Study Korean with 악돌 선생님

LEARN KOREAN WITH 악돌 선생님! Tumblr 지점.

[gongbu4life]

Ive learned more from as little posts as you've had than all the other accounts ive seen

Thanks so much! I really appreciate it. :D 

[gongbu4life]

There is something that bugs me a lot. I can't understand why some people use 없다는/있다는/etc in sentences instead of 있는/없는/etc, how I learned. I've seen this a lot and I can't realize the difference if there's any. Example: 지은이가 입학할 수 없다는 소문을 들었어요

Hey! Thanks for writing, and sorry it took so long to get back to you. T_T 

That’s actually a different grammar construction. 있는/없는/etc is the conjugated adjectival blah blah stuff (from Step 2), but the example you mentioned is an indirect quote form. (You can skip the rest and go ahead and Google that!)

‘-다는’ is actually short for ‘-다고 하는.’ There are few others like this, like ‘-(이)라는’ being short for ‘-(이)라고 하는,’ or ‘-자는’ being short ‘-자고 하는’ etc. There’s a LOT of ways this is utilized in Korean, so there hasn’t been a comprehensive post explaining ALL of this. It’s a form used a lot in Korean, you’ve probably encountered it already (like your example here). 

So in your example, the construction is: 

지은이가 입학할 수 없다는 소문을 들었어요. (original) 

(저는) <지은이가 입학할 수 없다>고 하는 소문을 들었어요. 

-> 저는 …를/을 들었어요. I heard …-> 저는 소문을 들었어요. I heard a rumor… -> 저는 …다고 하는 소문을 들었어요. I heard a rumor that… -> 저는 지은이가 입학할 수 없다고 하는 소문을 들었어요. I heard a rumor that 지은 cannot enroll into school. 

I would rank this as an intermediate or even advanced grammar because it requires you to be comfortable with verb conjugation (both tense and usage), basic sentence constructions, and a natural flow of Korean. As you can see above the breakdown of grammar doesn’t exactly line up with English.

HOWEVER, it’s not so complicated in itself- it just combines a lot of things you’ve learned somewhere else. It’s also used EVERYWHERE in Korean, so once you learn this it’ll be reinforced over and over again. 

We’re not going to learn all of the variations today, BUT, once you learn it you could guess “oh, this might be that indirect quote form 악돌 선생님 talked about!” 

(-1) Indirect Quote VS Direct Quote 

Before going too further, it’s worth revisiting what’s the difference between a direct quote and an indirect quote in English. Basically, it’s this: 

Tom said, “I like cake.” (direct quote) Tom said that he likes cake. (indirect quote)

In Korean, you may also see this: 

I heard that Tom said that he likes cake. (still an indirect quote) 

Anyways, let’s dive into it. Hope this helps! 

(0) Important Foundations 

The really simplified diagram for this grammar construction is either:

[statement (”what was heard”)] + [final ending -다] + [고] + [some ‘reporting’ verb]  OR 

[statement] + [final ending -다] + [고] + [하는 (하다 in noun modifying form)] + [’reporting’ noun] [verb]

** NOTE: there are several ways to dissect this construction and I’m using the one that makes most sense to me. Don’t feel enslaved to this version. 

It’s important to recognize that “-다고” (or -(이)라고 or -자고…) is its own thing. -다고 is “An expression used to pass along what the speaker heard from another person, or to present the subject’s thoughts, opinions, etc.” (from Korean Learner’s Dictionary [link])

This is actually a combination of a “final ending” (종결 어미) like -다, -라, -자 (conjugated on ‘participles,’ descriptive verbs and action verbs), and the particle 고 that shows what precedes it is an indirect quote. ([link] to 고 in Korean Learner’s Dictionary).

I’m calling the swath of verbs and nouns that relate to speech/thought a “reporting verb” and “reporting noun.” These include 말하다, 묻다, 소문, 질문, etc. These are basic vocab words and I will not go into more detail. 

At the end of the day, these should be the takeaways: 

-다는 is short for -다고 하는 

-다고 = -다 final ending (or any final ending like -자, -라, -냐…) + indirect quote particle 고 

-고 하다 = indirect quote form of 하다 - not “to do” but something like “it is said…” … This always follows the indirect quote particle 고 

(1) + -다 + 고 +  “reporting verb” 

Let’s look at some examples first. I’m going to focus on the construction, not the ‘best way to translate’ … These are from the Korean Learner’s Dictionary: 

형이 같이 농구를 하자고 한다.~ 형 said to play basketball together. (형 wants to play basketball together) 

Start to view this construction as (형이) [<같이 농구를 하자>고 한다]. We have the statement <같이 농구를 하자> with the -자 final ending, followed by particle 고, and 한다 meaning “he said….” and the subject that “said” something is “형,” so we have “형이” at the beginning of the sentence. 

