Reserving a Quiet Study Room | Learn Korean in English

Sentence explanations

1. 스터디룸을 예약하고 싶어요.

   I would like to reserve a study room.

   스터디룸

   study room

   예약하고 싶어요

   would like to reserve

   More detail

   스터디룸 means “study room.” It is a noun, and the following object marker 을 shows that the study room is the thing being reserved. Korean often marks a noun’s role with a particle attached to it; here, 을 marks the object. 예약하고 싶어요 expresses the speaker’s desire to reserve something. The base verb is 예약하다, “to reserve.” Its verb stem 예약하- combines with -고 to form 예약하고; this connects the action to 싶어요, from 싶다, “to want.” The pattern 동사 stem + 고 싶어요 is a polite way to say “would like to do [verb].” For example, 커피를 마시고 싶어요 means “I would like to drink coffee.” 싶어요 is the polite present-style form used here. In a statement about the speaker’s own desire, -고 싶어요 naturally means “I would like to …”; the desired action is expressed by the verb before -고. Together, 스터디룸을 예약하고 싶어요 means “I would like to reserve a study room.” The noun phrase identifies the object, and 예약하고 싶어요 says that the speaker wants to carry out the action. This is a polite, reusable request or statement of intention.

2. 오늘 이용할 수 있는 방이 어느 것인지 확인해 볼게요.

   Let me check which rooms are open today.

   오늘

   today

   이용할 수 있는

   available to use

   방

   room

   어느 것인지

   which one it is

   확인해 볼게요

   I’ll check

   More detail

   오늘 means “today” and sets the time for the availability check. It is a time noun/adverbial expression and does not itself say how many rooms are involved. 이용할 수 있는 describes something that can be used or is available for use. 이용하다 is the base verb “to use”; 이용할 수 있다 expresses ability or possibility, and 있는 is the attributive form that lets this description come before a noun. For example, 사용할 수 있는 의자 means “a chair that can be used.” 이용하다 is more formal than the everyday verb 쓰다 in many contexts, though they are not interchangeable in every expression. 방 means “room.” In this sentence it is the noun being identified as available for use. Korean does not need a plural ending here, so the form can fit the translation’s “rooms” when the context concerns more than one room; the noun’s form alone does not specify a count. 어느 것인지 asks which option or item it is. 어느 is a selection word meaning “which,” and 것 is a noun meaning “thing” or “one”; -인지 turns the question into an embedded question, roughly “which one it is.” The full noun phrase 방이 어느 것인지 therefore asks which room or rooms meet the stated condition. Unlike a direct question such as 어느 방이에요? (“Which room is it?”), this form is placed inside a larger sentence. 확인해 볼게요 means that the speaker will check. 확인하다 is the base verb “to check” or “to confirm.” The pattern -아/어 보다 adds the idea of trying or checking to find out, and -ㄹ게요 marks the speaker’s intended action or commitment, often understood as “I’ll …” in relation to the listener. For example, 다시 확인해 볼게요 means “I’ll check again.” Together, 오늘 이용할 수 있는 방 means “the room or rooms that can be used today.” 방이 어느 것인지 asks which room or rooms that description applies to, and 확인해 볼게요 says that the speaker will check to find out. The whole utterance is therefore: “Let me check which rooms are open today.”

3. 같은 반 친구와 공부할 조용한 곳이 필요해요.

   I need a quiet place to study with a classmate.

   같은 반 친구

   classmate

   공부할

   to study

   조용한

   quiet

   곳

   place

   필요해요

   need

   More detail

   같은 반 친구 means “classmate” here. It combines 같은 (“same”) with 반 (“class”) and 친구 (“friend”), giving the reusable idea of a friend from the same class. 같은 is the attributive form of 같다 (“to be the same”); it appears before the noun or noun phrase it describes. Example: 같은 학교 친구 means “a friend from the same school.” 공부할 means “to study” in the phrase “a place to study.” It is 공부하다 (“to study”) with the attributive ending -(으)ㄹ, which can describe an intended or upcoming action before a noun. Here, it modifies 곳, so 공부할 곳 is “a place where [someone] will study” or, naturally, “a place to study.” Example: 읽을 책 means “a book to read.” 조용한 means “quiet.” It is the attributive form of the descriptive verb 조용하다 (“to be quiet”): 조용하다 becomes 조용한 before a noun. Thus 조용한 곳 means “a quiet place.” Example: 조용한 방 means “a quiet room.” 곳 means “place” or “spot.” It is a noun that can refer to a location in general. In this sentence, it is modified by both 공부할 and 조용한, producing 공부할 조용한 곳, “a quiet place to study.” A somewhat more formal or explicit alternative for “place” is 장소, but 곳 is very common in ordinary speech. 필요해요 means “need” in this sentence. It is the polite 해요-style form of 필요하다 (“to be necessary” or “to be needed”). Korean commonly leaves the subject unstated when context makes it clear; the fixed translation identifies the speaker as the person who needs the place. Example: 시간이 필요해요 means “I need time.” Together, 같은 반 친구와 identifies the companion as “with a classmate”; 공부할 marks studying as the intended activity; and 조용한 곳 means “a quiet place.” The final 필요해요 states the speaker’s need for that place. The whole utterance therefore means, “I need a quiet place to study with a classmate.”

