[Grammar] 보다 더 more than

When you compare two nouns,  you can use -보다 particle which means ‘than’. It often comes with 더 (more) or 훨씬 (much more). The position for ‘noun+보다’ is very flexible, so you can put it in front of a noun that you want to compare. For example, 

Noun1이/가   Noun2보다  (더)  ~  = Noun2보다  Noun1이/가 (더) ~

Noun1을/를  Noun2보다  (더)  ~  = Noun2보다  Noun1을/를 (더) ~

Let’s look at more sentences.

캐나다가 미국보다 더 커요.  Canada is bigger than U.S.A.

한국이 일본보다 작아요. Korea is smaller than Japan.

이 가방이 저 가방보다 더 비싸요.  This bag is more expensive than that bag.

이 바지가 저 바지보다 더 예뻐요. These pants are prettier than those pants.

LA가 샌프란시스코보다 더 따뜻해요. LA is warmer than San Francisco.

이 식당이 저 식당보다 더 맛있어요.  This restaurant is more delicious than that one.

저는 커피보다 차를 더 좋아해요. I like tea more than coffee.

야구보다 테니스가 더 재미있어요. Tennis is more fun than baseball.

영어가 한국어보다 더 어려워요.  English is more difficult than Korean.

돈보다 건강이 더 중요해요.  Health is more important than money.

비행기가 기차보다 더 빨라요.  Planes are faster than trains.

 

Do you want to learn more Korean?  Private lessons from beginner to advanced available online, first lesson is free!

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You can listen to the audio file by clicking here. 

Particle: Noun+도 also, too, even

-도 means ‘also’ or ‘even’, however it is different from English. It is a particle, so -도 is attached to a noun. -도 cannot be used with subject particles -이/가 and object particles -을/를 at the same time. For example, 

저는 미국 사람이에요. 제 아내 미국 사람이에요. I am American. My wife is American.
-> 저는 미국 사람이에요. 제 아내 미국 사람이에요. I am American. My wife is also American.

저는 사과를 좋아해요. (저는) 바나나 좋아해요. I like apples. I like bananas.
-> 저는 사과를 좋아해요. (저는) 바나나 좋아해요. I like apples. I also like bananas.

A : 제 사과를 안 좋아해요. I don’t like apples.
B: 저 사과를 안 좋아해요.  I don’t like them either.

However when -도 comes with other particles, it takes a place after other particles. For example,

저는 도서관에서 한국어를 공부해요. (저는) 집에서 (한국어를) 공부해요.   I study Korean at the library. I study Korean at home.
-> 저는 도서관에서 한국어를 공부해요. (저는) 집에서도 (한국어를) 공부해요. I study Korean at the library. I also study Korean at home.

월요일에 커피를 안 마셨어요. 수요일 커피를 안 마셨어요. I didn’t drink coffee on Monday. I didn’t drink coffee on Wednesday.
-> 월요일에 커피를 안 마셨어요. 수요일에도 커피를 안 마셨어요. I didn’t drink coffee on Monday. I didn’t drink coffee on Wednesday either.

Q: 저는 강남에 살아요.  I live in Gangnam.
A: 저요. Me too.
** A lot of students ask me how to say ‘me too’, it is very simple. It is ‘저도요(polite)‘ or ‘나도(casual)‘.

-도 can express ‘even‘ which emphasize the previous noun. In this case, we use negative expression in the sentence. For example,
하나 안 먹었어요. Even one, I didn’t eat. (I didn’t eat anything)
아무것 못 봤어요. Even anything, I didn’t see.
사람이 한 명 안 왔어요. Even one person didn’t come.

Lastly, particle 도 and adverb 또 can be very confusing. If you want to learn the difference, please click here.

Practice> Let’s translate these sentences in Korean.

  1. I am a teacher, my younger sister is also a teacher.
  2. A: I don’t like watermelon. B: I don’t like it either.
  3. I can speak Korean and I can also speak English.
  4. I don’t work on Monday, I don’t work on weekend either.

You can listen to audio files by clicking here. 

Korean Particles part 2

If you haven’t studied ‘Korean particles part 1, you can click here. 