선생님이 숙제를 다 했냐고 물어보셨다.~ The teacher asked whether I did all of my homework. 

Again the construction here is [선생님이 <숙제를 다 했냐>고 물어보셨다.] Same thing: the statement (question) <숙제를 다 했냐> and the -냐 final ending, followed by particle 고, and the verb 물어보시다 in the past tense, 물어보셨다 (This is “to ask” with -시- honorific marker) 

So that’s how the -다고 stuff works. It takes a statement that ends in a “final ending” (-다, -자, -라. -냐, etc) and adds a 고 indirect quote particle, and ends with a “speech/thought verb” like 하다, 말하다, 묻다, 물어보다, 생각하다 etc.

(2) + -다 + 고 + 하는 + “reporting noun” + verb   

 This one combines the -다고 construction above with “하는,” which is is the verb 하다 conjugated in the “noun modifying” form that we learned in Step 2. [link to Step 2]. Note that this ‘하다’ does not mean “to do,” but it means to say or to quote. This version of 하다 always follows 고. When you see 고 followed by 하다, it’s a clue that this is a quote/indirect quote of some sort. This “-다고 하는” is often contracted to “-다는.”

OK, let’s move onto the example you gave.

(저는) 지은이가 입학할 수 없다는 소문을 들었어요. 

The big envelope is: 저는 …을/를 들었어요 (I heard …). What did you 듣다? You heard a 소문. So our important construction is 저는 소문을 들었어요. That’s the “reporting noun” 소문 and a verb that goes with it (소문을 듣다, to hear a rumor). 

This example continues to describe the nature of the said-소문 (rumor). This is the component I listed above. 

지은이가 입학할 수 없다. 

And we see in the example, 지은이가 입학할 수 없다는 소문. This is where this breaks down into <지은이가 입학할 수 없다>고 하는 소문 – did you see it? final ending -다 + particle 고 + 하는 + reporting noun. 

So the example sentence really looks like: 

(저는) <지은이가 입학할 수 없다>고 하는 소문을 들었어요. ~ I heard a rumor that 지은이가 입학할 수 없다. (지은 cannot enroll into school) 

This all felt complicated, but if you follow the constructions, then it’s not so bad…. I promise! 

Now you can indirectly quote something you’ve heard, or something that someone else said, etc. Let’s use our “Tom said that he likes cake” example:

Tom said that he likes cake. -> Tom said that  -> 톰이 말했다. <케이크를 좋아한다> -> 톰이 케이크를 좋아한다고 말했다. 

Let’s see the 다고 하는 in action. Here’s the "I heard that Tom said that he likes cake.” example: 

I heard that Tom said that he likes cake.-> (I heard) that Tom said that  -> (나는 들었다.) 톰이 말했다. <케이크를 좋아한다> -> (나는 들었다.) 톰이 케이크를 좋아한다고 한다. -> 나는 톰이 케이크를 좋아한다고 하는 것을 들었다. -> 나는 톰이 케이크를 좋아한다는 것을 들었다. 

Ta-da! 

HTSK actually did a great job breaking this down. It mentions the ‘-다고’ and ‘-(이)라고’ forms and how you would conjugate it by tense, too. Once you get a hang of this construction, you’ll be able to recognize it and move forward. [link] 

OK, that’s all for today. I hope that made sense and it helped you understand one of the more complicated, but ubiquitous grammar forms of Korean T_T Let me know if you have any other questions or if I can clarify anything for you! 

[gongbu4life]

Post more! I love what you were doing; Your verb posts helped me a ton!

Thanks so much! I'll post another thorough post once spring break hits :D <3 

[gongbu4life]

악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean Part 2: Adjectives & Determiners

Hey all, this post is better seen on my Wordpress blog, b/c I’ve color corded and underlined everything I could. [LINK] 

Color-coded example:

Summary

How do adjectives work in Korean? 

English adjectives look distinct. They go in front of nouns that they describe and they are not conjugated - they look the same no matter what noun they describe, whether it’s singular, plural, whatever... 

