How to say "Yesterday" in Korean

The Korean word 어제 (eoje) is pronounced relatively straightforwardly. The first syllable, '어' (eo), sounds similar to the 'uh' in 'butter' or 'cup', not like 'oh'. The second syllable, '제' (je), is pronounced like 'jeh' in 'jet' or 'jelly'. Combine these for a smooth 'uh-jeh'. There are no complex diphthongs or tricky consonant clusters, making it quite accessible for English speakers to master.

To use 어제 (eoje) in a sentence, simply place it before the verb or predicate. It functions as an adverb of time. For example, '어제 영화 봤어요' (eoje yeonghwa bwasseoyo) means 'I watched a movie yesterday'. Verbs following 어제 are almost always in the past tense, typically using common past tense endings like -았/었- (at/eot) for polite speech, or -습니다 (seumnida) for formal contexts.

The word 어제 (eoje) itself is neutral in terms of formality. Its level of politeness or formality in a sentence is determined by the verb ending that follows it. For instance, '어제 갔습니다' (eoje gatseumnida) is formal, '어제 갔어요' (eoje gasseoyo) is polite, and '어제 갔어' (eoje gasseo) is informal. You can use 어제 with anyone, simply by adjusting the appropriate verb ending to match the social context.

To expand your Korean time vocabulary around 어제 (eoje), you should definitely learn 오늘 (oneul), meaning 'today', and 내일 (naeil), meaning 'tomorrow'. These three words are fundamental for discussing daily events and are frequently used together. Other useful related terms include 그저께 (geujeokke - the day before yesterday) and 모레 (more - the day after tomorrow) for more precise timeframes, allowing for richer conversations.

A common mistake learners make is adding the particle -에 (e) after 어제 (eoje), as in '어제에'. While -에 is often used with specific time expressions like '몇 시에' (myeot sie - at what time) or '월요일에' (wollyoile - on Monday), '어제', '오늘', and '내일' do not typically take -에 when referring to the day itself. These words function adverbially on their own. Simply use 어제 directly before the verb or noun phrase.