📘 Grammar 22: How to Use ~으려고 하다 – Expressing Intention or Plan in Korean

📘 How to Use ~으려고 하다 – Expressing Intention or Plan in Korean

Want to say “I plan to study”, “She is going to exercise”, or “We intend to travel” in Korean?

Then you need to know how to use ~으려고 하다 — a grammar structure used to express intention, plan, or attempt to do something in the near future.

In this post, you’ll learn how to use ~으려고 하다 with verbs, proper conjugation, and example sentences that reflect real Korean usage.

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🎯 What Does ~으려고 하다 Mean?

~으려고 하다 means:

• “to plan to…”
• “to intend to…”
• “to be about to…”

It expresses a future intention or decision that the speaker has made.

🔤 Conjugation Rule

• If verb stem ends in a vowel → add 려고 하다
• If verb stem ends in a consonant → add 으려고 하다

Examples:

• 공부하다 → 공부하려고 하다 – to plan to study
• 먹다 → 먹으려고 하다 – to intend to eat
• 가다 → 가려고 하다 – to be about to go

📊 Grammar Summary Table

Verb	~으려고 하다 Form	Meaning	Romanization
가다	가려고 하다	to intend to go	ga-ryeo-go ha-da
보다	보려고 하다	to intend to see	bo-ryeo-go ha-da
읽다	읽으려고 하다	to try to read	ilg-eu-ryeo-go ha-da
자다	자려고 하다	to be about to sleep	ja-ryeo-go ha-da

📘 Example Sentences

• 내일 공부하려고 해요 – I plan to study tomorrow
  nae-il gong-bu-ha-ryeo-go hae-yo
• 밥을 먹으려고 했어요 – I was going to eat
  bap-eul meok-eu-ryeo-go haet-seo-yo
• 운동하려고 헬스장에 갔어요 – I went to the gym to work out
  un-dong-ha-ryeo-go hel-seu-jang-e gat-seo-yo
• 그 사람을 만나려고 전화했어요 – I called to meet that person
  geu sa-ram-eul man-na-ryeo-go jeon-hwa-haet-seo-yo

📌 Tip: Past & Future Tenses

• 려고 했어요 – I was going to…
• 려고 해요 – I am going to…
• 려고 할 거예요 – I will try to…

❗ Common Mistakes

• ❌ 공부으려고 하다 → ✅ 공부하려고 하다
• ❌ 먹려고 하다 (when the verb ends in consonant) → ✅ 먹으려고 하다
• Check if the verb ends in vowel or consonant to choose 려고 or 으려고

📌 Use with Purpose or Motive

~으려고 가다 / 오다 / 노력하다

• 공부하려고 학교에 가요 – I go to school to study
• 배우려고 노력하고 있어요 – I am trying to learn

🧪 Mini Quiz – Test Yourself!

1. How do you say “I plan to sleep early”?
   a) 일찍 자려고 해요
   b) 일찍 자으려고 해요
   
   Click to Show Answer

   ✅ a) 일찍 자려고 해요

2. Translate: “She was going to eat.”
   a) 먹으려고 했어요
   b) 먹으려고 해요
   
   Click to Show Answer

   ✅ a) 먹으려고 했어요

3. Which is correct for “I’m planning to read a book”
   a) 책을 읽으려고 해요
   b) 책을 읽려고 해요
   
   Click to Show Answer

   ✅ a) 책을 읽으려고 해요

✅ Conclusion

Now you can express your plans, intentions, and decisions in Korean using ~으려고 하다!

• Use 려고 하다 after vowels, 으려고 하다 after consonants
• Conjugate 하다 to match the tense (해요 / 했어요 / 할 거예요)
• Use with verbs like 가다, 오다, 전화하다 to express purpose

Try using it in your own goals and plans like:

• “I’m going to study Korean every day” → 매일 한국어를 공부하려고 해요
• “I was going to call you” → 전화하려고 했어요

📘 Coming Up Next

Next lesson: How to Use ~기 전에 / ~고 나서 – Before & After in Korean
You’ll learn how to say “before doing” and “after doing” clearly and naturally in Korean!

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Related Keywords:
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