In Korean, adjectives are like verbs. It would be more accurate to call them descriptive verbs. Korean adjectives are conjugated just like verbs are in Korean: by tense, by formality level, etc.

This post looks at descriptive verbs and how to use them with technical detail. :) 

Find it at my Wordpress blog here >> [LINK] 

As always, please let me know if you have any questions or feedback. 

Next post will be about nouns(subjunctives) and 이다, if I’m brave enough! 

[gongbu4life]

While you wait for my next video, please watch this video to learn the basics of Korean grammar & conjugating verbs into 아/어/여+요. You’ll learn a set of verbs with different conjugation rules. She even delves into past tense (-았어요/-었어요/-였어요), days of the week, and even -ㅂ니다 (습니다, 입니다)! 

The 선생님 in this video talks ONLY IN KOREAN! So here are some expressions that she uses. 

Spoken: 

여러분~ - addressing “everyone” (plural) 

알죠? 알겠죠? - “Do you understand?” “Do you get it?”  - from 알다 (동사), “to know” 

괜찮죠? 괜찮아요? - “Are you good?” “Is that okay?” - from 괜찮다 (형용사), “to be fine” 

말해요, 말할 때, 말하다 - means “when (you) speak,” she is saying this to distinguish dictionary form from spoken form (e.g. 가다 vs 가요) 

발음 - pronunciation; some words like 읽어요 are pronounced differently like [일거요].  (also 소리 없습니다~) 

쉽죠? - “Isn’t it easy?” “It’s easy, right?” - from 쉽다 (형용사) - “to be easy” 

지금 - (명사) right now, currently

이렇게 되지요? - “This happens,” “This is what happens.” (”This is what it looks like in whatever form”). 

이야기합니다 / 얘기합니다 - 친구가 얘기합니다 - “(Your) friend says...” to differentiate from how news speakers talk 

초급 - “beginner level” for TOPIK exam 

Written on board: 

연습 - “practice” (명사) - this is written on the board when she works out some of the verbs 

동 - short for 동사 (action verb) 

형 - short for 형용사 (descriptive verb) 

명 - short for 명사 (noun) 

[gongbu4life]

악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean Part 1 (4/4)

Part 1 (¼) Introduction is here: [LINK] Read the full lesson here on my Wordpress site: [LINK]

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Conclusion

We spent most of our time today learning the differences between these two sentences:

저는 사과가 좋아요. 저는 사과를 좋아해요.

We learned that the fundamental difference between the two sentences are “Verbs” (aka Predicates). The first sentence uses a descriptive verb, 좋다 -> 좋아요, to describe the subject 사과. The second sentence uses an action verb, 좋아하다 -> 좋아해요, to say that the subject 저 likes the direct object, 사과. 좋아하다 takes a direct object because it is a transitive verb.

We also learned three particles: subject particle 이/가, topic particle 은/는, and object particle을/를. These particles mark a word with their function in a sentence. They are not present in the English language. When we want to talk about ourselves, we will always use “저는” for now, because it’s ok to be confused about when to use the subject particle or the topic particle.

The object particle, on the other hand, marks the direct object of a verb. The Korean “Subject-Object-Verb” (S-O-V) sentence structure matches the English “Subject-Verb-Object” (S-V-O) structure when a transitive action verb is used.

WHAT CAN I DO WITH THIS KNOWLEDGE?

You can use this sentence structure to say many things. All you have to do now is substitute the nouns, objects, and verbs in this sentence structure to at least say “I like …” or “(Friend) likes …”

저는 KPOP을 좋아해요. 악돌은 케이크를 좋아해요. Lovelyz가 좋아요.

In our next lesson, we will learn how to use predicates to modify nouns and create more complicated sentences like this:

저는 악돌이 좋아하는 맛있는 케이크를 좋아해요. (~ I like the delicious cake that 악돌 likes.)

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Thanks Tumblr for keeping up with these posts! Please send me any questions or feedback if you have any. 

Are there any Korean grammar concepts that you have trouble with? Does this kind of post help you understand things better? 

Let me know! 

-악돌 선생님

[gongbu4life]

악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean Part 1 (3/4)

(4) “Verbs”: Descriptive verbs (형용사) + Action Verbs (동사)

aka Predicates (용언) – predicates describe the subject’s quality or actions; predicates state something about the subject.