9. -의
-의 means possessive and you read it as [에], not [의].  But you don’t see them very often because we can skip them very often in conversations.  For example,
1) 그 사람 이름을 기억할 수 없어요. I cannot remember that person’s name.
2) 컵 색깔이 참 예뻐요. The color of the cup is very pretty.
If it is used with 저, 나 or 너, we usually combine them together.  For example,
저의 => 제 my  
나의 => 내 my
너의 => 네 your (For distinguish between 내and 네, Korean people usually say 네 as 니)

10. -(으)로
-(으)로 has several meanings,
1) with, by, in which means using some tools.
으로 쓰세요.  Please write with a pen.
기차 가요.  Going by train.
영어 말하세요.  Please speak in English.
2) for, to, toward which means directions.
이쪽으로 오세요.  Please come this way.
부산으로 이사했어요.  Moved to Pusan.
If a noun ends with ‘ㄹ’ final consonant, you don’t put -(으) like 연필로, 지하철로.

11. -한테, -에게
-한테 means ‘for someone’ or ‘from someone’ .  -에게 is the formal form of -한테.  For example,
1) 친구한테 말했어요. I talked to my friend.
2) 동생한테 전화했어요.  I called my younger sister/brother.
3) 강아지한테 물을 주세요. Please give water to the puppy.

12. -한테서, -에게서
-한테서 means ‘from someone’.  -에게서 is the formal form of -한테서. For example,
1) 친구한테서 편지를 받았어요. I got a letter from my friend.
2) 동생한테서 전화가 왔어요.   I got a phone call from my younger sister/brother.

13. -부터
-부터 means ‘from sometime’ or ‘since sometime’.  For example,
1) 3월부터 한국어를 공부했어요.  I have been studying Korean since March.
2) 월요일부터 금요일까지 학교에 가요. I go to school from Monday to Friday.

14. -까지 
-까지 means ‘to, by, until for time and place’.  For example,
1) 집에서 학교까지 1시간 걸려요.  It takes an hour from my house to school.
2) 12시부터 1시까지 점심을 먹어요. I eat lunch from 12 to 1.
3) 5시까지 우리 집에 오세요. Please come to my house by 5.

15.-마다 
-마다 means ‘every’, it is the same meaning as ‘매’ that you usually see in 매년, 매달, 매주and 매일.
1) 해마다 = 매년 every year
2) 달마다 = 매달 every month
3) 주마다 = 매주 every week
4) 날마다 = 매일 every day

You can listen to the audio by clicking this link. 

To be continued…

Korean Particles part1

There are lots of particles in Korean, some books call them markers.  I will call them particles here. Korean Particles mostly attached to a noun, so there is no space between nouns and particles.  Let’s see what kind of particles are in Korean.

1. Subject particles -이/가 
Noun(ends with a consonant) + 이
Noun(ends with a vowel) + 가
Subject particles attach to a noun to tell us that noun is a subject in a sentence.  For example,
     선생님이 여자예요.  The teacher is a female.
     의자가 어디에 있어요?  Where is the chair?

Koreans often drop the subject particle –이/가  when they make conversations.
i.e) 사과 있어요? Do you have apples?
사과 없어요. I don’t have apples.
돈 있어요?    Do you have money?

2. Object particles -을/를
Noun(ends with a consonant) + 을
Noun(ends with a vowel) + 를
Object particles attach to a noun to tell us that noun is an object in a sentence. For example,
    밥을 안 먹었어요.   I didn’t eat a meal.
    커피를 마셔요.  I am drinking coffee.

3. Topic particles or comparison particles -은/는
Noun(ends with a consonant) + 은
Noun(ends with a vowel) + 는
When -은/는 are topic particles, they substitute subject particles or object particles, which means you cannot use -이/가(or 을/를) and 은/는 at the same time.  Thus, many students get confused by subject particles and topic particles.  I explain these two particles in this post(click). For example,
     선생님은 한국 사람이에요.  The teacher is Korean.
     저는 진우예요.  I am Jin-woo.