4. 오늘 오후에 작은 방 하나가 비어 있어요.

   A small room is free this afternoon.

   오늘 오후에

   this afternoon

   작은

   small

   방

   room

   하나가

   one, marked as the subject

   비어 있어요

   is free

   More detail

   오늘 오후에 means “this afternoon.” 오늘 is “today,” and 오후 is “afternoon”; 에 marks the time when something is true or happens. The compact pattern [time]에 is reusable: 내일 아침에 만나요. — “Let’s meet tomorrow morning.” 작은 means “small” here and comes from the descriptive adjective 작다 (“to be small”). Before a noun, 작다 takes the attributive form 작은: 작은 방 means “a small room.” This form does not mark grammatical gender, and it does not change simply because the noun is singular or plural. Its opposite is 큰 from 크다, “big.” 방 means “room.” It is a noun that can be modified directly by an adjective: 조용한 방 means “a quiet room.” In this sentence, 작은 modifies 방, rather than being a separate statement. 하나가 expresses “one” with the subject marker 가. 하나 is the native Korean number “one,” and 가 marks the subject. With the preceding noun, 방 하나가 means “one room” as the subject of the sentence. A common alternative order is 한 방, where 한 is the form used before a noun such as 방; Korean number forms depend on their position and construction. Example: 의자 하나가 비어 있어요. — “One chair is empty.” 비어 있어요 means “is empty” and, in this context, naturally means “is free” or “is available.” The base form is 비다, “to be empty.” 비어 있다 describes something as being in an empty state, and 있어요 is the polite present-style form of 있다 within this construction. This is different from simply using 있어요 to say that something exists. Example: 이 자리는 비어 있어요. — “This seat is empty/free.” The sentence is assembled as 오늘 오후에 (time) + 작은 방 하나가 (one small room as the subject) + 비어 있어요 (is empty and therefore available). Thus the complete meaning is “A small room is free this afternoon.”

5. 안내 데스크에서 그 방을 예약해도 될까요?

   Can I book it at the service desk?

   안내 데스크

   service desk

   그

   that; the

   방

   room

   예약해도

   book, in a permission expression

   될까요?

   would it be okay?

   More detail

   안내 데스크 means “service desk” here. 안내 is guidance or information, and 데스크 is a desk or counter, so this compound can refer to an information or service counter. The location particle 에서 follows it in the sentence: 안내 데스크에서 means “at the service desk,” marking where the booking action is carried out. 그 is a demonstrative determiner meaning “that” or, when the intended item is identifiable, “the.” Here it identifies the room that the speaker wants to book; the fixed translation presents it as “it.” It comes before the noun it modifies, as in 그 책 (“that book”). 방 means “room.” It is a noun and can combine with counters or modifiers, for example 작은 방 means “a small room.” In this sentence, 그 방 means “that room.” 예약해도 contains the verb 예약하다 (“to reserve/book”) and the ending -아/어도, written here as 해도 after the verb stem form used with 하다. -아/어도 can mean “even if,” but in the construction -아/어도 되다 it asks or states whether an action is permitted. The observed form does not itself mean “can”; the permission meaning comes from combining it with 되다 in 될까요?. 될까요? is based on 되다 (“to become; to be acceptable/possible”) with -(으)ㄹ까요?, a question ending. In -아/어도 될까요?, it makes a polite request for permission: “Would it be okay if I…?” or “May I…?” The form 될까요 uses 되다 with the future/intention-style -ㄹ까요? form; the question is about whether the proposed action is acceptable. Together, 그 방을 예약해도 될까요? means “Would it be okay to book that room?” The object particle 을 marks 그 방 as what is booked, and 안내 데스크에서 marks the place where the action would occur. The whole utterance therefore means: “Can I book it at the service desk?” This is a polite way to ask for permission; the pattern V-아/어도 될까요? can be reused with other verbs, such as 여기 앉아도 될까요? — “May I sit here?”

