#billy go

[onthecuterside]

On my path to be passively fluent in Korean by 2025 (🤡), I've come across this YouTube teacher, Billy Go (although I prefer learning from native speakers, myself). Here he does an analysis of BTS members' speaking styles - in this first instalment, on RM's use of trendy slang, rapid speech and poetic style. Nerdy but cool + bonus watching someone getting hooked ...

Maybe RM was a peripheral target of Jimin's rant against abbreviated slang in Run BTS! 150 😉

✂️ JM Staycation rant @ slang

8 seconds · Clipped by onthecuterside · Original video "[ENG SUB] Run BTS! 2021 - EP.150 (Full Episode)" by JinKook & OT7

[lifeofaself-taughtlinguist]

Billy Go Korean.

Billy was one of the first books I got when i started learning Korean so I'm super excited to start this!

[thoughtsofabooknerd]

15 Korean books. 11 Talk To Me In Korean books, one special journal and a book on Korean folktales.

The right side is all Talk To Me In Korean.

[astridstudieslanguages]

Korean Made Simple, Ch 10 Notes

Oh goody, more adjectives. I need to reread everything because it’s been so long since I’ve cracked my book open because life. 

BY THE END OF THIS I SHOULD BE ABLE TO SAY GOOD GOOD BOY IN KOREAN. 

Conjugating Descriptive Verbs

So basically we will be conjugating descriptive verbs into adjectives that can be used before nouns. (Just like English, yay.)

Apparently there are some verbs that are exceptions, but the basic conjugation is the descriptive verb stem + ㄴ/은. Use the ㄴ when conjugating a stem that ends in a vowel, and 은 when it ends with a consonant. 

예쁘다 is pretty

예쁜 남자 is pretty boy

촣다 is good

촣은 책 is good book

Pretty simple stuff.

Conjugating Verbs Ending in ㅂ

If you have a verb stem ending in ㅂ, and you’re conjugating for the present tense only, you always drop ㅂ and add 운 to the verb stem. 

For example: 새롭 (new) becomes 새로온 책 (new book)

If the verb stem ends in anything more than a ㅂ (like ㄼ), conjugate as like it’s a normal verb, since the pronunciation is ㄹ instead of ㅂ. 

Conjugating Verbs Ending in ㄹ

Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Replace ㄹ with ㄴ and you are done. Magic. 

Conjugating 있다

This only applies when you are using a descriptive verb as an adjective. If this verb is that the end of the sentence, you would just conjugate the verb normally. 

있다 becomes 있는 when you’re describing things. Another really easy one. 

AGAIN: BILLY STRESSES TO NOT REPEAT YOURSELF ANY MORE THAN NECESSARY. As long as it’s clear who you are talking about, feel free to drop the noun or pronoun. 

Man, no wonder Korean dramas are full of misinterpretations. 

Verb Stem + 고

You use this to connect sentences with multiple verbs! For example:

저는 먹고 갑니다.

I eat and leave. 

It can also be used to connect descriptive verbs together, like 

재미있고 좋은 책

fun and good book

This chapter has TWO conversations. Wheeeeeee. 

I HAVE ONE PROBLEM BILLY AND THAT PRETTY IS NOT JUST USED FOR GIRLS IN ENGLISH. I WILL CALL GIRLS HANDSOME AND BOYS PRETTY IF I WANT TO. 

(I swear to god I wrote the pretty boy example above before I got to this.)

Before you jump on me, he said, “Just like English, 예쁘다 (”to be pretty”) is used exclusively for females, and 잘생기다 (”to be handsome”) is used exclusively for males. 

제가 is a combination of “I” and the subject marker. Sweet. More shortcuts. 

Anyway, I’m still annoyed about the pretty/handsome comment, and it’s the end of the chapter, so I’m gonna call it a night. 

[astridstudieslanguages]

Korean Made Simple, Ch 8 Notes

It’s even more questions today! (I say this like it hasn’t been a couple of weeks since I cracked open this book.)

Guess what? It’s MORE SPECIFIC questions. 

The Verb Stem (으)러

You used (으)러 when you want to say “to go to do something” or “to come to do something.” There are way too many instances of “to” in that last sentence. 

Basically, questions like “When do you want to go eat?” or “Where do you want to go see that?” 

YOU WILL NEVER USE THIS VERB STEM WITHOUT A VERB THAT SHOWS MOVEMENT. The main examples are 가다 (to go) and 오다 (to come). 

So for example: 

to go to eat

먹으러 가다

to go to sleep

자러 가다

to come to work

일러 오다

NOTICE: you use 으러 after words ending in consonants and 러 after words ending in vowels or the letter ㄹ. (Because ㄹ is often the exception in these cases anyway .

Using 밥

밥 literally means “cooked rice” but it commonly used to denote a meal in Korea. (It makes sense, because rice is a huge staple.)

Generally, you don’t want to say something like 저는 먹습니다. While grammatically correct, you don’t want to use it unless the person you are speaking to know what you’re eating. 

Why? No idea. Just do it.