-은/는 also can mean ‘comparison’.   For example,
     사과는 좋아해요. 그런데 수박은 안 좋아해요.  I like apples, but I don’t like water melons. (사과를 => 사과는  수박을 => 수박은 )
     제 친구는 영어를 잘해요. 그런데 저는 영어를 못해요.  My friend speaks English very well, but I don’t. (제 친구가 => 제 친구는, 제가 => 저는 )

If you are confused subject 이/가 and 은/는, please click here and learn more.

4. Time and place particle -에 
-에 has lots of meanings, however I only want to talk about time and place here.  For example,
1)  어디에 있어요?  Where is it? : It means ‘existence‘, so it is used with 있다/없다/살다
2)  학교에 가요. I am going to school.  : It means ‘destination‘, so it is used with 가다/오다/다니다
3)  2 시에 만나요.  Let’s meet at 2.  : It means ‘time‘ for this verb/adjective happens.
(However some nouns such as 지금, 어제, 오늘, 내일, 매일, 언제etc don’t add -에)

5. Place particle -에서 (at, in, on)
-에서 is a place particle with “action verbs“.  Many students get confused this with -에, but remember this is for “action verb” and -에 is for ‘있다/없다’.  For example,
백화점에서 만나요.  Let’s meet at the department store.
식당에서 점심을 먹어요. I am eating at a restaurant.

It also means ‘from somewhere’, for example
서울에서 왔어요. I am from Seoul.
서울에서 부산까지 멀어요.  It is far from Seoul to Busan.

6. -하고 : ‘and’ and ‘with’ = 와/과 or (이)랑
-하고 has two meaning, which are ‘and’ between two nouns and ‘with someone/animal’.  For example,
1) 수박하고 사과를 안 먹어요.  I don’t eat watermelons and apples.
2) 엄마하고 백화점에 갔어요.  I went to the department store with my mom.
* For formal form of 하고 is 와/과.  For example,
1) 수박 사과를 안 먹습니다.
2) 의사 이야기하세요.
* You will see (이)랑 sometimes instead of 하고.  (이)랑 is very casual form, so you only use it in a casual situation.  For example,
1) 수박이랑 사과를 안 먹어요.
2) 엄마 백화점에 갔어요.

7. -도  : ‘also’ and ‘even’ 
As I said earlier, it is a particle, so we shouldn’t use this as an adverb.
1) 고기를 먹었어요. 그리고 소주도 마셨어요.  I ate meat and also drank Soju.
고기를 먹었어요. 도 소주 마셨어요. (X)
2) 한 명도 안 왔어요. Even one person didn’t come.  : -도 is usually used with numbers, and means ‘even’.

8. -만 : ‘only’
Many students use this like an adverb because in English ‘only’ is an adverb. BUT 만 is ONLY attached to a noun.  For example,
사과만 안 먹어요.  Apples are only fruit I do not eat.
저만 한국 사람이에요.  I am the only Korean person.

9. -밖에 + negative word: ‘only’ 
It means similar to ‘-만’, however it needs an negative word such as ‘안’,  ‘못’,  ‘없어요’ or ‘몰라요’. For example,
저는 사과밖에 안 먹어요. I only eat apples.
저밖에 안 왔어요. I am the only one who came.
영어밖에 몰라요. I only know English.

You can listen to the audio by clicking this link. 

If you want to study ‘Korean particles part 2’, please click here. 

#에 #에서 #도 #이가 #이/가 #은/는 #을/를 #하고 #만 only #밖에 only #subject particle #object particle #place particle #particle #이 subject #가 subject #은 topic #는 topic #marker #time particle

[Grammar] -(이)나 and -밖에

CYMERA_20130709_122812In this picture, 반 밖에 should be 반밖에. There is no space between 반 and 밖에.

 

-(이)나 and 밖에 both are particles. -() is used after a noun, it means ‘or’.  For example,

라면이나 우동을 시킬까요? Shall we order noodles or Udon?
초록색이나 빨간색을 입으세요. Please wear green or red.

