In the last post, we looked at ㅅ ending words in the present tense. Today we’ll look at ㅅ ending words in the past tense.

The verb 짓다 (to build) in the past tense of the standard polite will be 지었어요.

Drop the 다 and ㅅ of 짓다 and add 었어요 to form the past tense of the standard polite.

With 낫다 (to get better from an illness or to be better, excel), it’ll be a little different.

Since 낫다 contains an 아 vowel, it will be conjugated as 나았어요.

In the past tense of the deferential polite, 짓다 will be 지었습니다.

Drop the 다 and ㅅ and add 었습니다.

Do the same for 낫다 and you get 나았습니다.

The past tense of 짓다 in the honorific polite is 지으셨어요.

Drop the 다 and ㅅ and add 으셨어요.

Do the same for 낫다 and you get 나으셨어요.

Just remember that not all ㅅ ending words follow the same dropping of the ㅅ, when conjugating in the present and past tense.

For example 벗다 (to take one’s clothes off) will be conjugated in a normal manner.

So 벗다 will be 벗었어요 in the standard polite past tense,

벗었습니다 in the deferential polite past tense,

and 벗으셨어요 in the honorific polite past tense.

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