Expressing Purpose
When you want to explain why you are doing an action, Korean uses connecting endings to link the goal and the action into one natural sentence.
In this lesson, we will look at two common endings used for purpose: -(으)러 and -려고 . Both endings attach to the verb stem of your goal.
The choice between them depends entirely on the type of action that follows.
-(으)러 for Movement
Use -(으)러 when the following action is a movement verb. Typical movement verbs include 가다 (to go), 오다 (to come), and 다니다 (to attend).
How to conjugate
Ends in a vowel: attach -러
Ends in a consonant: attach -으러
Goal · Movement · Connected Sentence
운동하다 · 공원에 가요 · 운동하러 공원에 가요.
친구를 만나다 · 서울에 왔어요 · 친구를 만나러 서울에 왔어요.
밥을 먹다 · 식당에 가요 · 밥을 먹으러 식당에 가요.
-려고 for Any Action
Use -려고 when the following action is a general action, such as saving money, waking up early, or studying. It can be used with almost any action verb.
How to conjugate
Ends in a vowel: attach -려고
Ends in a consonant: attach -으려고
Goal · Action · Connected Sentence
운동하다 · 일찍 일어났어요 · 운동하려고 일찍 일어났어요.
여행하다 · 돈을 모아요 · 여행하려고 돈을 모아요.
책을 읽다 · 안경을 썼어요 · 책을 읽으려고 안경을 썼어요.
The Same Subject Rule
Both -(으)러 and -려고 require the same subject for both actions. The person who has the goal must be the same person who performs the action.
For example, if I am the one saving money, I must be the one planning to travel. You typically do not change the subject between the two parts of the sentence.
Core takeaway: The subject must be the same