(으)로
(으)로: By, Toward, As — One Particle, Several Jobs
By / toward / as — a particle marking means, direction, material, and related roles.
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun ends in a consonant (not ㄹ) | N + 으로 | 손 → 손으로 / 젓가락 → 젓가락으로 |
| Noun ends in a vowel or ㄹ | N + 로 | 기차 → 기차로 / 지하철 → 지하철로 / 버스 → 버스로 |
(으)로 is one particle with several everyday jobs — by (means), toward (direction), and related senses.
우리말샘 lists 으로 after consonant nouns (excluding ㄹ) for direction, path, material, means, method, status, and more. Classroom Korean pairs it with 로 after vowel and ㄹ-final nouns.
Forms
| Noun ends with | Shape | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Consonant (not ㄹ) | 으로 | 손으로, 젓가락으로 |
| Vowel | 로 | 기차로, 배로, 버스로 |
| ㄹ | 로 | 서울로, 지하철로 |
길이 막히니까 지하철로 갑시다. The road is jammed, so let's take the subway.
이쪽으로 오세요. Come this way.
한국어로 말해요. Speak in Korean.Means first
Sejong’s leisure unit leans on transport: 지하철로. That is the safest beginner anchor — by what?
Direction (toward) and “in which language” ride the same particle. Learn means solidly before stacking every English by/with/as onto one Korean form.
Not 에, not 에서
| Particle | Typical beginner job |
|---|---|
| (장소)에 에 | existence / arrival |
| 에서 에서 | action location / departure |
| (으)로 | means / direction |
학교에 지하철로 가요 — school as destination takes 에, subway as means takes 로. Both in one sentence is normal.
Wrong swap: *학교로 지하철에 가요.
Same-unit partner
Reason clauses in the same unit often use -(으)니까 — because the road is jammed, let’s go by subway.
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
On the jabi learning path, this appears in 길이 막히니까 공연장까지 지하철로 갑시다 (Since the road is congested, let’s take the subway to the concert venue.) — Beginner Korean 1, Unit 18, on the theme of leisure. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. How do you say 'by subway'?
2. What follows a vowel-final noun?
3. How is 으로 different from 에 for place?
Common questions
Is (으)로 only 'by'?
No. 우리말샘 lists direction, path, material, means, method, status, and more. Beginner speech starts with means (지하철로) and simple direction (이쪽으로).
으로 vs 로 — which?
Consonant nouns (not ㄹ): 으로. Vowel or ㄹ-final nouns: 로. 책으로, 차로.
으로 vs 에서?
eseo is where an action happens or where you leave from. (으)로 is how you go or which way you head — 지하철로 가요.
What about 으로서?
A longer form for status/qualification. Do not swap it blindly with plain (으)로 at this level.
Seen in the wild
Lessons where this pattern showed up in real Korean — news, slang, drama lines.
