~(으)나

adventuresinkorean:

This is a contrastive ending with multiple usages. Some of its usages overlap with ~지만, or ~거나/~든지.

In the first use, ~(으)나 is applied exactly like ~지만 to express a contrast between two different states of affairs. Both forms are used in both writing and speaking, but more often in formal writing.

값은 좀 비싸나 음식 맛은 좋아요.
It’s a bit expensive, but it tastes good.

어제 술집에 갔으나 술은 마시지 않았어요.
I went to a bar yesterday, but I didn’t drink any alcohol.

의견에 따르긴 하겠으나 결과는 책임지지 않겠습니다.
I’ll follow your decision, but not take responsibility for the result.

좋은 약은 입에 쓰나 몸에 이롭다.
Good medicine is bitter to the mouth but good for the body.

In the second use, ~(으)나 is used twice in the same sentence to give the meaning of “whether… or…”. Its usage implies that the state of affairs given in the final clause will occur regardless of the two choices given in the first clause. Its function here is similar to ~거나 or ~든지.

그 사람은 자나 깨나 술만 마셔요.
Whether awake or asleep, he always drinks.

앉으나 서나 허리가 앞아요.
Whether sitting or standing, my back hurts.

좋으나 싫으나 해야 해요.
You have to do it whether you like it or not.

In the third usage, ~(으)나 can be used in clauses containing question words like ‘무엇’, ‘어디’, ‘누구’, ‘언제’, and ‘어떻게’ to imply that whatever is expressed in this clause is of no consequence. These constructions usually translate as “whoever”, “whenever, “wherever”, etc.

내가 어디 가나 상관하지 마.
Wherever I go, just mind your own business.

뭘 먹으나 살이 안 쪄요.
Whatever I eat, I don’t gain weight.

In the fourth usage, ~(으)나 can be used to link two identical adjectives, in order to give emphasis to the adjective in a similar way as adding “very”/“really” or using a superlative.

크나 큰 죄인이 되고 말았어요.
S/he ended up becoming a really big criminal.

작으나 작은 피해도 없게 하는 것이 행정의 원칙이다.
The principle of administration is to avoid even the smallest damages.

In the fifth usage, it is combined with the verb 말다 (to desist) in the form ~(으)나 마나 to give the meaning of “whether… or not…”, and shows that the final result will occur whether or not the first clause happens. Sometimes, ~(으)나마나 is simply followed by ~이다 in the form ~(으)나마나예요.

학생들은 혼내주나 마나 마찬가지예요.
It’s all the same whether or not you give students a hard time.

시험은 보나 마나 그 학생은 떨어질 거예요.
The student will probably fail whether he takes the exam or not.

그런 회의는 하나 마나 예요.
It won’t do any good whether or not we hold that kind of conference.

(Info and examples taken from Korean: A Comprehensive Grammar and Using Korean: Guide to Contemporary Use)

~(으)되

adventuresinkorean:

This form is primarily used in formal writing, and acts in the same way as ~지만 to mark a contrast between two states of affairs.

NOTE: This form is irregular because ~으되 is only used after the verbs 있다/없다 and past and future tense markers ~았/었~ and ~겠~. In all other cases, ~되 is used, even for verbs ending in a consonant (eg. 먹되 ‘to eat’).

Examples:

제 발표는 한국어로 하되 영어로 된 요약문을 준비하겠습니다.
My presentation will be in Korean, but I’ll prepare a summary in English.

음식은 자주 먹되 적게 먹는 것이 좋아요.
Eat regularly, but make sure you only eat small amounts.

기간은 짧았으되 많은 것을 배웠습니다.
The time was short, but I have learned a lot.

그 선수는 재능은 있으되 재능을 살리지 못한다.
That athlete has talent, but he can’t apply it.

가기는 가되 너무 일찍 가지 마.
You can go, but don’t go too early.

마시긴 마시되 적항히 마셔라.
You can drink, but drink moderately.

(Info and examples from Korean: A Comprehensive Grammar and Using Korean: Guide to Contemporary Use)

“…would…but…” -(으)련마는

studiousbees:

More advanced grammar! This form actually gave me a lot of problems, especially its usage with past tense, but with some quiet thinking time and some help from some friends, I figured it out. I hope that reading this helps you as much as actually thinking about and writing it helped me!

This one is a pretty old form and it is also fairly literary as well, so you might hear it spoken by older people but you’ll probably be okay if you can just recognize and understand it when it pops up even if it doesn’t really come to mind for personal usage.

