How to say "to" as a linking word between verbs in Korean?

Question

I've been learning both English and Korean, and as I know, we can use "to" to link two verbs in English. Ex:

Alex is lost. We must go to find her.

I would like to invite Kim professor to teach English

In this sentence, "to" is the linking word between "go" and "find", "invite" and "teach", so it's easy for me to understand or write English sentences. But it's hard for me to understand and write Korean sentences, because I cannot find any linking word like "to" in Korean.

I know some words that have a related purpose in Korean, like "기 위해서" or "도록", but I think they only can be used in some situations, not every situation like "to" in English.

Alex를 찾기 위해 가야 해요

or

나는 김 교수님가 영어 수업을 가르쳐 주시도록 초대하고 싶습니다"

seem strange. Can you help me find such a linking word (link two verbs) in Korean?

Answer 1

The word "to" in English is a preposition with many, many uses. Translating "to" into Korean thus has many, many variants. We must remember that Korean is not just an encoding of English, and all that one need do is find a one-to-one mapping between each Korean word to an English word.

The question at hand specifically asks about a form in Korean which can be used to connect two verbs. I will address only two forms in Korean that are used to express the concept of a transitive verb admitting a gerund (verb being used as a noun).

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As you have mentioned, there is the form Verb+기 위해. This form roughly is used when we want to say "in order to."

난 차를 사기 위해서 운전면허증을 땄어.

I got a driver's license in order to buy a car.

.

그는 한국어를 공부기 위해서 일주일에 3번 학원에 가요.

He goes to an academy three times a week (in order) to study Korean.

Many times, the (in order) part of the form is removed when used in English.

V + 기 위해 is usually a more general form for "(in order) to"

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On the other hand, the form V + 도록 provides more a feeling of purpose, suggestion, or extent. It can also be used to mean "in order to" or just "to do" in relation to the

그 여자에게 말하지 않도록 주의하라

Be careful not to speak with that lady.

.

아빠한테서 칭찬을 받을 수 있도록 방을 깨끗이 청소했어요.

I cleaned my room (in order) to receive praise from my father.

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There is also the form V + (으)려고 하다, meaning "to intend (to do)."

내일 도사관에 가려고 한다.

I intend to go to the library tomorrow.

잘 공부하려고 음악을 껐어요.

In order to study well, I turned off the music.

All told, the way to say "to" in Korean leads to numerous options, each of which have their uses.

Answer 2

In addition to Vladhagen's great answer, I want to emphasize that English "to (verb)" is a very versatile expression, and its meaning is frequently inferred from context. (I know, because every Korean students in the 80s suffered through exam problems like "Out of these five sentences, find the one to that has different meaning.")

So, frequently, English sentences with "to" is better expressed in Korean by paraphrasing. I would translate your sentence as:

I would like to invite Kim professor to teach English

김 교수님을 초청해서 영어 강의를 부탁드리고 싶습니다.

• I think spicypumpkin's suggestion above ("김 교수님을 영어 강사로 초청하고 싶습니다") is also fine.

Other examples with paraphrasing:

He left the country, to never return.

그는 나라를 떠나서 다시는 돌아오지 않았다.

She ran up to the boarding gate, only to find that the plane has left.

그녀는 탑승구까지 달려갔지만 비행기는 이미 떠난 후였다.