You cannot join this time | 이번에는 같이 못 가요. | I cannot go with you this time. |
어려워요 can soften a reply about a plan that is difficult to manage. It does not tell the other person which time would work instead. Add an alternative when you want one, or make clear that you cannot join.
“I will check and get back to you” leaves the arrangement pending. If a decision is needed soon, agree on when to respond. A considerate message can be brief; you do not have to invent an elaborate excuse. After a refusal, offer room for the other person to decide rather than repeatedly asking the same question.
Use -(으)ㄹ게요 for the step you will take
| Ask for input | State your next step | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| 제가 예약할까요? | 제가 예약할게요. | Shall I make the reservation? / I will make it. |
| 제가 자료를 보낼까요? | 제가 자료를 보낼게요. | Shall I send the materials? / I will send them. |
| 여기에서 기다릴까요? | 여기에서 기다릴게요. | Shall I wait here? / I will wait here. |
With 제가, the -(으)ㄹ까요 question asks for input about the speaker’s own action. The same ending therefore need not always mean “Shall we?” Identify who will do the action.
-(으)ㄹ게요 expresses a speaker’s intention or commitment in relation to the listener. In our conversation, Alex takes responsibility for the materials. It is not a general replacement for every English “will,” and it does not announce another person’s private decision. If you are unsure whether a reservation is wanted, ask before promising to make one.
Write 할게요, not 할께요. The spelling uses ㄱ, even though the sound in this ending is tense. With a ㄹ-final stem, add 게요 directly: 만들다 → 만들게요. The forms in the table are complete phrases you can practise as they are.
Not every -(으)ㄹ까요 question is an invitation
내일 비가 올까요? means “Do you think it will rain tomorrow?” The speaker is asking about a possibility, not inviting the listener to make rain happen. The subject and the situation decide how the question works.
Keep three examples in mind: 같이 공부할까요? proposes a shared activity; 제가 예약할까요? offers the speaker’s action for discussion; 내일 비가 올까요? asks about a future possibility. Learning one English translation for the ending would hide these differences.
Finish the conversation
- Make a polite suggestion from 먹다: “Shall we eat?”
- Choose 만들까요 or 만들을까요 from 만들다.
- Alex says 좋아요, then explains that Saturday morning is unavailable. Has Alex agreed to the morning?
- The agreed time is Saturday at 3 p.m., outside the library. Confirm the plan in Korean.
- You want to ask whether you should book. Choose 제가 예약할까요? or 제가 예약할게요.
- You have agreed to send the materials. State that commitment.
- Does 내일 비가 올까요? ask the other person to join an activity?
Check the answers and explanations
- 먹을까요? 먹 ends in a consonant, so add 을까요. 같이 먹을까요? makes eating together explicit.
- 만들까요. A ㄹ-final stem keeps that ㄹ and adds 까요.
- No. Alex agrees to the activity but proposes another time. Listen to the entire reply.
- 토요일 오후 세 시에 도서관 앞에서 만나요. It repeats the day, time and meeting point.
- 제가 예약할까요? It asks for the listener’s input before the action is settled.
- 제가 자료를 보낼게요. The speaker takes responsibility for sending them.
- No. It asks for a view about whether it will rain. The same ending has a possibility use.
Write a four-message exchange for a different plan: suggest, change one detail, agree, and confirm. Then add one thing you will do to help. If you need to ask whether an action is permitted, continue with the permission lesson.
A small listening check
Pronunciation help: Distinguish a question from a commitment
Listen to the ending after 보낼. The contrast is 까요 versus 게요, not the object 자료. Keep the meaning of the whole turn in view.
Listen and choose
Play the sound, then select the Korean you heard. The answer buttons unlock after playback. This is one short practice item, not a pronunciation assessment.
Listen before choosing.
Grammar references and further practice
- How to Study Korean: -(으)ㄹ까요 and -(으)ㄹ게요 — Questions to a listener, the speaker’s own action and future possibility.
- You Speak Korean! Book 2, lesson 17 — A university-hosted lesson on questions, suggestions and invitations with -(으)ㄹ까(요).
Reviewed September 3, 2026. Found a mistake? Send a correction.