6. 여기에서 신청서를 작성해 주세요.

   Please fill in the request form here.

   여기에서

   here

   신청서

   application form

   작성해 주세요

   please fill in

   More detail

   여기에서 means “here,” with the location marking 에서. 에서 marks the place where an action happens, so this phrase identifies the place of filling out the form. In casual speech, 여기에서 can often be shortened to 여기서. Example: 여기에서 기다려 주세요. — “Please wait here.” 신청서 means “application form” or “request form” in this sentence. It is a noun used for a document on which someone applies or makes a request. The related verb 신청하다 means “to apply” or “to request,” while 신청서 names the form itself. Example: 신청서를 제출했어요. — “I submitted the application form.” 작성해 주세요 is a polite request meaning “please fill in” here. 작성하다 means “to fill out” or “to complete in writing”; its 해 form connects the action to 주세요. 주세요 literally contains the verb 주다, “to give,” but in this pattern it makes the preceding action into a polite request. The pattern 동사-아/어 주세요 is a reusable way to ask someone politely to do something. Example: 이름을 적어 주세요. — “Please write your name.” Together, 여기에서 gives the place, 신청서 identifies the document, and 작성해 주세요 politely asks the listener to complete it. The whole utterance therefore means, “Please fill in the application form here.”

7. 열쇠를 이 안내 데스크에 반납하면 되나요?

   Do I return the key to this service desk?

   열쇠를

   key

   이

   this

   안내 데스크

   service desk

   반납하면 되나요?

   Is it okay to return it?

   More detail

   열쇠를 means “the key” here. 열쇠 is the noun “key,” and 를 marks it as the object of the action. Korean object markers are 을 after a consonant and 를 after a vowel; this noun takes 를. 이 means “this” and is a demonstrative used before a noun. It identifies the desk as the one being indicated in the situation. Compare 그 (“that/the one already mentioned”) and 저 (“that one over there”); the choice depends on the speaker’s intended distance or discourse reference, not simply on the noun’s number. 안내 데스크 means “service desk” or “information desk.” 안내 relates to guidance or information, while 데스크 is the borrowed noun “desk.” In the full phrase, 이 안내 데스크에, the particle 에 marks the destination or place: “to this service desk.” 반납하면 되나요? asks whether returning something is the acceptable or sufficient action. The useful pattern is [verb stem] + 면 되다, meaning “it is okay/sufficient to …”; as a question, [verb stem] + 면 되나요? asks “Is it okay if I …?” or “Should I …?” Here, 반납하다 is the base form meaning “to return or hand back an item,” and 반납하면 is its conditional form: 반납하- + -면. The 되나요? ending makes the question polite and conversational. Example: 여기에 쓰면 되나요? — “Is it okay if I write it here?” Together, 열쇠를 marks the key as the item being returned, 이 안내 데스크에 gives this service desk as the destination, and 반납하면 되나요? asks whether returning it there is the appropriate action. The whole utterance therefore means, “Do I return the key to this service desk?”

8. 문 닫기 전에 열쇠를 가져다 주세요.

   Bring it back before closing.

   문

   door

   닫기 전에

   before closing

   열쇠를

   the key

   가져다 주세요

   please bring it

   More detail

   문 means “door.” It is a noun and can be used with particles such as 문을 (“the door” as an object) or 문이 (“the door” as a subject). Here it appears without a particle because it is part of the expression about closing. 닫기 전에 means “before closing.” The verb 닫다 means “to close”; 닫기 uses -기 to turn the verb into an activity or event, and 전에 means “before.” The pattern 동사-기 전에 is reusable: 자기 전에 means “before sleeping,” and 나가기 전에 means “before going out.” 열쇠를 means “the key” as the object of the action. 열쇠 is “key,” and 를 marks it as the object. The object particle is 을 after a consonant-final noun and 를 after a vowel-final noun, so 열쇠를 has 를 because 열쇠 ends in a vowel sound. 가져다 주세요 is a polite request meaning “please bring it.” 가져다 is the form used in the construction 가져다 주다, “to bring something over to someone”; 주세요 is the polite request form of 주다, “to give,” used here to make the request. In this context, the requested item is the key, and the fixed translation’s “back” reflects returning it; the basic bringing construction itself does not always mean “back.” For example, 책을 가져다 주세요. means “Please bring the book.” Together, 문 닫기 전에 sets the time condition, 열쇠를 identifies the object, and 가져다 주세요 makes a polite request: “Please bring the key back before closing.”