Function:

This grammar is similar to some that I already covered. Expressing a supposition or expectation in the antecedent (preceding) clause that is then offset by an opposite situation or condition in the following clause, this grammar carries a feeling of hoping for one thing but getting something else instead. In this way, it’s similar to -겠건마는/건만 for advanced grammar, -(으)ㄹ 텐데 for intermediate, and -겠지만 for a rough beginner-level equivalent. You can think of it as “but” in the context of an expectation and the reality when that expectation is not fulfilled. An important facet of this grammar is also that you not only point out that something other than the expected occurred but also express some sort of regret or feeling of dissatisfaction. To emphasize that expectation/reality divide in English we could, depending on the situation, translate it roughly as “It would be nice if… but…” or “One would think that… but…” A bit more simply, just “would… but…” will suffice in general!

Usage:

This grammar can be used with action verbs, descriptive verbs, and nouns in the past and present tenses. In all cases, it can be shortened to -(으)련만.

Action verbs:

PAST: -았/었으련마는

우리가 파티에 도착했을 때 음식이 조금만이라도 남았으면 친구들과 같이 먹었으련마는 사람들이 이미 다 먹어버렸었어요. (When we arrived at the party if there had been even a little food left we would have eaten with our friends, but they had already eaten it all.)

용기를 좀 더 냈었더라면 고백했으련마는 너무 소심해서 하지 못했어요. (If I had had a bit more courage I would have confessed, but I was too timid so I couldn’t do it.)

PRESENT: -(으)련마는

돈이 좀 더 많으면 여행 가련만
어차피 돈이 없어서 그런 생각을 안 하는 게 나아요. (If I had a bit more money I would go on a trip, but I don’t have the money anyway so not thinking about it is better.)

보통 그런 간단한 문제를 쉽게 풀련만 왠지 오늘은 잘 안 풀여요. (Normally I would easily solve that kind of simple problem, but for some reason today I can’t do it.)

Descriptive verbs:

PAST: -았/었으련마는

담배를 피우지 않았더라면 예뻤으련마는 오랫동안 담배를 피워서 얼굴이 실제 나이에 비해 더 늙어보였어요. (If she had not smoked she would have been pretty, but since she smoked for a long time, her face looked older than her true age.)

내 남동생이 좀 더 일찍 일어났더라면 공항에 가기 전에 아침을 먹을 시간이 충분했으련만 너무 늦게 일어나서 밥 먹기는커녕 물을 마실 시간도 없었어요. (If my brother had gotten up a little earlier there would have been enough time to eat breakfast before going to the airport, but since he got up too late there wasn’t even time to drink water, never mind eating a meal.)

PRESENT: -(으)련마는

1등 당첨이 되면 좋으련만 매번 아무 상도 못 받아요. (It would be nice if I won the grand prize in the lottery, but I never get anything.)

운동을 좀 했으면 건강하련만 그는 너무 오랫동안 운동을 안 해서 건강이 나빠지고 있어요. (If he exercised a bit he would be healthy, but he hasn’t exercised in a long time so his health is deteriorating.)

Nouns:

PAST: -이었/였으련마는

원래 계획한 대로 기차로 갔으면 통근 시간이 한 시간이었으련만 차로 가서 거의 두 시간이 걸렸어요. (If I had gone by train as originally planned my commute would have been one hour, but since I went by car it took almost two hours.)

좀 더 빨리 백화점에서 도착했으면 그 상품이 무료였으련만 이벤트 마감 시간 5분 뒤에 도착해서 할인을 조금밖에 못 받았어요. (If I had arrived at the department store a bit more quickly that product would have been free, but since I arrived five minutes past the event cutoff time, I only got a small discount.)

PRESENT: -이련마는

제 친구들 중에서 유빈이는 가장 외향적인 사람이련만 요즘 무슨 일이 일어났는지 갑자기 소심해졌어요. (Yubin would usually be the most extroverted person among all of my friends, but lately it seems something happened and she’s suddenly become more timid.)

저 카페는 미나 씨가 제일 좋아하는 곳이련만 요즘 돈이 없어서 못 가고 있어요.

(That cafe is [would be] Mina’s favorite place, but lately she has no money so she can’t go.)

BONUS: This form can also be used to end a sentence! When used in this way, it sounds like a wistful exclamation.

1등 단청이 되면 좋으련만…! (If only I got the lottery grand prize…!)

As always, thank you for reading! Happy studying, everyone ❤

~(으)나 = But, however

(This is the same as ~지만, but more often used in formal writing.)

가고 싶으나 시간이 없다 = I should like to go, but I have no time.

나는 그녀를 보았으나, 무시하고 지나갔다 = I saw her but I just ignored her and walked past.
밥을 많이 먹었으나 여전히 배가 고팠다 = I ate a lot but I was just as hungry as before.
내일 날씨는 대체로 맑겠으나, 경남지역은 한때 비가 오겠다 = The weather will be clear tomorrow, but it will rain once in the Gyeongnam area.
나폴레옹은 비록 전투에서 승리했으나 보상은 보잘 것 없었다 = Napolean won the battle, but the rewards were poor.