Before anything, please know that Korean verbs are ‘conjugated.’ In this post, we are using two forms: the ‘dictionary form’ (좋다, 좋아하다), as well as ‘informal polite form,’ 아/어/여 + 요 (좋아요, 좋아해요). For more information on conjugation, check these links: [Korean Wiki Project: 아/어/여 + 요] [Korean Living – multiple conjugations]

저는 사과가 좋아요. 저는 사과를 좋아해요.

Many beginners probably know how to say “오빠 좋아요” and “오빠 좋아해요” without understanding the differences between the two. You may understand them both as “I like 오빠.” Fortunately for us, 좋다 and 좋아하다 are great words to demonstrate the differences between descriptive verbs and action verbs.

While English has a huge distinction between adjectives and verbs, Korean does not share that same difference. Instead, we have descriptive verbs (형용사) that could be similar to English adjectives, but ultimately behave similarly to action verbs (동사), unlike the English adjective.

I think this is a very, very important difference between Korean and English. Both action verbs and descriptive verbs can describe the subject; whether it is about the quality of the subject (like an English adjective might) or to describe the action of the subject (like an English verb might).

How do I know if a "verb" (predicate) is a descriptive verb or an action verb? Well... To be honest, you either know it already, or you have to look it up. They act very similarly in Korean, so it's okay to confuse them. If you're unsure, look it up in the Korean dictionary and see if it says  or 동사.

For today's' purpose, just know that action verbs and descriptive verbs are part of the same group and they can do a lot of the same stuff. (Action verbs can do "more" than descriptive verbs, but that's not so important today.)

A. DESCRIPTIVE VERB (형용사) – 좋다

As I’ve mentioned, descriptive verbs are words that could be considered similar to adjectives in English. 좋다, can mean “good,” “likeable,” and “agreeable” like English adjectives. You may also see that 좋다’s meaning is “to be good,” “to be likable” or “to be agreeable.” I personally think that the latter definitions, like “to be good,” is a more accurate depictions of descriptive verbs.

In the first sentence, 저는 사과가 좋아요, we’ve already figured out that ‘저는’ sets up the sentence to be about 저 (I), as identified by the topic particle ‘는.’ However, we know that the subject of the sentence is actually 사과, because of the subject particle ‘가.’ Let’s drop 저는 from this example to clean up the sentence.

Now we have 사과가 좋아요. 사과 is the subject (주어) and 좋아요 is the “verb.”

좋다 is a descriptive verb (형용사). (It is conjugated as 좋아요 in this sentence.) 좋다 is describing the quality of the subject, 사과, as “likable.” 사과가 좋아요 means, 사과 (the subject) has a likable quality.

Let’s bring back 저는. 저는 사과가 좋아요. We already know that this means “I like apples.” Combining everything we’ve learned so far, we can conclude that this sentence technically means the following:

저는 사과가 좋아요 As for me, the apple is likable. => I like apples!

Let’s move onto the next sentence.

B. ACTION VERB (동사) – 좋아하다 + OBJECT PARTICLE (을/를)

Verbs have different qualities. This is same for English and Korean alike. Today’s verb, 좋아하다 is a transitive verb (타동사), meaning that the subject verbs upon something (direct object). To reiterate, the transitive verb has three components: a subject, a verb, and a direct object. (Read more on English Transitive Verb here: [Grammar Bytes])

I eat an apple.

Subject: I Verb: eat Direct object: an apple

This is the same in Korean, as demonstrated in our second sentence:

저는 사과를 좋아해요.

Subject: 저 Verb: 좋아하다 -> 좋아해요 Direct Object: 사과

** Why is there a topic particle on 저 instead of  a subject particle? Remember that in the absence of a subject marked by a subject particle, the noun marked with the topic particle can act as the subject of the sentence. Learning when to do this will take time.

Now we run into the object particle. As the name suggests, the object particle marks the direct object of a verb. Because “좋아하다” and “to eat” are both transitive verbs, they require a direct object. In Korean, the direct object is marked by 을/를, the object particle, as you see in the sentence above (사과 + 를).

Why does the other sentence lack a direct object? Remember that 좋다->좋아요 is a descriptive verb, not an action verb nor a transitive verb. It does not call for a direct object.

So, for 저는 사과를 좋아해요, we can break this sentence down like such:

저는 사과를 좋아해요. I like apples. => I like apples!

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The last (4/4) segment will be a conclusion and a summary of this lesson. Don’t forget to send me feedback! Is this helpful? Is there anything I can clarify? 

