-으려면 / -려면
-으려면: If You Intend To
If you intend to — a connective that makes your plan the condition for what follows.
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Stem ends in a consonant (not ㄹ) | -으려면 | 먹다 → 먹으려면 / 찾다 → 찾으려면 |
| Stem ends in a vowel or ㄹ / after -으시- | -려면 | 가다 → 가려면 / 살다 → 살려면 |
| Common classroom frame | -으려면 …해야 해요 / …하세요 | 가려면 일찍 출발하세요 |
-으려면 / -려면 means if you intend to… — then the second half tells you what follows from that plan.
모임에 가려면 미리 신청하세요 — if you mean to go to the gathering, apply in advance.
우리말샘 frames the classroom sense as: if you are going to realise a certain intention. That is not the same job as a bare conditional.
Forms
| Stem ends with | Shape | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Consonant (not ㄹ) | -으려면 | 먹으려면, 찾으려면 |
| Vowel | -려면 | 가려면, 오려면 |
| ㄹ | -려면 (ㄹ stays) | 살려면, 놀려면 |
한국어를 배우려면 매일 연습하세요.
가입하려면 이름이 필요해요.
제시간에 도착하려면 지금 나가야 해요.The second clause is usually advice, a requirement, or a natural consequence — not just “and then.”
Not plain -으면
| Ending | Job |
|---|---|
| -으면 -으면 | general if / when |
| -으려면 | if you intend to… |
비가 오면 취소해요 — weather condition. 모임에 가려면 신청하세요 — plan as condition.
Same unit title (늦으면 안 돼요) uses plain -으면 for rules. Save -으려면 for if your aim is….
Not bare -으려고
-으려고 / -려고 marks intention (I’m going to / in order to). -으려면 takes that intention and turns it into an if-clause that still needs a result.
| Example | |
|---|---|
| Intention | 가려고 해요 |
| Intention as condition | 가려면 일찍 출발하세요 |
*가려면. alone cannot finish a sentence — it still asks so what?
가려고. can stand alone in speech (“왜 나가?” — “일찍 가려고.”) — that is stating a plan, not stating a rule.
Meeting / signup talk
This Sejong unit sits in gathering language: welcome parties, joining a club, showing up on time.
환영회에 오려면 연락 주세요.
회원으로 남으려면 회비가 있어요.Ask one question before you speak: am I conditioning on a plan, or on a plain fact? Plan → -으려면. Fact / weather / state → -으면.
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
On the jabi learning path, this appears in 약속 시간에 늦으면 안 돼요 (You can't be late for your appointment.) — Intermediate Korean 1, Unit 1, on the theme of class. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. What does -으려면 mainly add that plain -으면 does not?
2. What is 먹다 in this pattern?
3. How does -으려면 differ from -으려고?
Common questions
Can I end a sentence with -으려면 alone?
Not as a finished statement. It is a connective — something has to follow (what you must do, what happens next). Trailing off mid-plan in speech is different from writing a complete sentence.
Is this the same as -으면?
No. eumyeon is the default if/when. -으려면 specifically packages intention as the condition: if you mean to do X…
Dictionary senses beyond intention?
우리말샘 lists more than one -으려면 sense. This lesson sticks to the intention-as-condition reading used in intermediate classroom Korean.
How do the forms split?
Consonant stems (not ㄹ): -으려면. Vowel stems, ㄹ stems, and after -으시-: -려면. Same split pattern as -으려고 / -려고.