A month has passed, and it is time to learn 5 new Korean phrases together with Soshi! If you’re a little lost, the first edition for this column is located here. There are keyboard steps below each phrase so you can learn how to type them out, too. Learn more about how to type in Korean on your keyboard here.
How to type: ekddusgkwl
Seohyun isn’t the type of person to have doubts, and she didn’t have any doubts about Sooyoung, either. Knowing Sooyoung, though, she replies the maknae’s question in a playful/boastful manner. 당연하지 as a whole phrase means of course. The ending -지 is used as a convincing marker, allowing the speaker to insist on something. This is considered as 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 당연하지 would be used:
Yuri was trying to push Sooyoung to talk to the guy she’s been crushing on for the past three months. Sooyoung has been receiving a lot of dating advice from Yuri but she just can’t seem to have the same level confidence as her unnie. “Are you sure?” she asks nervously. Yuri laughed, “당연하지. Trust me,” and gave her a slight push, making her stumble towards the feet of her soon-to-be Prince Charming.
How to type: togoqhr aksgdl qkedmtpdy
Just like any other language around the world, Koreans also have a phrase to greet others with a “Happy New Year”. 새 means new, 해 means year, 복 means blessings/fortune, 많이 means a lot/many, 받으세요 means (we) hope (you) receive (받- “to receive” + formal sentence ending 으세요, which is normally said to the elders). Literally, this sentence means “We hope you get a lot of blessings this new year” but people say it the same way as “Happy New Year”. This is considered as formal speech, so you can say this to just about anyone.
An example situation where the phrase 새해복 많이 받으세요 would be used:
A group of kids pay a visit to their grandparents in order to wish them a happy new year. As an action of respect to the elders, they bow down and say “새해복 많이 받으세요”.
How to type: dlfdjsk
In order to get Taeyeon to help for a mission, Yoona scurries to wake her unnie up. However, she believes that just shouting at the kid leader won’t do, so she grabs a toy sword and starts flinging it around. 일어나 as whole means wake up, and is used as an imperative aka instructions. This phrase is considered as informal speech.
An example situation where the phrase 일어나 would be used:
Yoona has a test today but she seems tired from all the performances lately. As the responsible maknae, Seohyun feels an urge to wake her unnie up. After all, she has spent most of her time in the waiting room studying. Having made her decision, she walks up to Yoona and starts shaking her gently, “일어나”.
How to type: whgdms rjdPdy
Taeyeon utters an adjective that everyone seems to laugh at but she thinks it’s actually a good thing, so she uses this phrase to convince her other members. 좋은 means to be good (좋- “to be good” + adjective marker 은), 거예요 means thing (것 “thing” + polite sentence ending 예요).
An example situation where the phrase 좋은 거예요 would be used:
Elementary school kid Hyoyeon came home with a messily drawn card. Her assignment that day was to make a thank-you card to someone in her family, so she decided to draw one for her brother. The older guy laughed when he read the words which were scribbled all over the page, “‘You are a great, fun, annoying, and obnoxious brother.’ Is this supposed to be a thank you card or an insulting one?” Her brother knew better, but he still smiled when she defended herself with a “좋은 거예요” anyway. He ruffled her hair and gave her a tight hug—she was the best sister anyone could ask for.
How to type: gkwlak
Tiffany doesn’t want either of her dongsaengs to pull her out of bed so she uses this phrase to try and stop them. This phrase stems from the words 하- “to do” + negative auxiliary verb -지마. This is considered informal speech.
An example situation where the phrase 하지마 would be used:
It was Sunny’s birthday today, and she knew she was about to expect the worst: her friends had this weird habit of caking whoever was the birthday girl. She knew she was supposed to look forward to today but she couldn’t help shouting in surprise when her friends suddenly appeared in front of her front door. She immediately scurried to the garden at the back of her house but her friends caked her anyway. She tried shouting out “하지마” a few times but that didn’t stop her friends from proceeding. Well, at least she became even sweeter on that day.
Written by: [email protected]
Contributors: [email protected]
Banner by: [email protected]
Have a news item that you think Soshified should know about? E-mail us at [email protected].
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/soshified for the latest on Girls’ Generation.
