Learn Korean: Verb + 줬다

Let's take a look at the Korean sentence pattern Verb + 줬다. The verb 주다 means to give. We add 주다 to another verb to add the nuance do something for someone’s benefit. It shows willingness to exert some effort for another person. When 주다 is in past tense, the speaker expresses the fact that someone did something for him. If friend X wondered how I found out that Friend Y talked shit about me, I would say Friend Z told me about it (she did it for my sake). The main verb is 말하다 (to tell). We conjugate the verb into its 아/어/여 form and add 줬다. The actual sentence is 세리가 말해 줬어. Seri is the name of Friend Z. Some 주다 verbs don’t require a space in between such as 도와주다 (to help), 빌려주다 (to lend), 보여주다 (to show) and 알려주다 (to inform).

엄마가 만들어 줬어요.

My mom made it for me.

내가 도와줬어.

I helped him. I was the one who helped him.

날 업어 줬어.

He gave me a piggy ride (because I hurt my ankle).