In this column, you’ll be able to learn simple phrases that Soshi uses regularly in their daily lives. A lot of SONEs have been wanting to learn Korean, and what better way to learn than from our common interests? Below each phrase, I’ve included the keyboard steps for typing the phrases out. You can learn more on how to type Korean with your keyboard here.

Without further ado, check out the 5 phrases below!

나도 자상해 (Nado jasanghae) = I’m also attentive
How to type: skeh wktkdgo

Tiffany was chosen as the “Worst Mom” because she wasn’t allowed to talk at that time due to her vocal nodules, making people assume she isn’t attentiveShe denied not being attentive, though, by sending her message through her translator, Hyoyeon. 나 means I/me, -도 means also, and 자상해 means to be attentive (자상하- “to be attentive” + sentence ending 어). – This is considered informal speech, and is used in a situation where you’re speaking to someone who has the same position as you or lower.

An example situation where the phrase 나도 자상해 would be used:
Being an actress is never easy, especially at the beginning. Yoona felt the effects of this when her unnies started teasing her about not being caring enough for Seohyun, the maknae that was having trouble juggling her school life and her idol life as a newly debuted Girls’ Generation member. The unnies never meant it to be serious, but they would always tease Yoona nevertheless. During those times, Yoona would always defend herself by saying, “나도 자상해!”.

말 좀 해라! (Mal jom haera!) = Please talk!
How to type: akf wha gofk

Here, Agent Sooyoung is trying to interrogate someone and make them talk. Literally, this sentence means “Say something!”. 말 means words, 좀 means a little bit, and 해 means to do (하- “to do” + sentence ending 어). Agent Sooyoung is trying to get some information from the suspect, so she’s asking him to say something. At this point, you might be wondering what the ending -라 does. The ending -라 is an indication that the sentence is an imperative, which indicates giving instructions. Adding the extra -라 means the speaker’s position is the same or higher than the listener, since this is informal speech.

An example situation where the phrase 말 좀 해라 would be used:
A boy is trying to catch up with his girlfriend who just runs away after seeing him. He runs and grabs her by the shoulder, but his girlfriend is stubborn enough to keep herself silent. After trying to sweet-talk his girlfriend a few times, he couldn’t hold in his curiousity anymore and said sternly: “말 좀 해라!”

소녀시대 숙소를 공개합니다 (Sonyeo shidae suksoreul gonggaehabnida) = (We) will reveal Girls’ Generation’s dorm!
How to type: thsutleo tnrthfmf rhdrogkqslek

The just-debuted dorky girls are so excited to reveal their dorm to the camera that Taeyeon jumps in delight. 소녀시대 means Girls’ Generation, 숙소 means dorm, -를 is an object indicator, and means 공개합니다 “to reveal” (공개하- “to reveal + formal ending -ㅂ니다). You can always change the object (which in this case is “Girls’ Generation’s dorm”) to something else, like 그림 “painting”, 노래 “song”, etc. Just be sure to differentiate 를 and 을. -를 is used when the word ends with a vowel, and -을 is used when the word ends with a consonant.

An example situation where the phrase 그림을 공개합니다 would be used:
With a cheeky grin, elementary school kid Taeyeon puts her drawing behind her back when she gets home from school, wanting to surprise her mother. Being the talkative girl she is, she blabs on and on and on about her picture but still refuses to show her mother the picture, wanting to build the suspense till the end. After fifteen minutes of talking, she finally says “그림을 공개합니다!”

수험생 여러분들 수고하셨습니다 (Suheomsaeng yeoreobundeul sugohasyeossseubnida) = To all the examinees, you guys did a great job!
How to type: tngjatod dufjqnsemf tnrhgktuTtmqslek

The girls end their congratulatory message with these words in order to ease the nervous feelings of the examinees who have worked so hard and are now waiting for the results to come out. Literally, this sentence means “Examinees, you guys worked hard!”. Koreans have this cultural habit of appreciating others’ work by saying it directly, hence the phrase. 수험생 means examinees, 여러분들 means you (the audience), 수고하셨습니다 means worked hard (수고하- “work hard” + past tense indicator “셨” + formal ending 습니다). The girls used the formal ending because announcements on air are considered formal. Usually, though, you would only use 수고하셨습니다 “(You’ve) worked hard”.

An example situation where the phrase 수고하셨습니다 would be used:
New fashion magazine intern Tiffany has been working extra hard on a new article which wasn’t really getting the approval of the editor: Jessica. After working day and night, she nervously walked up to Jessica’s office to hand in her draft. Fiddling with her fingers, she slowly nodded as Jessica scrutinized her article, pointing out all her flaws. Surprisingly, Jessica smiled at the end, saying that it was pretty good for a beginner and that her article would be in the new edition of the magazine. Jessica was amused when Tiffany gave a shining eye-smile in response to hearing “수고하셨습니다” from her.

잘 부탁드립니다 (Jal butakdeuribnida) = Please treat (us) well
How to type: wkf qnxkremflqslek

In Korea, it’s good etiquette for people who are starting to do something new in a certain location to ask the “seniors” to treat them well and not be too harsh on them. The phrase, which can be commonly heard everywhere, consists of two words that are said together. Since this is a formal request, formal sentence ending -ㅂ니다 is used.

An example situation where the phrase 잘 부탁드립니다 would be used:
Sunny is the newest girl to be added to the soon-to-debut group Girls’ Generation. She has never met the other girls before, and feels a little uneasy since the eight have been training with each other for so long whereas she just pops in and adds to the number of members by one. She wants to be accepted well amongst the eight, so when she first meets them at dance practice, she introduces herself and says “잘 부탁드립니다”.

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