A Study on Teaching Methods for Korean Pre-final Endings Based on Person Constraints — Focusing on “-si-,” “-get-,” and “-deo-” — Korean Pre-final Endings: Focusing on Person-Subject Constraints

This study examines the usage of Korean pre-final endings through the lens of person-subject constraints, with the aim of reevaluating their appropriate functions and proposing a new pedagogical approach to teaching pre-final endings in Korean language education. Korean pre-final endings are among the forms most strongly restricted by the person of the grammatical subject, and thus have been frequently discussed in research on person-subject constraints. However, existing studies have largely centered on the semantic functions of these endings, while research on person-subject constraints has focused predominantly on the pre-final ending -te- (‘-더-’). Comprehensive analyses addressing the usage of multiple pre-final endings in relation to person-subject constraints remain scarce. In response to this gap, the present study brings together pre-final endings that are significantly constrained by subject person and reevaluates their appropriate usage. Furthermore, whereas conventional Korean language education has emphasized the semantic functions of pre-final endings, this study highlights the need for instructional methods grounded in person-subject constraints and proposes a new pedagogical framework based on this perspective.