Korean Grammar Point
못 [mot] (Can't, not able to)

Used to express inability or impossibility; 'can't', 'not able to'.

Formation

못 + Verb

Examples

오늘은 너무 피곤해서 저는 일찍 잠을 못 잤어요.

Oneureun neomu pigonhaeseo jeoneun iljjik jameul mot jasseoyo.

Today I was so tired that I couldn't go to sleep early.

그녀는 많이 걱정하고 스트레스를 받아서 밥을 못 먹었어요.

Geunyeoneun manhi geokjeonghago seuteureseureul badaseo babeul mot meogeosseoyo.

She was so worried and stressed that she couldn't eat.

비가 너무 많이 와서 우리는 놀이공원에 갈 수가 없었어요.

Biga neomu mani waseo urineun noligongweone gal suga eopseosseoyo.

Because it rained so much, we couldn't go to the amusement park.

저는 너무 늦게 와서 회의에 참석을 못 했어요.

Jeoneun neomu neujge waseo hoeuie chamseogeul mot haesseoyo.

I arrived too late, so I couldn't attend the meeting.

Long Explanation

'못 [mot]' is a Korean adverb used to indicate an inability or impossibility to do something. This can be a physical inability, a matter of circumstance, or a lack of permission. It corresponds to 'can't' or 'not able to' in English and is placed directly before the verb.

Detailed Grammar Notes

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Public Alpha version Open Source (GitHub). This site is currently undergoing active development. You may (will) encounter bugs, inconsistencies, or limited functionality. Lots of sentences might not sound natural. We are progressively addressing these issues with native speakers.


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