I can say what I do for a living and what I'm NOT, ask “who is this?” and “what's your job?”, and answer “yes” or “no”, choosing 이 아니에요 or 가 아니에요 by the last sound.
Not a student: 이 아니에요 / 가 아니에요
Not a student: 이 아니에요 / 가 아니에요
What for: to say what you are NOT and correct the other person.
“Is not” after a noun is a particle + 아니에요: after a 받침, 이 아니에요 (학생이 아니에요); after a vowel, 가 아니에요 (의사가 아니에요). It's chosen like 이에요 / 예요, by the last sound.
An answer starts with 네 (“yes”) or 아니요 (“no”). 아니요 is the answer word “no”; 아니에요 is the predicate “is not”, at the end of a full answer, after 이/가: 아니요, 배우가 아니에요. 가수예요.
The question word goes where the answer will be, not first as in English, and takes 이에요 / 예요: 직업은 뭐예요? — 의사예요. 누구예요? — 저예요, 현우예요. Choose by what you ask about: 직업 and 이름 are “what” (뭐); the person is 누구. To ask “What do you do?”, say 직업이 뭐예요?
선생님 means “teacher” and is also a polite address for an older person: 최 선생님 is the teacher 최현우, and the doctor 정유진 is also called 정 선생님. “Really?” is the set phrase 그래요? (we don't analyze it yet).
Common mistakes:
• NOT “안 학생이에요” → 학생이 아니에요 (안 doesn't go with a noun).
• NOT “저는 학생 아니요” → 저는 학생이 아니에요 (아니요 is only an answer).
• NOT “의사이 아니에요” → 의사가 아니에요.
• NOT “회사원가 아니에요” → 회사원이 아니에요.
“Is”, “is not”, question
The particle before 아니에요 is chosen the same way as “to be”: by the last sound.
| Form | after a 받침: 학생 | after a vowel: 의사 |
|---|---|---|
| + is | 학생이에요 | 의사예요 |
| − is not | 학생이 아니에요 | 의사가 아니에요 |
| ? question | 학생이에요? | 의사예요? |
Occupations
Learn each word with its last sound: it decides 이에요 or 예요, 이 or 가.
| Word | In English |
|---|---|
| 대학생 | college student |
| 선생님 | teacher, instructor |
| 회사원 | office worker |
| 직원 | employee, staff member |
| 의사 | doctor |
| 가수 | singer |
| 배우 | actor |
| 영화배우 | movie actor |
| 주부 | housewife, homemaker |
| 공무원 | civil servant |
| 요리사 | cook |
Lesson notes
Not a student: 이 아니에요 / 가 아니에요
What for: to say what you are NOT and correct the other person.
“Is not” after a noun is a particle + 아니에요: after a 받침, 이 아니에요 (학생이 아니에요); after a vowel, 가 아니에요 (의사가 아니에요). It's chosen like 이에요 / 예요, by the last sound.
An answer starts with 네 (“yes”) or 아니요 (“no”). 아니요 is the answer word “no”; 아니에요 is the predicate “is not”, at the end of a full answer, after 이/가: 아니요, 배우가 아니에요. 가수예요.
The question word goes where the answer will be, not first as in English, and takes 이에요 / 예요: 직업은 뭐예요? — 의사예요. 누구예요? — 저예요, 현우예요. Choose by what you ask about: 직업 and 이름 are “what” (뭐); the person is 누구. To ask “What do you do?”, say 직업이 뭐예요?
선생님 means “teacher” and is also a polite address for an older person: 최 선생님 is the teacher 최현우, and the doctor 정유진 is also called 정 선생님. “Really?” is the set phrase 그래요? (we don't analyze it yet).
Common mistakes:
• NOT “안 학생이에요” → 학생이 아니에요 (안 doesn't go with a noun).
• NOT “저는 학생 아니요” → 저는 학생이 아니에요 (아니요 is only an answer).
• NOT “의사이 아니에요” → 의사가 아니에요.
• NOT “회사원가 아니에요” → 회사원이 아니에요.