#section:beginnger

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Beginner Lesson 5: 전, -기 전에, before

In this lesson we’ll look at a way to say “before” in Korean, with the added bonus of being able to make slightly more complicated sentences by using two clauses!

The word 전 on it’s own means “ago” when used in conjunction with a time descriptor. For example “3주 전” means “3 weeks ago”. Because this references a period of time, the time particle -에 is needed. (Click here to check out the lesson regarding -에 and other sentence particles.)

In this way, we can make sentences referencing events and actions that have already occurred, and specify exactly when these events/actions occurred.

3주 전에 남동생하고 영화를 봤어요. I watched a movie with my little brother 3 weeks ago.

5달 전에 한국에 갔어요. I went to Korea 5 months ago.

10분 전에 저녁을 먹었어요. I ate dinner 10 minutes ago.

Now when 전 is used with a verb, the meaning is “before” instead of “ago”. When you want to use 전 with a verb, you must first change the verb to a noun. This is where -기 comes in. Adding -기 to a verb changes it into a noun--there are some specific nuances here that we’ll cover in a later lesson--but for now just now if you see -기 used in a grammatical principle, it’s generally being used to change the verb it’s attached to into a noun.

-기 전에 is used to express an action that is done/occurs before the following action.

-기 전에 is used with verbs and attached directly to the verb stem with no distinction in spelling.

가다: 가 →  가기 전에 읽다: 읽 →  읽기 전에

학교에 가기 전에 제가 아침을 먹어요. Before I go to school, I eat breakfast.

만화를 읽기 전에 숙제를 했어요. I finished my homework before reading comics.

Pretty much any verb clause can be added before -기 전에, as all this grammar point does is lend it the meaning “before (such and such) happened”. Let’s look at a few more examples.

한국에 오기 전에 한국어를 배웠어요. I learned Korean before I came to Korea.

영화를 보기 전에 친구하고 커피를 마실 거예요. Before I watch the movie I will have coffee with my friend.

사과를 먹기 전에 손을 씻어요. I wash my hands before eating an apple.

Easy right? :)

Note: the tense of the sentence is only reflected in the secondary clause, not with the verb attached to -기 전에.

자기 전에 숙제를 해요. 자기 전에 숙제를 했어요. 자기 전에 숙제를 할 거예요.

That’s all for this lesson, see you next time!

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Beginners Lesson 4: -을 때, when or while (doing something)

Using this grammar point you will be able to express your thoughts and actions in a specific point of time in Korean. This grammar point is two fold, and we’ll break it down to look at both parts of the grammar point in today’s post.

First, let’s talk about 때. When 때 is combined with certain nouns, it expresses a set time, or block of time. Most often you’ll see 때 used with time indicators like 저녁 or 아침, but it can also be used with words like 방학, 휴가, 고등학교, etc.

Using 때 combined with a noun if fairly simple. 때 follows the noun that the block of time is meant to indicate. For example:

오늘 저녁 때 뭐 해요? What will you do during dinner time today?

이번 여름방학 때 어디로 갈 거예요? Where will you go during this summer vacation?

선생님들은 회의 때 시험에 대해 얘기했어요. During the meeting, the teachers talked about the test.

In this way, you can see using 때 plus a noun is fairly straight forward. This brings us to the second part of the lesson: combining 때 with -을.

By using -을 때, this enables you to use 때 with verbs, adjectives, and 있다/없다, thereby not limited yourself to strictly nouns any longer. This will allow you to form more complex sentences. For example, compare the following two phrases:

저녁 때 During dinner time

빵을 먹을 때 While I eat bread

In the former example you are referring only to dinner time itself, as a time of day. It can be assumed you’re eating based on context clues or you might already be done, but in the latter example, you can specifically say what it was you are doing while eating.

-을 때 is used with verbs, adjectives, and 있다/없다. -을 때 is used with word stems ending in a consonant. -ㄹ 때 is used with word stems ending in a vowel.

공부하다: 공부하 + ㄹ 때 →  공부할 때 (while studying) 받다: 받 + 을때 →  받을 때 (when receiving)

저는 공부할 때 문법만 공부해요. When I study, I only study grammar.