Sometimes ‘이나’ is used after numbers/amount, it means  ‘the number is more than the speaker expected’. For example,

어제 술을 네 잔이나 마셨어요. I drank alcohol 4 glasses last night. (it means that she/he drank more than usual)
커피 값이 만 원이나 해요? Is a cup of coffee 10,000? (it is expensive)
커피를 하루에 다섯 잔이나 마셔요? Do you drink coffee 5 times a day? (you drink a lot)
세뱃돈을 5만원이나 받았어요. I got 50,000 Won at the New Year’s money. (it is more than I expected.)
집에 친구들이 20명이나 왔어요. 20 friends came to my home.(a lot of friends!)
오늘 공원에 차가 50대 있었어요. There were 50 cars at the park today. (a lot of cars!)
물이 반이나 남았어요. There is a half cup of water. (still a lot)

 

 

On the other hand, if you use -밖에 instead of -(이)나, it means totally opposite.  밖에 is used after noun, it means ‘only’.  When you use Noun+밖에, you have to use a negative word or expression with a verb/adjective.  For example,

오늘은 커피를 한 잔밖에 안 마셨어요. I only drank a cup of coffee. (=오늘은 커피를 한 잔만 마셨어요.)
파티에 선생님밖에 안 왔어요. Only my teacher came to the party. (파티에 선생님만 왔어요.)

Therefore, when 밖에 is used after numbers/amount, it means ‘only this amount of number’ which expresses unpleasant meaning.  For example,

A: 어제 술을 얼마나 마셨어요?

B: 조금밖에 마셨어요.

A: How much did you drink yesterday?

B : I only drank a little bit.

매달 월급을 백오십만 원밖에 받아요.  I only get 150,000 Won every month for salary.
일주일에 운동을 3시간밖에 해요.  I only work out 3 hours a week.
일 년에 한 번밖에 여행을 갈 수 없어요.  I only can go travel once a year.
돈이 조금밖에 없어서 비싼 음식을 먹을 수 없어요.  I only have a little bit of money, so I can’t eat expensive food.
이 요리는 아주 쉬워요. 5분밖에 걸려요. This food is easy to make. It only takes 5 minutes.
물이 반밖에 지 않았어요.  There is only a half cup of water.

You can listen to the pronunciation for those examples here.

[Grammar] 이/가 vs 은/는 : Subject particle vs topic particle

We have learned Korean particles in the previous post(click).  This post is about subject particles and topic particles. The subject particles are  이 and 가, the topic particles are 은 and 는

Noun(ends with a consonant) + 이 

Noun(ends with a vowel) +

For example,

뭐예요?.  What is your name?
며칠이에요? What date is today?
예뻐요. The baby is pretty.

And many people are confused the subject particle with the topic particle -은/는.

-은 and 는 are not subject particle. 

-은/는 can substitute -이/가(subject particle) and -을/를(object particle), which means you CAN’T use the topic particle and the subject/object particle for one noun.  We should use either topic particle or subject/object particle.

Noun(ends with a consonant) +

Noun(ends with a vowel) +

For beginners, we just need to know -은/는 are used for

1. when you introduce a noun

For example,

이민수예요.  I am Lee Minsu.
한국 사람이에요. I am Korean.
28살이에요. I am 28 years old.
우리 한국어 선생님 남자예요. My Korean teacher is a male.

2. when you compare two nouns

For example,

민수 씨는 사과를 좋아해요. 그런데 유진 씨는 사과를 안 좋아해요.
(Minsu likes apples, but Yujin doesn’t like apples)
– 민수 씨 and 유진 씨 are subjects.
* 민수 씨가는(X), 유진 씨가는(X)

민수 씨가 사과는 좋아해요. 그런데 (민수 씨가) 바나나는 안 좋아해요.
(Minsu likes apples, but he doesn’t like bananas.)
– 사과 and 바나나 are objects. 
* 사과를은(X), 바나나를은(X)

3. When you ask about new information, it is safe to use -이/가 and when you answer the question, you should -은/는

For example,

A: 이름이 뭐예요? What is your name?
B: 제 이름은 이민수예요. My name is Lee Minsu.

A: 오늘이 며칠이에요? What date is today?
B: 오늘은 8월 7일이에요. Today is August 7.

A: 이 분이 누구예요? Who is this person?
B: (이 분은) 제 어머니예요.  (This person is) My mother.

