Using a Shared Office | Learn Korean in English

Sentence explanations

1. 제가 이 공유 사무실에서 일해도 돼요?

   Can I work in this shared office?

   제가

   I (subject)

   이

   this

   공유

   shared

   사무실

   office

   에서

   in; at

   일해

   work

   해도 돼요?

   is it okay to do it?

   More detail

   제가 combines 저 (“I,” a humble first-person pronoun) with the subject marker 가. It identifies the speaker as the subject. 저는 would instead mark the speaker as the topic, so the choice between 제가 and 저는 depends on whether the sentence presents the speaker as the subject or topic. 이 means “this” and is a demonstrative placed before the noun it describes. Here it points to the office understood in the situation. A reusable pattern is 이 + noun: 이 책 means “this book.” 공유 means “shared” in 공유 사무실, literally a shared office. It is a noun used before another noun to specify its type or function. 사무실 means “office.” Together, 공유 사무실 is the noun phrase “shared office.” 에서 marks the place where an action happens. In this sentence, the working takes place in the office. This differs from 에, which commonly marks a destination or a place of existence: 사무실에 가요 means “I go to the office,” while 사무실에서 일해요 means “I work at/in the office.” 일해 is the beginning of the inflected form built from 일하다, “to work.” In the full sentence it continues directly into 일해도, so 일해 is not a complete standalone ending here. The verb stem from 일하다 combines with the -아/어도 되다 permission pattern as 일해도 되다. 해도 돼요? is the latter part of the permission construction -아/어도 돼요?, asking whether an action is allowed. 돼요 comes from 되다 and is the polite present form used here. The complete pattern is [verb]아/어도 돼요?: 여기 앉아도 돼요? means “May I sit here?” This is a request for permission, not a claim that the action has happened. Putting the parts together: 제가 (“I,” as subject) + 이 공유 사무실에서 (“in this shared office”) + 일해도 돼요? (“may [I] work?”) gives “Can I work in this shared office?” The question is politely asking permission to work there.

2. 비어 있는 책상을 고르세요.

   Choose an open desk.

   비어 있는

   empty; available

   책상

   desk

   고르세요

   please choose

   More detail

   비어 있는 describes the desk as empty or available. It comes from 비다, “to be empty.” In Korean, the form 비어 있는 is used before a noun to describe a state that is currently the case: 비어 있는 자리 means “an empty/available seat.” Here it describes a desk that can be chosen, so “open desk” is a natural translation. Example: 비어 있는 방을 찾으세요. — “Please find an empty room.” 책상 means “desk.” It is a noun and does not itself mark whether the desk is empty or available; that information comes from 비어 있는. Example: 책상이 있어요. — “There is a desk.” 고르세요 means “please choose.” Its base verb is 고르다, “to choose” or “to select.” The ending -세요 makes a polite request or instruction: 고르세요 is addressed respectfully to the listener. Example: 하나를 고르세요. — “Please choose one.” Together, 비어 있는 책상 means “an empty/available desk,” and 고르세요 instructs the listener to choose it: “Choose an open desk.”

3. 문 근처에 있는 책상을 사용할 수 있어요.

   I can use the one near the door.

   문

   door

   근처에 있는

   located near

   책상

   desk

   사용할 수 있어요

   can use

   More detail

   문 means “door.” It is a noun. Example: 문을 열어요. — “I open the door.” The particle 을 marks 문 as the object of 열어요 in that example; it is not part of the quoted form here. 근처에 있는 means “located near.” 근처 means “vicinity” or “nearby area,” and 에 marks the location. 있는 is the present modifier form of 있다 (“to exist” or “to be located”), so 근처에 있는 + noun means “a noun that is near [it].” Example: 역 근처에 있는 카페 — “a café near the station.” 책상 means “desk.” It is a noun. Here it is the thing that can be used, and the preceding modifier identifies it as the desk near the door. Example: 책상이 있어요. — “There is a desk.” 사용할 수 있어요 means “can use.” The lexical verb is 사용하다, “to use.” In 사용할 수 있어요, 사용할 is the form used before 수, and -ㄹ/을 수 있다 expresses ability or possibility; 있어요 is the polite present form of 있다. The subject is omitted in Korean, while the fixed translation identifies it as “I.” Example: 이 컴퓨터를 사용할 수 있어요. — “I can use this computer.” Together, 문 근처에 있는 modifies 책상: “the desk that is near the door.” 사용할 수 있어요 says that the identified desk can be used by the speaker. Thus the whole utterance means, “I can use the one near the door.” The noun 책상 is explicit in Korean even though the English translation uses the one to avoid repeating “desk.”

