Knew (polite) in Korean 🇰🇷

알았어요 info.

Tips to Remember the Word:
• Imagine “알았어요” as “all right, I got it.” The “알” sounds like the beginning of “all,” which hints at knowing or understanding everything.
• Visualize someone nodding and saying “알았어요” to confirm they’ve understood instructions.

Explanations:
• “알았어요” is the polite past tense of the verb “알다” (to know or to understand).
• It is used to show that someone has understood or “got” something that was explained.
• In conversation, it often serves as a confirmation similar to “I got it” or “understood.”

Other Words with Similar Meanings:
• “이해했어요” – literally, “I understood” (from 이해하다, to understand).
• “알겠습니다” – a more formal way to say “I understand.”
• “압니다” – the formal polite present form meaning “I know.”

Infinitive and Conjugations of “알다”:
Base form (infinitive): 알다 (alda) – to know/to understand

Polite Informal Conjugations:
• Present: 알아요 (arayo) – I know / I understand.
• Past: 알았어요 (arasseoyo) – I knew / I understood.
• Future: 알 거예요 (al geoyeyo) – I will know / I will understand.
• Imperative: 알아요 → 알아세요 isn’t normally used as an order, but in casual speech one might say “알아” informally.

For Formal Speech (examples):
• Present: 압니다 (amnida)
• Past: 알았습니다 (arasseumnida)
• Future: 알겠습니다 (algesseumnida)

Example Sentences Using “알았어요”:
1. 네, 알았어요.
(Ne, arasseoyo.)
Translation: Yes, I got it.

2. 제가 말씀하신 내용을 알았어요.
(Jega malsseumhasin naeyongeul arasseoyo.)
Translation: I understood what you said.

3. 질문에 대한 답을 알았어요.
(Jilmun-e daehan dabeul arasseoyo.)
Translation: I understood the answer to the question.

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