돈을 받을 때 행복해요. When I receive money, I am happy.

Now technically, using -을 with 때 would indicate a future tense, but that’s not strictly the case with this grammar point. -을 때 can also be used to just reference general time (not past, present, or future specifically), as I have indicated above with the English translations of the example sentences.

On the opposite side, -을 때 can be used with the past tense if you want to indicate something happened in the past, however there are separate implications of using the past tense form of -을 때 compared to general tense -을 때, that we will look at in it’s own lesson later on.

As far as sentence particles go, normally the time marker -에 is used following 때, however it can be omitted with no change to the sentence. Additionally, you can use other sentence particles following 때 to make even more complex sentences. Such as using -를 to form subject phrases, or -마다, -부터, or -만. We’ll look at making these more complex sentences in a future lesson.

Keep in mind there are irregular conjugation rules that apply to this grammar point, most notably ㄹ, ㄷ, and ㅂ irregulars:

The stems of all words ending in ㄹ are followed by -때 and not -을 때, because ㄹ irregular verbs/adjectives are treated as if they end in a vowel.

If a ㄷ irregular verb is followed by a vowel, the ㄷ is changed to ㄹ instead and -을 때 is added.

ㅂ irregular adjectives have the final ㅂ dropped and replaced with 우, to which -ㄹ 때 is added.

For an in depth look at the seven different types of irregular Korean verbs and adjective rules please see my guide linked above. :)

Note: Although -을 때 and 언제 can be both be translated as “when” in English, they have different meanings/functions in Korean. The function of -을 때 is to connect a block of time an action occurs with another clause, whereas 언제 functions only as an interrogative like “when?” or “what time?”.

That’s all for this lesson! :)

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Beginner Lesson 2: -고 있다, the present progressive tense

The present progressive tense is used when you are explaining currently on going actions or events. In other, simpler terms: -고 있다 is the Korean version of attaching the English ‘-ing’ ending onto verbs.

-고 있다 is used with verbs. It is attached directly to the verb stem. It is also often used in conjunction with the word 지금 (right now, just now) though it’s not absolutely required.

가다: 가 + 고 있다 →  가고 있어요 먹다: 먹 + 고 있다 →  먹고 있어요 보다: 보 + 고 있다 →  보고 있어요

레오: 영화를 같이 볼까요? 켄: 미안해요, 지금 공부하고 있어요. Leo: Shall we watch a movie together? Ken: Sorry, I’m studying right now.

켄: 아 배고파요... 레오: 저는 슈퍼마켓에 가고 있어요. Ken: Ah I’m hungry.... Leo: I’m going to the super market [right now].

As you can see, this grammar point is very easy to use and important to know! However there are some things you should keep in mind when using this grammar point.

It can be used in the past tense and future tense, but it comes off as sounding awkward. It would be more natural to use the regular form past/future tense instead. That said, if you really really want to emphasize the fact you were/are going to do something you can use this grammar point in past/future tense.

So while “저는 밥을 먹고 있었어요” is grammatically correct, “저는 밥을 먹었어요.” flows a lot better.

Regarding verbs like 앉다 (to sit) and 서다 (to stand) (or other verbs regarding the “position” of where something is, like “to lie down”, etc): You cannot use -고 있다 with verbs like this to say that you are currently doing the action. For example: 지금 앉고 있어요. I am sitting. This sentence is correct but it means that that my knees are bent and I am in the process of moving myself onto the spot where I’m going to be sitting.

If I want to say I am currently settled in my seat and no longer moving I need to use -아/어 있다 instead.

지금 앉아 있어요. I am sitting. 편의점 옆에 서 있어요. I am standing next to the convenience store. 소파에 누워 있어요. I am laying on the sofa.

This is because these “positioning” verbs sometimes tend to act a little differently than other verbs in some situations. This is a good example of one of them. :)

So to sum: when using verbs that describe position, just remember to use -아/어 있다 instead of -고 있다.

In all the examples above, we discussed actions that were currently in progress, but you can also use this grammar point to express repeated on-going actions in Korean by adding the word 요즘 (lately, these days) to your sentence.

