Last time, we learned about the polite, formal ending -입니다(입니까) that comes after a predicate noun (“I am *a doctor”).
Now, let’s talk about what to put after the predicate adjective in “Subject+Verb+Complement(Adjective)” sentences such as “She is cute,” “He is handsome,” “You are mean,” etc. All you need is -ㅂ니다/습니다.
■ The stem of an adjective + -ㅂ니다/습니다 = the polite, formal sentence ending after the predicate adjective
*What’s the “stem (어간)”?
Unlike adding -입니다 after a noun, adding -ㅂ니다/습니다 after an adjective requires a bit of more work. But it’s not that complicated at all. You need to find the stem(어간) of a word first, then add either -ㅂ니다 or 습니다 depending on whether it ends in a vowel or a consonant.
Figuring out the stem is super easy. All you need to do is take out -다 from the base form of a word. (Every Korean verb and adjective in the base form ends in -다)
Let’s take 예쁘다 (“to be pretty”) for example. To get the stem of it, you just need to get rid of 다. Therefore, 예쁘 is the stem. In a similar vein, the stem of 멋지다 (“to be cool”) is 멋지 and 춥다 (“to be cold”) is 춥.
예쁘다->예쁘(다)
멋지다->멋지(다)
춥다->춥(다)
If you understood it, the rest would be easy. -ㅂ니다 follows a stem that ends in a vowel, and -습니다 follows a stem that ends in a consonant.
예쁘(ㅃ+*ㅡ)+ㅂ니다 => 예쁩니다
멋지(ㅈ+*ㅣ)+ㅂ니다 => 멋집니다
춥 (ㅊ+ㅜ+*ㅂ)+습니다 => 춥습니다
Pretty simple, right? That’s how you conjugate the predicate adjective in a polite, formal tone!
그녀는 착합니다. (착하다 -> 착하+ㅂ니다)
=She is warm-hearted.
날씨는 덥습니다 (덥다-> 덥+습니다)
=The weather is hot.
■Summary
1.-ㅂ니다/습니다 is a formal, polite ending that follows the predicate adjective. (She is *hot.)
2.-ㅂ니다 comes after a vowel, and -습니다 comes after a consonant.
3. You can get the adjective stem by taking out 다 in its base form. Every Korean verb and adjective in the base form ends in 다 (예쁘*다, 춥*다).
Thanks for reading, guys 😁! Next time, I will talk about verb conjugation in the present tense and the object case particle.