Part 1 (¼) Introduction is here: [LINK] Read the full lesson here on my Wordpress site: [LINK] 

[gongbu4life]

악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean Part 1 (2/4)

Part 1 (1/4) Introduction is here: [LINK]  Read the full lesson here on my Wordpress site: [LINK]

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(1) Word Order

Basic Korean sentences stick to this order: SUBJECT (S) OBJECT (O) VERB (V). This is different from English, where basic sentences are in this order: SUBJECT (S) VERB (V) OBJECT (O).

English: Akdol likes an apple. Korean: Akdol an apple likes.

This is common knowledge in the beginning stages of learning Korean. I’m including this here so that we’re on the same page.  However, there’s a bit more to this sentence structure, as we will find out… But this is good background information.  

(2) Particles, aka Postpositions (조사)

We have three particles to look over today:

이/가 – subject particle (사랑이, 사과가) 은/는 – topic particle (사랑은, 사과는) 을/를 – object particle (사랑을, 사과를)

Korean uses particles, short suffixes, to mark different units of the sentence. The English language does not use particles. You can easily find an exhaustive list of particles in the Korean language, but we will only work with those three today.

Why are we learning this? Koreans drop particles all the time. And so do many beginner’s learning materials! But I think that’s even more reason to learn these particles… Koreans know which particles they drop. You don’t. These pesky little suffixes are not part of the English language, and it is normal to find them difficult. However, particles are fundamental to understanding Korean grammar and learning them early on will set you up for success in the future.

Why are there two of each? As you already know, some syllable blocks in Korean have final consonants, while some don’t. For the subject particle, 이/가, 이 is used for words with final consonants, like 사랑 (love). 가 is used for words without final consonants, like 사과 (apple). This is further demonstrated for the other two particles in the examples above.

We will learn more about these in the next few sections.

(3) Subject (주어) + Subject Particle (주격조사 “이/가”) + Topic Particle (보조사 “은/는”)

저는 사과가 좋아요. 저는 사과를 좋아해요.

** While we’re on this subject (ha!)… In Korean, plurality is not marked unless it is important. These two sentences only have 사과, which seems to be a singular noun, but it means ‘apples (in general).’ To learn more about Korean plurality, see: [Nojeok Hill (explanation in English)] [UBC.ca]

Both sentences above start with the same word, 저. 저 means “I,” and it is in a formality level where you are showing respect. (나 is the informal counterpart to 저; 나 also means “I” but it is a casual way of expressing “I.” Read more here [funkorean4u] )

Then what is 는? It is a topic particle. What is 가 on 사과? It is a subject particle. Wait, 악돌 선생님, this is confusing to my English sensibilities – and rightfully so!

The short answer is, 이/가, the subject particle, will always mark the subject. In addition, in the absence of a subject particle, 은/는, the topic particle, may mark a subject, like in the second sentence 저는 사과를 좋아해요 ( ‘I apple like’ ).

When there are both a topic particle and subject particle in a sentence, the subject particle marks the subject, and the topic particle marks the ‘topic’ of the sentence. 저는 in the first sentence can be, ‘As for 저 (I), …," and not be the 'subject' of the sentence. 저는 here does not act out the verb.

Learning when to use the subject particle and the topic particle is difficult at first. This skill is something you’ll work on throughout your Korean career. These particles, again, are a function absent in the English language, so it is absolutely normal to have trouble learning this overnight.

Here are a couple of videos explaining the differences between the topic particle and subject particle. [MotivateKorean] [TTMIK] [Go!Billy]

I suggest that you take the advice of MotivateKorean here: When you are talking about yourself, just stick to 저는. We are doing that in this lesson. 

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In the next segment, we’re going to look at my favorite part: “VERBS!” Please send me ANY feedback or questions regarding this series. Is this helpful? What would you like to see more of? 

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Part 1 (1/4) Introduction is here: [LINK] Read the full lesson here on my Wordpress site: [LINK] 

- edit: made minor changes, like changing “I eat apples” to “I like apples” to match the lesson. 

[gongbu4life]

악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean Part 1 (1/4)

Hi Tumblr! Long time no see. I’ve prepared a grammar lesson for you all this week. Part 1 of my “악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean” is divided into four parts, and it will be posted throughout this week. 