For example, if you regularly attend cooking classes or take taekwondo you could say:

제가 요즘 요리 학원에 다니고 있어요. These days I am attending a cooking academy.

레오 씨가 요즘 태권도를 배우고 있어요. Lately Leo is learning taekwondo.

Easy, right? :)

That’s all for this lesson!

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Beginner Lesson 3: -은 다음에, after

There are a whole handful of ways to say that an action occurred or will occur after another action is finished in Korean, and each one of them has their own uses and implications. But the grammar point we’ll look at in this lesson is the most basic and easiest to use of these grammar points.

-은 다음에 has the same meaning as “after doing [something]” or “after [something] happens”, and is used in Korean to express doing one action after another action has already completed. The first action cannot still be on-going when the second action begins.

-은 다음에 is used with verbs and is attached directly to the verb stem. -은 다음에 is used with verb stems ending in consonants. -ㄴ 다음에 is used with verb stems ending in vowels.

닫다: 닫 + 은 다음에 →  닫은 다음에 끝나다: 끝나 + ㄴ 다음에 →  끝난 다음에

창문을 닫은 다음에 에어컨을 켜요. After the window is shut the air conditioner is turned on. 수업이 끝난 다음에 아르바이트하러 가야 해요. After class is finished I have to go to my part-time job.

레오: 오늘 뭐해요? 켄: 수업이 끝난 다음에 점심을 먹어요. 레오: 점심을 먹은 다음에 뭐해요? 켄: 점심을 먹은 다음에 커피를 마셔요. Leo: What are you doing today? Ken: After class is finished, I’ll eat lunch. Leo: After eating lunch what will you do? Ken: After eating lunch I have coffee.

The most important thing to remember when using this grammar point is that the tense is not reflected in the verb that -은 다음에 is attached to, and only at the end of the sentence/clause.

Present: 운동을 한 다음에 샤워를 해요. Past: 운동을 한 다음에 샤워를 했어요. Future: 운동을 한 다음에 샤워를 할 거예요.

Also important to note is how irregular verbs react when using this grammar point.

ㄷ irregular verbs change the final ㄷ to an ㄹ when following with vowel-

듣다: 친구 이야기를 들은 다음에 말씀하세요.

ㄹ irregular verbs drop the ㄹ entirely when followed by ㄴ ㅂ or ㅅ-

놀다: 한 시간쯤 논 다음에 공부할 거예요.

For in depth rules regarding irregular verbs and adjectives and how to use them, please see my lesson regarding them!

That’s all for -은 다음에! Easy, right? :)

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Beginners Lesson 1: 존댓말, honorific style language review + future tense

In this lesson we’ll be taking a more in depth look at using one type of honorific language in Korean. We went over it a bit in Getting Started: Lesson 12.

This honorific form is used to express the speaker’s respect for the subject (person they are referring to) of the sentence. This honorific is used when the person you’re addressing/speaking about is older or higher in social status than you. It’s also commonly used when the speaker doesn’t know or isn’t familiar with the person, even if they happen to be younger or lower in social status than you are.

The honorific is made using -으시-. Adding -으시- to the word stem but before the conjugating tense elevates the politeness level of whatever it is you’re trying to say.

-으시- is used with verbs, adjectives, 있다/없다, and 이다.

 -으시- is used with the stems of verbs and adjectives ending in a consonant, and 있다/없다.

닫다: 닫 + 으시 + 어요 →  닫으세요

아버지가 문을 닫으세요. Father closes the door.

-시- is used with the stems of verbs and adjectives ending in a vowel.

 보다: 보 + 시 + 어요 →  보세요

어머니가 신문을 보세요. Mother looks at the newspaper.

With 이다, -이시- is used with the noun ends in a consonant and -시- is used when it noun ends in a vowel.

선생님 + 이시 + 어요 →   선생님이세요. 의사 + 시 + 어요 →  의사세요. 

이분이 말하기 수업 선생님이세요. This person is my speaking teacher. 저분이 서울 병원 의사세요. That person is a Seoul Hospital doctor.

