People who study Korean frequently ask me about these small words, 이/가, 은/는, or 을/를 in the Korean language. Although these markers have little or no meaning by themselves, they distinguish a subject, topic, or object in a Korean sentence. In this post, we will explore the object markers, 을 and 를 in the Korean language.

If you need to review subject markers and topics markers in the Korean language, please follow the link below to review them.

• For 이  and 가  “What Is a Subject Marking Particle?”
• For 은  and 는  “ What Is a Topic Marking Particle?”

These object markers ‘-eul(을)’ and ‘-reul(를)’ are attached to nouns and indicate the object in the sentence. You add 을  to a noun when the noun ends in a consonant, and 를  to a noun when the noun ends in a vowel.

Photo by KLM

*One tip for you to remember about an object in the Korean sentence, unlike English, a Korean object is placed after a subject/topic and before a verb.

ex)          저는     한국어를   공부해요.                  ( I            study     Korean.)

     Korean: Subject + Object +  Verb       ( English: Subject + Verb + Object.)

As I mentioned in the previous posts, native Koreans will understand you without these markers, however using these subject, topic, and object markers will help you to deliver your message in a clearer way.

If you need a little extra practice, please try to fill in the following blanks. Just don’t forget to follow these rules.

(Noun ending in a Consonant) + 을  

 (Noun ending in a Vowel) + 를

1. 저는 한국어____ 공부해요. (I study Korean.)
2. 저는 엑소 _____ 좋아해요. (I like EXO.)
3. 선생님은 음악 ____ 사랑해요. ((MY) Teacher loves music.)
4. 친구가 한국 드라마____ 좋아해요. ((MY) friend likes Korean dramas.)

Are you ready to check your answers?

1. 저는 한국어를 공부해요. (I study Korean.)
2. 저는 엑소를 좋아해요. (I like EXO.)
3. 선생님은 음악을 사랑해요. ((MY) Teacher loves music.)
4. 친구가 한국 드라마를 좋아해요. ((MY) friend likes Korean dramas.)

감사합니다! (Thank you!)