You can read the FULL POST on my new Wordpress Blog. [LINK] 

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악돌’s First Steps to Serious Korean Part 1: Subjects, Particles and Verbs

This is one out of several posts to help you start learning Korean seriously!

Learn the foundations of Korean grammar and sentence making by learning how to say “I like apples” in two different ways.

Introduction

Many posts that say, ‘start learning Korean here!’ often omit important grammatical foundations. It is important to know how to say “hello” and “I like ….” However, neglecting basic grammatical principles might be a burden later. This post is meant to introduce some basic grammatical aspects of the Korean language. Following this text will prepare you to tackle further material in the future.

YOU ARE THIS PERSON:

I know how to read 한글.

I am interested in furthering my Korean studies but lack a formal background.

I know phrases but I do not understand why they mean what they mean.

I know phrases but cannot write my own sentence.

I would like a foundational knowledge of Korean grammar.

My personal goal is to offer content that you don’t have to unlearn later. Will there be exceptions to these rules and examples? Certainly. But this is meant to give you a foundation of knowledge, not a set of absolute rules.

My hope, also, is that this gives you the tools to make sentences, instead of just memorizing phrases.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Understand the basic sentence structure of Korean.

Get to know a few particles (조사) and their functions:

Recognize two types of “verbs” in Korean: descriptive verbs (형용사) and action verbs (동사).

Learn two different ways to say “I like apples.”

NOT master the Korean language today.

subject particle, 이/가 (주격 조사)

topic particle, 은/는 (보조사)

object particle, 을/를 (목적격 조사)

** This lesson assumes that you know how to read Korean (Hangul). If not, please indulge in any of these two series: [TTMIK1 / TTMIK2] [Go! Billy  – Learn Hangul in 90 Minutes]

** I am using Korean grammatical terms in this post. Korean and English have different grammar systems, so it is good to recognize the differences in terms. They are not important for you to know today, but they are included, in case you’d like to keep a list of Korean grammar terms.

(0) Problem

We’re going to work with two sentences in this lesson:

저는 사과가 좋아요. 저는 사과를 좋아해요.

THEY LOOK SO SIMILAR! THEY BOTH MEAN “I LIKE APPLES.” WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Well, stick around and we’ll find out.

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Come read the FULL POST on my new Wordpress Blog. [LINK] Or wait for the next segment tomorrow :) 

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 상하다 (verb)

상하기 전에 버리세요! Throw it away before it goes bad! Today's @WotD is 상하다. 상하다 (傷--) means to go bad, or to get hurt. Let's look at these different meanings:

1) to spoil, to go bad, to get stale.      Ex) 상한 냄새가 난다. It smells stale.      Ex) 여름에는 음식이 쉽게 상한다. In the summer, food spoils easily.      Ex) 두부 상하나요? Does tofu go bad?

 2) To grow haggard, be emaciated, get injured.      Ex) 상한 손톱은 몸이 건강하지 않다는 증거다. Nail fungus is a sign that your body is unhealthy.      Ex) 몸이 상해가면서까지 일을 했다. I worked my fingers to the bone.      Ex) 그는 감기를 앓더니 얼굴이 상해 보였다. His face looked haggard after he came down with a cold. 

 3) To be hurt emotionally.      Ex) 그녀의 말 한마디에 기분이 상했다. I got offended at a single thing she said.      Ex) 그 소식을 듣고 마음이 몹시 상했다.  I was greatly distressed after hearing the news.      Ex) 오늘 자존심 상하는 일이 있었다. There was an incident today that hurt my pride.

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 마음 (noun)

악돌: This one is a long post. You’re already familiar with 마음 - it is used in a bunch of Kpop lyrics ... This is a very important word I’ve been meaning to cover, but I am really happy that Annie did the work for me... :D Please note that the post is shortened; expand the content to see all 7 meanings! 

오늘의 단어가 마음에 드시나요? Is today's WotD to your liking? Today's @WotD is 마음. This word has 7 different meanings in the dictionary! While 마음 has many nuances, you can simplify it into "heart" and "mind". With that said, let's get into all the different meanings: 

 1) A person's personality.     Ex) 마음이 나쁜 사람은 피해야 된다. A bad person must be avoided.     Ex) 마음이 넓은 사람은 복이 많다. A generous person has good fortune.     Ex) 마음씨가 착해서 좋다. I like them because they are kind-hearted.

