Do You Have It?
Learn How to Ask and Answer with 있어요 / 없어요
Lesson Goal
By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to:
- ask if something is available
- answer with 네, 있어요.
- answer with 아니요, 없어요.
- use 있어요 and 없어요 in everyday conversations
Today’s Key Expressions
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
| 있어요. | There is. / I have. / We have. |
| 없어요. | There isn’t. / I don’t have. / We don’t have. |
| 물 있어요? | Do you have water? |
| 네, 있어요. | Yes, we do. |
| 아니요, 없어요. | No, we don’t. |
Today’s Vocabulary
At a Restaurant
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
| 메뉴 | menu |
| 영어 메뉴 | English menu |
| 물 | water |
| 김치 | kimchi |
| 불고기 | bulgogi |
| 냅킨 | napkin |
Everyday Things
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
| 냉장고 | refrigerator |
| 책 | book |
| 펜 | pen |
| 지우개 | eraser |
| 휴대폰 | cell phone |
| 가방 | bag |
What Do 있어요 and 없어요 Mean?
These are two of the most useful expressions in Korean.
있어요 means something exists or is available.
없어요 means something doesn’t exist or isn’t available.
You’ll hear these expressions everywhere in Korea.
For example:
- 물 있어요?
- 메뉴 있어요?
- 냅킨 있어요?
- 화장실 있어요?
You don’t need to make a long sentence.
Just say:
Noun + 있어요?
It’s simple, natural, and very common.
Why Are We Learning 있어요 / 없어요 So Early?
You may wonder why we are learning 있어요 / 없어요 in Lesson 3.
You just started speaking Korean. Now you can introduce yourself and ask and answer some simple questions.
So you may think, “Isn’t it too early to learn another new expression?”
But 있어요 / 없어요 is a really, really basic and useful expression in Korean.
Think about the verb “have” in English. It is one of the most basic verbs you use every day.
In English, you use have when you own something or when something belongs to you. In Korean, we often think of it a little differently. Instead of saying that you “have” something, we say that something exists.
For example, in English, you might say:
I have one younger brother.
In Korean, we say:
남동생이 있어요.
I have a younger brother.
남동생 means younger brother.
Here is another example.
Imagine you are at a clothing store and want to ask:
Do you have socks?
In Korean, you can simply say:
양말 있어요?
Do you have socks?
And because 있어요 has the idea of something “existing,” you can also use it when you want to say “There is” or “There are.”
That is why 있어요 / 없어요 is so useful.
If you learn how to use these two expressions well, you can already say many basic things you need in everyday life.
So don’t worry if it looks like another new grammar point.
Dialogue 1 – At Home
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
| A: 이게 뭐예요? | What is this? |
| B: 냉장고예요. | It’s a refrigerator. |
| A: 물 있어요? | Is there any water? |
| B: 네, 있어요. | Yes, there is. |
We used what we learned in Lesson 2 to first ask what something is and answer the question. Then, we used the new expression from Lesson 3 to ask if there is water.
This is only our third lesson, but you can already have a simple conversation like this!
At a restaurant, you can ask “이게 뭐예요?” (What is this?) and also ask if they have something you need, like “물 있어요?” (Do you have water?) or “메뉴 있어요?” (Do you have a menu?)
When you learn a new language, you don’t need to know everything from the beginning. You can start by learning expressions that you can use right away in everyday life.
So don’t be afraid that Korean is too difficult. You are already asking and answering questions in Korean!
Dialogue 2 – At a Restaurant
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
| A: 메뉴 있어요? | Do you have a menu? |
| B: 네, 여기 있어요. | Yes, here it is. |
| A: 이게 뭐예요? | What is this? |
| B: 불고기예요. | It’s bulgogi. |
🪄 Speaking Tip 1
When you are at a restaurant in Korea and want to call the server, you can say:
저기요!
Excuse me!
Then you can ask what you need.
저기요, 냅킨 있어요?
Excuse me, do you have napkins?
Here is one more tip!
In many Korean restaurants, spoons, chopsticks, and napkins are kept in a small drawer on the side of the table.
So if you don’t see them on the table, check the drawer first.
You may find everything you need right there!
🪄Speaking Tip 2
In Korean, we often leave out particles when it is already clear what we are talking about.
For example, you can simply say:
물 있어요?
Do you have water?
메뉴 있어요?
Do you have a menu?
But if you want to make the full sentence, you can use 이 or 가 after the noun.
If the noun ends in a consonant, use 이:
물 + 이 → 물이 있어요.
If the noun ends in a vowel, use 가:
메뉴 + 가 → 메뉴가 있어요.
For now, don’t worry too much about 이/가. In everyday conversations, Koreans often leave them out when the meaning is clear.
So as a beginner, you can simply start with:
Noun + 있어요?
Practice
Complete the dialogues.
1.
A: 물 ____________________? Do you have water?
B: 네, ____________________. Yes, we do.
“Do you have water?” asks if water is available, so we use 있어요?
The answer is yes, so we use 네, 있어요.
2.
A: 메뉴 ____________________? Do you have a menu?
B: 네, 여기 ____________________. Yes, here it is.
있어요? asks if a menu is available.
There is a menu, so we say 네, 여기 있어요.
3.
A: 냅킨 ____________________? Do you have a napkin?
B: 아니요, ____________________. No, we don’t.
There is no napkin, so we answer 아니요, 없어요.
4.
A: 펜 ____________________? Do you have a pen?
B: 네, ____________________. Yes, I do.
The answer is yes, so we use 네, 있어요.
🪄Speaking Tip 3
🎧 Audio 3-1 | Question vs. Answer Intonation
Here is something easy about Korean questions!
In English, the sentence changes when you make a question.
You have water.
Do you have water?
But in Korean, you can use the same words.
물 있어요.
There is water.
물 있어요?
Do you have water?
So how can you tell the difference?
Listen to the intonation.
When you ask a question, your voice usually goes up at the end:
물 있어요? ↗
When you make a statement, your voice usually goes down:
물 있어요. ↘
Same words, different intonation.
Don’t confuse 이에요/예요 with 있어요/없어요
이에요/예요 and 있어요/없어요 may look a little similar, so it is easy to get confused at first.
But remember, they have different jobs.
We learned 이에요/예요 in Lesson 1. We use them to say what or who something is.
이것은 물이에요.
This is water.
But 있어요/없어요 tell us if something exists, is available, or if someone has something.
물이 있어요.
There is water. / I have water.
So think about what you want to say.
What is it? → 이에요/예요
Is it there? Do you have it? → 있어요/없어요
Once you know this difference, it becomes much easier!
👍 Great Job!
Now I Can…
☐ Understand what 있어요 and 없어요 mean.
☐ Ask if something is available using Noun + 있어요?
☐ Answer with 네, 있어요 and 아니요, 없어요.
☐ Use 있어요 to talk about something I have.
☐ Use 있어요 to say “There is” or “There are.”
☐ Ask for things I need with simple questions like “물 있어요?”
☐ Use expressions from earlier lessons together with 있어요 / 없어요.
You can already ask useful questions in Korean!
You don’t need to know a lot of Korean to start speaking.
Keep using the expressions you have learned, one by one.
Little by little, you’ll be able to say more and more in Korean!