Using the above stated rules, the honorific form can be made into the past tense as follows:

받다: 받 + 으시 + 었어요 →  받으셨어요 가다: 가 + 시 + 었어요 →  가셨어요

아버지가 전화를 받으셨어요. Father received a phone call. 어머니가 시장에 가셨어요. Mother went to the market.

The above shouldn’t be anything new if you’ve already gone over the previous 존댓말 lesson linked at the top of this post. Next we’re going to look at how to construct the future tense using -으시-, and the above mentioned spelling rules.

받다: 받 + 으시 + ㄹ 거예요 →  받으실 거예요 가다: 가 + 시 + ㄹ 거예요 →  가실 거예요

아버지가 전화를 받으실 거예요. Father will receive a phone call. 어머니가 시장에 가실 거예요. Mother will go to the market.

When using -으시- or other polite forms of speaking, some verbs change from their regular forms to special honorific forms. The following are these verbs in their dictionary -다 form, the informal-polite form, and the special honorific form.

먹다 (to eat): 먹어요 →  드세요, 잠수세요 마시다 (to drink): 마셔요 → 드세요 자다 (to sleep): 자요 → 주무세요 말하다 (to speak): 말해요 → 말씀하세요 *있다 (to be at/in a location): 있어요 → 계세요 *없다 (to be not at/in a location): 없어요 → 안 계세요

어머니가 점심을 드세요/잠수세요. Mother eats lunch. 아버지가 물을 드세요. Father drinks water. 안영히 주무셨어요? Did you sleep well? 선생님이 나중에 말씀하실 거예요. The teacher will tell you later.

*The honorific -계세요 is used only when the subject of the sentence is a person.

eg: 우리 할머니가 부엌에 계세요. (My grandmother is in the kitchen.) The subject of this sentence is the grandmother, a person, so 계세요 is used.

When the subject of the sentence is an object, or a thing–anything but a person–and the verb 있다 is being used to indicate possession, 있으세요/없으세요 is used to express the respect the speaker has for the owner of the item/concept being possessed.

eg: 내일 오후에 시간이 있으세요? (Do you have time tomorrow afternoon?) The subject of this sentence is time, not a person, so 있으세요 is used.

A few more examples of this:

아버지가 거실에 계세요. Father is in the living room. 밖에 비가 와요. 우산이 있으세요? It’s raining outside. Do you have an umbrella? 같이 갈 수 있으세요? Are we able to go together?

Bonus: When using the honorific -으시- the subject marker -이/가  can be changed to -께서 and -한테 can be changed to -께. Changing these is not required, but it does make the sentence even more polite.

할아버지께서 영화를 보세요. Grandfather watches the movie. 할아버지께서 아버지께 전화하세요. Grandfather gives father a phone call.

Rules regarding irregular verbs and adjectives:

Irregular ㄷ verbs

Verbs that end in ㄷ and that are considered irregular drop the ㄷ from the stem and is replaced with ㄹ before being conjugated if the conjugation to follow begins with a vowel.

듣다 (to listen): 듣 → 들 + 으시 + 어요 → 들으세요

레오 씨기 음악을 들으세요. Leo is listening to music.

Irregular ㅂ adjectives

With adjectives that end in the consonant ㅂ, the ㅂ is dropped and 우 is added instead. Because 우 is a vowel, -시- is used in this instance.

춥다 (to be cold): 춥 → 추우 + 시 + 어요 → 추우세요

많이 추우세요? Are you cold?

Irregular ㄹ verbs

With verbs that end in the consonant ㄹ,  the ㄹ is dropped entirely if the ㄹ is to be followed by a verb or adjective conjugation that begins with ㄴ, ㅂ, or ㅅ. Otherwise they are treated as if they end in vowels instead.

살다 (to live): 살 → 사 + 시 + 어요 → 사세요

우리 할머니가 독일에 사세요. My grandmother lives in Germany.

That’s it for this form of 존댓말. :)

For a more in depth look at the seven different types of irregular verbs and adjectives in Korean, please check out my special post regarding their individual rules by clicking here.