어디 에 and 어디 이다

어디 means “where,” which you can use without 에 if you want to. Usings 어디 에 simply emphasizes “where to” or “where at” rather than just “where.” 

You can also use 어디 with the verb 이다 to ask where something is instead of using 있다. 

For example, 책이 어디입니까? instead of 책이 어디 있습니까?

Same basic meaning, just less of a mouthful to say, I guess.

More on Subject Markers

HECK YES MORE ON THESE THINGS THEY CONFUSE ME SO. 

Subject markers mark the subject in the sentence. (Surprise.) They are different than the topic marker. (Also a surprise.) 

Refresher: subject markers are 이 and 가.

Basically he says use them for now if there are a lot of verbs in your sentence, but here is the REALLY important part: 

Say you are using 누구, which is “who.” If you are going to use a subject marker, it would come out as 누구가, but that’s a mouthful so just use 누가. 

IMPORTANT QUESTION THAT I DO NOT HAVE THE ANSWER FOR

Does Korean not have commas??????????????

Last Thoughts

Nouns combine together in Korean the same way they do in English. (Nice.)

알겠습니다 is used to say “I see” or “Understood.”

그러면 means “well then” and can only be used in the beginning of a sentence. 

우리 means “we” or “us” and can be used just like “저.”

[astridstudieslanguages]

Korean Made Simple, Ch 9 Notes

This chapter is about adjectives, specifically descriptive verbs. 

WHAT THE WHAT? 

Descriptive Verbs (Adjectives, basically)

In Korean, many adjectives are verbs. They’re technically called descriptive verbs, as in verbs that describe things. 

Billy says just call them adjectives if it makes it less confusing for you. 

Conjugation for descriptive verbs are the same as action verbs. (From Chapter 5.)

Useful Words

아주: Very

조금: A little 

그리고: And or also (beginning of a sentence)

많이: Very (before the verb)

춥다 versus 차갑다

Both 춥다 and 차갑다 mean to be cold, but they are used differently. 춥다 is when you’re talking about the weather, the temperature of a location, or if you personally feel cold, whereas 차갑다 is used to refer to something being cold to the touch. 

WOW THIS WAS SHORT.

[astridstudieslanguages]

Korean Made Simple, Ch 7 Notes

YAAAAAAS QUESTIONS

How to ask questions in Korean

Like regular conjugation, basically. Take the verb stem of the word and add ㅂ니까 or 습니까.

읽다

to read

읽습니다?

question form of to read

가다

to go

갑니까?

question form of to go

Some polite things to know

선생님 means teacher. 

잘 지내셰요 is a polite way to ask if someone is doing well. 

Using 무엇

무엇 means what and is very versatile.  

무엇 먹고 싶습니까?

What do you want to eat? 

무엇 책들 좋아합니까?

What books do you like?

Using 들

In the example above, you might notice that I used 들 after 책.

들 is how you emphasize something is plural. Usually, Korean drops the plural unless it would make the sentence unclear. 

Billy says, when in doubt, don’t use 들.

과 and 와

This is how you say “AND!” 

책과 영화

Books and movies

돼지와 꿈

Pigs and dreams

If you are using an object marker, use it after the last noun. 

정말 means “really.” Can be used anywhere in the sentence, but is typically placed before the verb. 

은요 and 는요

These are a combination of the topic marker and 요. They can be used after a noun to end a question without a verb. (It is very impolite to end a sentence with a noun and nothing else.)

Use it when you’re asking for more information about something. 은요 follows a consonant and 는요 follows a vowel.

아스트릳 씨는요?

How about Astrid? 

책은요?

What about the book?

And that’s about it. Easy peasy.

[astridstudieslanguages]

Korean Made Simple, Ch 4 Notes

To want something in Korean

Two ways to say “want” in Korean, and they depend whether you want a verb or a noun. 

저는 책을 원합니다.

I want a book. 

저는 책을 받고 싶습니다.

I want to get a book. 

So basically, if you want a noun like a book or a pencil or that tasty bowl of 삼겹살, you use 원하다. And if you don’t want a noun, like asparagus because let’s be real that is a disgusting vegetable, you use 원하지 않습니다.

If you want to do something, you take the verb stem, and add “고 싶습니다.” If you don’t want to do something, you take the verb stem and add “고 싶지 않습니다.”

A verb stem is when you take the dictionary form of a verb and drop the final “다.” Easy peasy! 

To ask for something nicely in Korean

To ask for something politely: Noun + 주세요.

Simple indeed.

More on the particle 도

도 takes the place of 은/는 or whatever particle follows the noun because having two particles would just be silly. 

BE CAREFUL THE MEANING CHANGES WHEN YOU CHANGE THE PLACEMENT OF 도.

저도 책을 좋아합니다.

I also like books.

저는 책도 좋아합니다.

I like books too.

하지만 means “but” or “however” and is only used at the beginning of a sentence. There’s another word to use but/however in the middle of a sentence. 

The particle 만

Works like 도 grammatically, but means “only.” Same rules apply.