4. 책상을 다 쓰고 나면 깨끗하게 해 두세요.

   Leave it clean when you finish.

   책상

   desk

   다

   completely; all

   쓰고 나면

   after using; when finished using

   깨끗하게

   cleanly

   해 두세요

   please leave it that way

   More detail

   책상 means “desk.” It is a noun and can be used in compounds such as 책상 위 (“on the desk”). In this conversation, the desk is the object being used and then left clean. 다 means “all” or “completely.” Here it emphasizes completing the use of the desk: 다 쓰다 means “finish using it,” not simply “use everything.” 쓰고 나면 comes from 쓰다 (“to use”) + -고 나면 (“after doing; once finished doing”). The form 쓰고 connects the action to what follows, and 나면 adds the sense that the first action has been completed. A reusable pattern is 동사-고 나면: 식사하고 나면 이를 닦으세요 means “Brush your teeth after eating.” 깨끗하게 means “cleanly” or “so that it is clean.” It is the adverbial form of 깨끗하다 (“to be clean”): 깨끗하다 → 깨끗하게. The ending -게 lets a descriptive word modify an action or describe the resulting state. 해 두세요 combines 하다 (“to do; to make”) with 두다 (“to put or leave”) and the polite request ending -세요. In this combination, -아/어 두다 means to do something in advance and leave the result that way; 두세요 makes it a polite request. The object is omitted in Korean because it is understood from the context and the fixed translation: leave the relevant item clean. A useful pattern is 정리해 두세요 (“please organize it and leave it that way”). Together, 책상을 다 쓰고 나면 sets the time condition: “when you have finished using the desk.” 깨끗하게 해 두세요 requests that the relevant item be left clean. The complete utterance means: “Leave it clean when you finish [using the desk].”

5. 조용한 곳이 필요해요.

   I need a quiet place.

   조용한

   quiet

   곳

   place

   필요해요

   need

   More detail

   조용한 means “quiet” here and comes from the descriptive verb 조용하다 (“to be quiet”). Before a noun, it takes the attributive form 조용한: 조용한 곳 = “a quiet place.” 곳 means “place.” It is a noun for a location or spot and can be used after a description: 편한 곳 means “a comfortable place.” 필요해요 comes from 필요하다 (“to be necessary” or “to be needed”). The -해요 ending gives a polite everyday style. Korean commonly uses X이/가 필요해요 for “X is needed” or, with the intended meaning here, “I need X.” Together, 조용한 곳 is the needed item, and 필요해요 states that it is needed: “I need a quiet place.”

6. 벽 옆에 있는 책상을 써 보세요.

   Try the desk by the wall.

   벽

   wall

   옆에

   beside; by

   있는

   that is located

   책상

   desk

   써 보세요

   try using

   More detail

   벽 means “wall” here. It is a noun. A useful pattern is N 옆 for “beside N” or “next to N”; for example, 집 옆 means “beside the house.” 옆에 means “beside/by.” 옆 is the location word, and -에 marks the place where something is located or where an action is directed. In 벽 옆에, the location is beside the wall. This is different from a phrase such as 벽 옆에서, where -에서 presents that place as the setting of an action. 있는 means “that is located” in this sentence. It is the present attributive form of 있다, “to exist” or “to be located.” It modifies the noun that follows: 벽 옆에 있는 책상 is literally “the desk that is located beside the wall.” The form 있는 is used before a noun; 있어요 is a polite sentence-ending form instead. 책상 means “desk.” In the full sentence it is followed by the object marker 을, forming 책상을; the marker shows that the desk is what the speaker recommends trying. 책상 itself does not carry that marker in the selected quote. 써 보세요 means “try using it.” 쓰다 is the base form meaning “to use” here; its stem combines with -어 as 써. 보다 after another verb creates the pattern V-아/어 보다, meaning “try V-ing.” 보세요 makes this a polite request or instruction. For example, 이 방법을 써 보세요 means “Try using this method.” Here 써 보세요 refers to using the desk, not merely looking at it. Together, 벽 옆에 있는 describes the desk as being located beside the wall, and 책상을 써 보세요 politely asks the listener to try using that desk. The complete meaning is “Try the desk by the wall.”