 2) The way a person feels or thinks about a thing, situation, or another person.      Ex) 몸은 늙었지만 마음은 아직 청춘이다. My body may be old but my I'm still young at heart.     Ex) 마음의 준비가 아직 되지 않았다. I'm not mentally prepared yet.     Ex) 서로 마음이 통하는 사이다. We understand each other well. 

 3) The place where a person's thoughts, feelings, and memories are stored.      Ex) 그녀의 얼굴을 마음에 새겨 두었다. I burned her face into my memory.      Ex) 너무 욕심내지 말고 마음을 비워라. Don't be too greedy and empty your heart of wants.     Ex) 마음 한 구석에 불안감이 있었다. Somewhere in the corner of my mind there was anxiety. 

 4) The amount of interest a person has towards an event or activity. A person's intentions or plans.      Ex) 대학에 갈 마음이 없다. I have no interest in going to college.      Ex) 그는 한 번 마음을 먹으면 바꾸지 않는다. When he decides on something he rarely changes his mind.     Ex) 영화를 보고 싶은 마음이 굴뚝 같다. I desperately want to see a movie.

 5) The standards with which a person decides whether something is good or bad, or right or wrong.     Ex) 마음에 드는 옷을 찾지 못했다. I couldn't find clothes that I liked.     Ex) 마음에 차는 음식으로 배를 채웠다. I filled my belly with a satisfying meal.     Ex) 그렇게 나쁘지는 않지만 썩 마음에 들지는 않다. It isn't that bad but it's not completely to my liking.

6) The feelings a person has for someone else.      Ex) 그 남자에게 마음이 있다.. I have feelings for that man.      Ex) 그녀에게 내 마음을 주었다. I gave her my heart.      Ex) 누군가의 마음을 사로잡고 말았다. I ended up captivating someone.

 7) That with which a person focuses on something.      Ex) 마음을 집중해서 공부했다. I studied with concentration.      Ex) 그 사건 이후로 마음이 다잡아지지 않는다. After that event, I cannot pull myself together.      Ex) 온 마음과 정성을 다해 노래를 불렀다. I sang with all my heart and soul.

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 버릇 (noun)

WotD를 쓰는게 버릇이 됐나봐요! I think writing the WotD has become a habit! Today's @WotD is 버릇.

 버릇 can mean two things:

 1) A habit      Ex) 나쁜 버릇은 고쳐야 된다. A bad habit must be fixed.

 2) The proper etiquette you must show your elders and superiors.      Ex) 버릇이 없어서 혼났다. I got told off becasue I have no manners. 

 Common 버릇 words: 

 말버릇: Speaking habit. The way you speak, speaking mannerisms.      Ex) 말버릇이 나빠서 말을 섞기 싫다. They have a foul mouth so I don't want to talk to them. 

 잠버릇: Sleeping habit. The things you do while sleeping, such as snoring, sleep-talking, stealing the covers, etc.      Ex) 잠버릇으로 사람의 성격을 알 수 있다고 한다. They say that you can tell a person's personality through their sleeping habits.

 술버릇: Drinking habit. The things you do when drunk, such as dancing, falling asleep, calling your ex, etc.      Ex) 술버릇이 심해서 술은 혼자서만 마신다. My drinking habits are extreme so I only drink alone.

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 꼴 (noun)

꼴 좋~다! Serves you right! Today's @WotD is 꼴. 꼴 can have 3 different meanings: 

 1) The shape of an object.      Ex) 델타는 삼각형의 꼴을 하고 있다. A delta has the shape of a triangle.

 2) A disparaging word for a person's appearance.      Ex) 흉한 꼴로 나가면 망신당한다. If you go out looking disgusting you'll get humiliated.

 3) A disparaging word for a person's situation or circumstances.      Ex) 비참한 꼴을 당해서야 정신을 차렸다. I only came back to my senses after getting into a pitiable situation. 

 Common 꼴 phrases: 

 닮은 꼴: Someone that looks like someone else; a lookalike (literally: similar shape. Without the space, 닮은꼴 is a geometry term for "similar shape")      Ex) 내 친구는 지드래곤 닮은 꼴로 유명하다. My friend is famous for being G Dragon's lookalike. 

 꼴 좋다: What you say when someone gets what they deserve; "serves you/them right".      Ex) 나를 왕따시킨 녀석이 정학을 받았다니 꼴 좋다. The guy that bullied me got suspended? Serves him right.