(동사)~기는 (동사/하다), ~긴 = Contrast and emphasis
(명사)~(이)기는 하다, ~(이)긴 하다

가기는 갔/했어요 = I DID go (there) but…
가기는 갔는데, 일찍 왔어요 = I DID go there, but I came back early.

가기는 갈 거예요 = I WILL go, but …

보기는 봤는데 기억이 안 나요 = I DID see it, but I don’t remember.

어제 친구를 만나기는 했는데, 금방 헤어졌어요 = I DID meet a friend yesterday, but we parted soon.

시간 맞춰서 도착하기는 했는데, 준비를 못 했어요 = I DID manage to get there on time, but I couldn’t prepare.
읽기는 읽었는데 이해가 안 돼요 = I DID read it, but I don’t understand it.
좋기는 좋은데, 너무 비싸요 = It IS good, but it’s too expensive.
맛있기는 맛있는데, 좀 짜요 = It IS delicious, but it’s a bit salty
전통 무술이기는 하지만 잘 몰라요 = It is a traditional martial art, but I don’t know it well.
좋은 선물이기는 하지만 저는 못 받겠어요. = Although it is a nice gift, I cannot accept it.
사랑 이야기긴 한데 판타지적 요소가 있어서 재미있다 = It is love story but it has fantasy elements too so it’s fun.

~더니 = When you have observed two things, connected by time and sometimes emphasising contrast. (then, when, since, and, but, whereupon)

(combination of A/V + 더 and A/V + (으)니)

수잔이 한국에 가더니 소식이 없네 = Since Susan went to Korea, there has been no news.
인류학을 공부하더니 지금은 사회학을 공부한다 = She was studying anthropology, and now he has changed to sociology.
지난 겨울에는 눈이 별로 안 오더니 이번에는 많이 오네요 = It hardly snowed at all last winter, but this year it’s snowed a lot.

어제는 비가 오더니 오늘은 눈이 오네요.= It rained yesterday, but it’s snowing today.
경화 씨가 어제는 요가를 하더니, 오늘은 테니스를 하네요.= Kyung-hwa did yoga yesterday, and today she’s playing tennis.
제 컴퓨터가 느려지더니, 이제 안 켜져요.= My computer slowed down, and now it won’t even switch on.
석진 씨가 밖에 나가더니 갑자기 고양이를 데리고 왔어요.= Seokjin went outside, and then suddenly, he brought back a cat

~았/었더니 = Two observations are connected by cause and effect, sometimes when you realise that the second is a sign of the first happening

전화를 했더니 친구는 벌써 나가고 없었다 = I called, but my friend was already out.
밥을 많이 먹었더니 배가 아프다 = I ate too much and have a stomachache.
우리가 공부를 열심히 했더니 시험을 잘 봤어요 = Because we studied hard, we did well on the test.
오랜만에 고향에 갔더니 많은 것이 변해 있었어 = When I visited my hometown, a lot had changed.

경화 씨가 매일 글을 쓰더니 지난 달에 소설을 출간했어요.= Kyung-hwa wrote every day, and she published a novel last month.

but, however, and

그렇지만 – but, however / 그런데 – and

피곤해요. 그렇지만/그런데 영화 보고 싶어요 – I’m tired but I want to see a movie.
어제 이거 샀어요. 그렇지만 정말 커요 – I bought this yesterday but it’s really big.
어제 이거 샀어요. 그런데 정말 커요 – I bought this yesterday and it’s really big.

하지만 – but

저는 먹고 싶어요. 하지만 배고프지 않아요 – I want to eat. But I am not hungry.

~지만 – one does something, but / even though
~었지만
~ㄹ 것이다, ~ㄹ 거다, ~겠 + 지만

저는 먹고 싶지만 배고프지 않아요 – even though I want to eat, I am not hungry.
요즘에 한국어를 열심히 공부하고 있지만 아직도 잘 말할 수 없어요 – Even though I am studying Korean hard these days, I still can’t speak well
부산에 가고 싶지만 차가 없어서 못 가요 – Even though I want to go to Busan, I can’t go because I don’t have a car
원래 한국에 여행하러 가고 싶었지만 돈이 없어서 못 갔어요 – Originally I wanted to go to Korea to travel, but because I didn’t have any money, I couldn’t go
밥을 먹었지만 배고파요 – Even though I ate, I am hungry
한국에 안 갈 것이지만 여전히 한국어를 배우고 싶어요/ 한국에 안 갈 거지만 여전히 한국어를 배우고 싶어요/ 한국에 안 가겠지만 여전히 한국어를 배우고 싶어요 – Even though I will not go to Korea, I still want to learn Korean.