I can point to a thing near me, near the other person, and far away — 이 책, 그 가방, 저 볼펜 — and ask “what is it?” and “whose is it?”: 이게 뭐예요? 누구 거예요?
This, that, that over there: 이, 그, 저
This, that, that over there: 이, 그, 저
What for: point to a thing and ask what it is and whose it is.
English has two distances, this and that; Korean has three, counted from the speaker:
• 이 — near me: 이 책.
• 그 — near you, or something already mentioned: 그 책.
• 저 — far from both of us: 저 책.
English “that” covers both 그 and 저. Before a noun they are separate words, with a space. See the table.
Without a noun, add 것 “thing”: 이것, 그것, 저것; in conversation 이거, 그거, 저거. With 이 / 가 they merge: 이것이 → 이게, 그게, 저게. “What is this?” is 이게 뭐예요? (뭐 = 무엇). Answer from where you stand: a thing in the asker's hand is 그것 for the person answering.
Places come in the same three: 여기 “here”, 거기 “there (near you)”, 저기 “over there”.
Whose: 제 책, 서연 씨 책 — in conversation 의 is often dropped. “Whose is it?” is 누구 거예요? — 제 거예요. (거 = 것.) English “whose” is one word; Korean says 누구 거, “whose thing”.
Common mistakes:
• ×이것 책 → 이 책 (with a noun 이, without a noun 이것).
• ×저기 가방 → 저 가방 (저기 is a place, not “that”).
• ×이게 뭐이에요? → 이게 뭐예요? (뭐 ends in a vowel).
Three distances
With 이 / 가: 이것이 → 이게, 그것이 → 그게, 저것이 → 저게.
| Where | + word | without a word | in conversation | place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| near me | 이 책 | 이것 | 이거 | 여기 |
| near you / what was mentioned | 그 책 | 그것 | 그거 | 거기 |
| far from both of us | 저 책 | 저것 | 저거 | 저기 |
Lesson notes
This, that, that over there: 이, 그, 저
What for: point to a thing and ask what it is and whose it is.
English has two distances, this and that; Korean has three, counted from the speaker:
• 이 — near me: 이 책.
• 그 — near you, or something already mentioned: 그 책.
• 저 — far from both of us: 저 책.
English “that” covers both 그 and 저. Before a noun they are separate words, with a space. See the table.
Without a noun, add 것 “thing”: 이것, 그것, 저것; in conversation 이거, 그거, 저거. With 이 / 가 they merge: 이것이 → 이게, 그게, 저게. “What is this?” is 이게 뭐예요? (뭐 = 무엇). Answer from where you stand: a thing in the asker's hand is 그것 for the person answering.
Places come in the same three: 여기 “here”, 거기 “there (near you)”, 저기 “over there”.
Whose: 제 책, 서연 씨 책 — in conversation 의 is often dropped. “Whose is it?” is 누구 거예요? — 제 거예요. (거 = 것.) English “whose” is one word; Korean says 누구 거, “whose thing”.
Common mistakes:
• ×이것 책 → 이 책 (with a noun 이, without a noun 이것).
• ×저기 가방 → 저 가방 (저기 is a place, not “that”).
• ×이게 뭐이에요? → 이게 뭐예요? (뭐 ends in a vowel).