끝나다 vs 끝내다

안녕하세요 여러분! Today I have another quick lesson for you on these 2 words : 끝내다 and 끝나다.

DEFINITIONS:

This pair is one of the rare few that you can look up a definition of and get a pretty clear understanding of the difference.

끝내다

Meaning: Complete; Finish

Usage: 일을 마지막까지 이루다.

To complete something until the end.

끝나다

Meaning: End; Finish

Usage: 일이 마지막까지 이루어지다.

For something to be completed until the end.

Do you see the difference between the definitions? It's very slight.

THE DIFFERENCE

끝내다 means you actively took something in to your hands and you completed or finished it. With this word, you'll often see 을/를 used on the object or noun in the sentence. Hopefully, you've studied these object particles and know that these indicate a verb is acting on the noun. (You can learn about object particles HERE)

Example Sentences:

숙제를 끝내다. = To complete/finish homework.

일을 끝내다. = To finish one's work.

시험을 끝내다. = To finish a test.

식사를 끝내다 = To finish a meal.

이쯤에서 끝냅시다. = Let's wrap it up here.

이 일을 끝내는 데는 하루가 걸릴 겁니다. = It will take a day to finish this job off.

끝나다 means that something is completed or something ends (not because of you or your actions, but on it's own). You can think of it as something coming to a "natural" end. With this word, you'll often see 이/가 on the noun in the sentence.

Example Sentences:

영화가 어떻게 끝나는지 말하지 마세요! = Don't tell me how the movie ends.

경기가 끝났습니다. = The game is over.

회의는 여덟시에 끝났어요. = The meeting ended at eight o'clock.

학생들은 수업이 끝나면 도서관에 가거나 집으로 돌아가요. = Students go to the library or go back home after class.

수업은 4시에 끝납니다. = The class ends at four o'clock.

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That's it for this post! I have a bunch of other lessons like this one that helps you learn the difference between 2 similar Korean words. For example: 좋다 vs 좋아하다 (See that lesson HERE).

Below this lesson are some similar lessons that you may be interested in! If you liked this post, you can also leave a "heart".