V + (으)러 가다/오다
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1. Title
Using V + (으)러 가다/오다 to Express Purpose of Movement
2. Grammar Explanation
The pattern V + (으)러 가다/오다 is used to express the purpose of going or coming somewhere. It means "to go/come in order to VERB."
The verb before (으)러 must be an action verb, not a descriptive verb (adjective).
This structure is almost always followed by 가다 (to go) or 오다 (to come).
You use -으러 if the verb stem ends in a consonant (except for ㄹ), and -러 if it ends in a vowel or the consonant ㄹ.
Structure:
Consonant-ending verb stem (except ㄹ) + -으러 가다/오다
Vowel-ending verb stem or ㄹ-ending verb stem + -러 가다/오다
Examples:
먹다 (to eat) → 먹으러 가다 (to go to eat)
공부하다 (to study) → 공부하러 오다 (to come to study)
놀다 (to play) → 놀러 가다 (to go to play)
3. Example Sentences
저는 친구를 만나러 카페에 갔어요.
(I went to the café to meet a friend.)아버지가 운동하러 공원에 나가셨어요.
(My father went out to the park to exercise.)민수는 책을 빌리러 도서관에 갔어요.
(Minsu went to the library to borrow books.)요리를 배우러 학원에 다녀요.
(I attend a class to learn cooking.)아이들이 놀러 나갔어요.
(The kids went out to play.)
4. Sample Dialogues
Dialogue 1
A: 어디 가세요? (Where are you going?)
B: 점심 먹으러 식당에 가요. (I’m going to a restaurant to eat lunch.)
Dialogue 2
A: 왜 학교에 왔어요? (Why did you come to school?)
B: 발표 준비하러 왔어요. (I came to prepare for my presentation.)
Dialogue 3
A: 주말에 뭐 했어요? (What did you do over the weekend?)
B: 친구들이랑 영화 보러 극장에 갔어요. (I went to the theater with friends to watch a movie.)
5. Make Korean Sentences from English!
I go to the market to buy vegetables.
My mom went to the hospital to see the doctor.
My friend comes to my house to study.
A Korean teacher went to the classroom to teach.
I go to the library to read books.
My sister comes home to rest.
A student went to the office to ask a question.
I come here to learn Korean.
A nurse goes to the pharmacy to buy medicine.
My brother went to the bakery to buy bread.



I came to Korea in order to learn Korean.
한국어를 배우기 위해 한국에 왔어요.
한국에 한국어를 배우러 왔어요.
Are these structures both correct? Is one more natural than the other?
1. 시장에 야채 사러 가요.
2. 어머니가 병원에 의사 선생님 만나러 갔어요.
3. 제 친구가 우리 집에 공부하러 와요.
4. 한국어 선생님이 교실에 가르치러 갔어요.
5. 도서관에 책 읽으러 가요.
6. 언니가 집에 쉬러 와요.
7. 학생이 사무실에 질문하러 갔어요.
8. 저는 여기에 한국어 배우러 와요.
9. 간호사가 약국에 약 사러 가요.
10. 남동생이 빵집에 빵 사러 갔어요.