7. 제가 나가기 전에 제 물건을 치울게요.

   I will clear my things before I leave.

   제가

   I

   나가기

   leaving

   전에

   before

   제

   my

   물건

   things; belongings

   치울게요

   I’ll clear away

   More detail

   제가 means “I” as the subject here. It combines 저 (“I,” the humble/polite first-person pronoun) with the subject marker 가; 저 becomes 제 when it is used possessively, as in 제 물건. 나가기 comes from 나가다, “to go out” or “to leave.” The ending -기 turns the verb into an event or activity: 나가다 → 나가기, “leaving.” This nominalized verb can occur in the reusable pattern V-기 전에, meaning “before doing V.” 전에 means “before.” Together with 나가기, 나가기 전에 means “before leaving.” The word before the construction identifies the action that must happen first; for example, 자기 전에 means “before sleeping.” 제 is the possessive form of 저 and means “my” here. It is a contraction of 저의; the following noun supplies what belongs to the speaker. In 제 물건, it modifies 물건, not the verb. 물건 means a thing, item, or belonging. In this sentence, the plural-like English “things” is the intended meaning, but Korean does not mark plurality on this noun here. A useful related contrast is 사람 (“person”) versus 물건 (“thing/item”); 물건 is used for objects or belongings, not people. 치울게요 comes from 치우다, “to clear away” or “put away,” plus -(으)ㄹ게요. This ending presents the speaker’s intention or commitment to do something, often with the listener’s situation in mind: 정리할게요 means “I’ll organize it.” The observed form is not simply a neutral future tense; it is a speaker-made commitment. 치우다 can mean removing or putting away items, so “clear my things” fits this context better than automatically translating it as “clean.” The sentence assembles as 제가 + 나가기 전에 + 제 물건을 + 치울게요: “I, before leaving, my things, will clear away.” The object marker 을 marks 제 물건 as what will be cleared away, and the whole utterance naturally means “I will clear my things before I leave.”

8. 그러면 다음 사람이 책상을 바로 쓸 수 있어요.

   That keeps the desk ready for the next person.

   그러면

   then; in that case

   다음

   next; following

   사람

   person

   책상

   desk

   바로

   right away; directly

   쓸 수 있어요

   can use

   More detail

   그러면 means “then” or “in that case.” It links the sentence to the condition or action just mentioned and presents this sentence as its consequence. A reusable pattern is 그러면 + consequence. 다음 means “next” or “following” here and modifies 사람, making 다음 사람 “the next person.” It is a modifier, not a standalone statement that something is numerically second. For example, 다음 주 means “next week.” 사람 means “person.” In 다음 사람이, the particle 이 marks 다음 사람 as the subject: “the next person.” Korean subject particles can appear as 이 after a consonant and 가 after a vowel. 책상 means “desk.” In 책상을, the particle 을 marks the desk as the object of 쓰다, “to use.” The form 책상을 therefore means “the desk” as the thing being used. 바로 means “right away” in this sentence. It modifies the following ability-to-use expression and indicates that the next person can use the desk without delay. Its meaning can vary by context; here, “immediately” fits the fixed translation’s idea of keeping the desk ready. 쓸 수 있어요 expresses “can use.” Its lexical verb is 쓰다, “to use”; before 수 있다, it appears as 쓸, the form used in the possibility construction -(으)ㄹ 수 있다. 있어요 is the polite present form of 있다 in this construction. Thus 쓸 수 있어요 literally presents the possibility of using something, and naturally means “can use.” For example, 이 의자를 쓸 수 있어요 means “You can use this chair.” Together, 다음 사람이 책상을 바로 쓸 수 있어요 means “the next person can use the desk right away.” 그러면 connects that result to the preceding action: clearing the speaker’s things before leaving keeps the desk available and ready for the next person. The whole utterance is therefore, “That keeps the desk ready for the next person.”