좋다 vs. 좋아하다

 

‘좋다’ means ‘to be good’ or ‘to be like’

Ex) 날씨가 좋아요 = The weather is good

‘좋아하다’ means ‘to be like’

Ex) 저는 비 오는 날씨를 좋아해요 = I like raining weather

 

Now, you might be a little confused, thinking, "If I want to say 'to like,' which one is correct?" Here's the main difference: ‘좋다’ is an adjective, ‘좋아하다’ is a verb.

 

So "좋다" is used with subject particles (이/가), "좋아하다" is used with object particles (을/를).

Ex) 나는 사과가 좋아요 = I like apple 나는 사과를 좋아요 (x) 

나는 사과를 좋아해요 = I like apple 나는 사과가 좋아해요 (x)

You can use both subject particles and object particles together in a sentence:

Ex) 내가 사과를 좋아해요 

In Korean, "좋다" and "좋아하다" can both be used to express liking something. They have the same meaning and little difference in nuance

However, when the subject is 3rd person, only "좋아하다" sounds natural.

유진이는 사과가 좋아요 (x)

유진이는 사과를 좋아해요 (0)