 꼴 보기 싫다: to not want to see someone. When you hate someone so much even looking at their face makes you mad.      Ex) 그 직장 동료가 얼마나 꼴도 보기 싫었는지 직장을 옮겼다. I hated that coworker so much I changed jobs.

악돌: I want to reiterate how important these sets of vocabulary are. You may not consider them important, but please read the examples! They are great expressions to know and use on a daily basis :) Thanks Annie! 

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 흉 (noun)

흉보지 마세요! Don't talk behind people's backs! Today's @WotD is 흉. 

흉 (凶) can mean two things: 

1) A scar (syn: 흉터)      Ex) 상처가 잘 아물지 못하고 흉이 남았다. The wound didn't heal nicely and left a scar. 

 2) A fault, flaw, defect, or blemish.      Ex) 흉 없는 사람은 없다. There are no people without flaws (everyone has a flaw). 

 Some 흉 expressions: 

  흉하다: to be ominous or unlucky, or look unpleasant or disgusting      Ex) 흉한 소리는 하지 않는게 좋다. It's not good to say something foreboding.      Ex) 흉하게 생겨서 싫다. I don't like it because it looks disgusting.

 흉보다: to point out the flaws of someone, to speak ill of, badmouth      Ex) 남을 흉보는 것은 흉한 짓이다. Talking behind people's backs is a nasty thing to do.      Ex) 비비안씨는 이유 없이 우리를 흉봤다. Vivian spoke ill of us without reason.

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 실례 (noun)

실례합니다! Today's @WotD is 실례. 실례 (失禮) means discourtesy or bad manners. Manners are important in Korean so this is an often used word.

     Ex) 어른보다 먼저 밥을 먹는 것은 실례다. It is bad manners to eat before an elder.      Ex) 어제는 실례가 많았습니다. I'm sorry for the inconvenience yesterday.      Ex) 초면에 말을 놓는 것은 실례되는 행동이다. Using informal/impolite speech when you first meet is a discourteous act. 

However, sometimes you must do something that may be considered bad manners. In such cases, you can use these phrases: 

 실례합니다: excuse me (literally, I am doing a discourtesy)      Ex) 실례합니다. Excuse me (like when moving through a crowd).      Ex) 잠시 실례하겠습니다. Excuse me for a moment.      Ex) 먼저 실례하겠습니다. Excuse me but I must leave (when you must leave before the elders).

 실례지만/실례하지만/실례합니다만: Excuse me, but (literally, this is a discourtesy but)      Ex) 실례지만 나이가 어떻게 되시나요? Excuse me but what is your age?      Ex) 실례합니다만 옆자리에 앉아도 될까요? Excuse me but may I sit next to you?

악돌 add: Please note that these are very important phrases in Korean culture! If you use these, you’ll be called fluent immediately! 

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s WotD: 심각하다 (adjective)

우습나요? 전 심각한데. Do you find this funny? I'm being serious. Today's @WotD is 심각하다. 

심각하다(深刻) means serious, or grave. It can be used to describe someone's emotions, or a situation.

     Ex) 심각한 얼굴을 하고 있었다. They had a grave expression.      Ex) 심각한 문제가 하나 있다. There is a serious problem. 

여러분은 심각한 상황이 닥치면 어떻게 행동하시나요? How do you act in a serious situation? 혹시 심각한 고민이 있으신가요? Are you gravely worrying about anything?

Reminder that this is not written by 악돌, but a wonderful 동생 named Annie on the Discord server - she’s been doing a wonderful job! If you ever come across her, tell her ‘고맙습니다!’ 

[gongbu4life]

Annie’s Wotd: 성질 (noun)

성질내지 마세요! Today's @WotD is 성질. 

성질(性格) can mean two things: 

1) The quality or property of something.      Ex) 물은 더러운 것을 정화하는 성질이 있다. Water has cleansing properties. 

2) Temper.      Ex) 성질 한 번 고약하다. What a nasty temper. 

 Some 성질 expressions: 

성질나다: to get angry      Ex) 아이가 하도 성질나게 굴어서 참기 힘들다. The kid acts so obnoxiously it's difficult to hold back.

성질내다: to lose one's temper (syn: 성질(을) 부리다)      Ex) 요즘 예민해서 성질을 잘 낸다. Because I'm sensitive these days I'm easily irritable.

 성질(이) 더럽다: to have a nasty temper      Ex) 성질 더러운 것은 결코 자랑거리가 아니다. Having a nasty temper is not something to brag about.