You can also listen to the pronunciation here.

#이 subject particle #가subject particle #subject particle #topic particle #topic #은는 #은topic #는topic #은subject #는subject #이/가vs은/는 #은는 topic #이가subject #subject marker #subject topic #Korean topic #은는 subject

[Grammar] 조사 particles

조사 particles

 

There are lots of particles in Korean such as the subject particle, the object particle, the place particle, the time particle and the destination particle etc.  What are particles’ function?  Particles tell us constituents of a sentence, which means particles tell us which one is a subject, an object, place, time or a destination. In English, it is similar to preposition.  For example,

엄마 아들 사랑해요 (mom, son, love)

In this sentence, I can’t tell who love whom.  So we need particles like this,

엄마 아들 사랑해요. (The mom loves her son.)

아들 엄마 사랑해요. (The son loves his mom.)
and are subject particles, – and are object particles.

Or,

학교 회사 있어요. (school, company, is)

I can’t tell whether ‘There is the company in the school’ or ‘There is the school in the company’.

학교 회사 있어요. (The company is at the school.)

학교 회사 있어요. (The school is at the company.)
is the place particle.

 

If you want to learn more particles, please click

한국어 조사1 here
한국어 조사 2 here

[Grammar] Direction particle -으로/로

I put a post about ‘-(으)로’ which means ‘method’, ‘means’ or ‘way’ in the previous post(click).   -(으)로 also is used for indicating a direction, it can be translated ‘to’ or ‘toward’ in English.

Form>

Nouns(consonants ending)으로앞으로, 옆으로, 집으로, 시청으로, 부산으로
Nouns(vowel or ㄹ ending)위로, 아래로, 뒤로, 출구로, 서울로,
For example>>
으로 가세요.Go forward.
왼쪽으로 도세요.(돌다: turn)Turn left.
이 버스(가) 시청으로 가요?Is this bus going to(toward) the City Hall?
으로 가고 있어요.I am on my way home.
위층으로 올라 가세요.Go upstairs.
서울 이사했어요. I moved to Seoul.
넘어졌어요.Fell down on my back.
4번 출구 나오세요.Come out from(toward) Exit 4.
이 기차가 서울가요?Is this train going to Seoul?

You can also listen to the pronunciation here.

-(으)로 is very similar to the destination particle ‘-에’, but the difference is that ‘-으로’ emphasizes “direction/headed” and ‘-에’ focuses on ‘destination’.  For example,

집으로 가고 있어요. means “I am heading for home”; it might not mean ‘the destination is home’. 집에 가고 있어요. means “I am going home”; the destination is home.  So “집에 가서 쉬세요(go home take a rest)” is correct, but “집으로 가서 쉬세요” is weird.  Also, You can say “서울에 도착했어요(arrive in Seoul) , but you shouldn’t say “서울로 도착했어요“.

Verbs only with -(으), not -에 Verbs only with -에, not -(으)로
-(으)로 떠나다 : leave for
-(으)로 이사가다/오다 : move to
-(으)로 출발하다 : depart for
-에 도착하다 : arrive at/in

[Grammar] Means, way particle -으로/로

Means, way, method particle -으로/로

-(으)로 is a noun particle which means ‘means’, ‘way’ or ‘method’, it can be translated ‘by’ or ‘with’ in English.  You can use this for transportation, a tool, a way that you use.

Form>

 Nouns(consonants ending)
으로
손으로, 핸드폰으로, 인터넷으로,
 Nouns(vowel or ㄹ ending)
차로, 자전거로, 기차로, 지하철로, 이메일로

e.g)

consonants ending
으로 먹어요.
Eat with hands.
으로 만들었어요.
Made this with flowers.
인터넷으로 찾았어요.
Found this on the Internet. (method)
vowel or
ㄹ ending
자전거 가요.
Go by bicycle.
기차 가요.
Go by train.
지하철로 가요.
Go by subway.
이메일로 보내요.
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When you say ‘go by foot’, we don’t use this particle. ‘Go by foot’ in Korean is ‘걸어서 가요’, ‘come by foot’ is ‘걸어서 와요.’

You can also listen to the pronunciation here.