TTMIK Level 1 Lesson 5

01/02/10 • 11 min

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TTMIK Level 1 Lesson 5 http://TalkToMeInKorean.com After studying with this lesson, you will be able to say things like “A is B(noun).” or “I am ABC(noun).” in polite/formal Korean. 이에요 / 예요 [i-e-yo / ye-yo] 이에요 and 예요 have a similar role to that of the English verb “to be”. The fundamental difference, however, is the sentence structure that they are used in. English sentence structure: ABC + [be] + DEF. ** DEF is a noun here. Ex) ABC is DEF. I am ABC. You are XYZ. Korean sentence structure: ABC + DEF + [be] ** DEF is a noun here. Ex) 이거 ABC예요. [i-geo ABC-ye-yo] = This is ABC. In English, the verb “to be” is changed to “am” “are” or “is” depending on the subject of the sentence, but in Korean, you decide whether to use 이에요 [i-e-yo] or 예요 [ye-yo] depending on whether the last letter in the previous word ended in a consonant or a vowel. 이에요 and 예요 are very similar and also sound similar so it is not such a big problem if you mix up these two, but it is better to know the correct forms. When you want to say that ABC “is” DEF in Korean, if the word for “DEF” has a final consonant in the last letter, you add 이에요 [i-e-yo], but if it doesn’t have a final consonant and ends in a vowel, you add 예요 [ye-yo]. This is just to make the pronounciation of the connected part easier, so it will come naturally if you practice with some sample sentences. Final consonant + 이에요 [i-e-yo] No final consonant (Only vowel) + 예요 [ye-yo] Sample sentences 물이에요. = 물 + 이에요 [mul + i-e-yo] (It’s) water. 가방이에요. = 가방 + 이에요 [ga-bang + i-e-yo] (It’s) a bag. 사무실이에요. = 사무실 + 이에요 [sa-mu-sil + i-e-yo] (It’s) an office. 학교예요. = 학교 + 예요 [hak-gyo + ye-yo] (It’s) a school. 저예요. = 저 + 예요 [jeo + ye-yo] (It’s) me. As you can see from the examples above, in Korean, you don’t have to use articles like “a/an” or “the” as in English. So when you look up a noun in your Korean dictionary, you can add 이에요 or 예요 and then it means “It is ABC.” “That is DEF.” “I am XYZ.” You can also make this a question simply by raising the tone at the end of the sentence. 물이에요. [mul-i-e-yo] = It’s water. 물이에요? [mul-i-e-yo?] = Is that water? Is this water? 학교예요. [hak-gyo-ye-yo] = It’s a school. 학교예요? [hak-yo-ye-yo] = Is it a school? Are you at school now? 뭐 [mwo] = what 뭐예요? [mwo-ye-yo?] = What is it? What’s that?

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How to Wish a Happy New Year in Korean

You might already know that "Happy New Year" in Korean is 새해 복 많이 받으세요 [sae hae bok mani badeuseyo] but let us break it down and also look at some sample sentences using parts of the expression.

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TTMIK Level 1 Lesson 4

TTMIK Level 1 Lesson 4 After listening to this lesson, you will be able to say “I am sorry” or “I apologize” and you will also be able to get someone’s attention when you want to say something to them or order something in a restaurant. 죄송합니다. [joe-song-hap-mi-da] Do you remember how to say “Thank you” in Korean? It is 감사합니다. [gam-sa-ham-ni-da] If you also remember that 감사합니다 is basically 감사 (“appreciation” or “thankfulness”) plus 합니다 (“I do”), you can assume that 죄송합니다 is also 죄송 plus 합니다. 죄송 [joe-song] means “apology”, “being sorry” or “feeling ashamed”, and 합니다 [hap-ni-da] means “I do”, so 죄송합니다 [joe-song-hap-ni-da] means “I am sorry.” or “I apologize.” 죄송합니다 is NOT always “I’m sorry”. Even though 죄송합니다 [joe-song-hap-ni-da] is BASICALLY “I’m sorry”, you can’t use 죄송합니다 when you want to say “I am sorry to hear that.” Many Korean people actually get confused when they talk about some bad news to their English-speaking friends and hear “I’m sorry” from them. If you say “I’m sorry.” after you hear a piece of bad news from your Korean friend, he or she might say “Why are YOU apologizing for that?” to you. This is because 죄송합니다 ONLY means “I apologize.”, “It was my bad.”, “Excuse me.” or “I shouldn’t have done that.” It can never mean “I’m sorry to hear that.” 저기요. [jeo-gi-yo] In English, you can use the expression “Excuse me.” in all of the following situations. 1) when you are passing through a crowd of people 2) when you are leaving the room for a second 3) when you want to get someone’s attention and talk to them or let them know something 4) when you want to call the waiter in a restaurant or a cafe to order something 저기요 [jeo-gi-yo] is an expression that can be translated to “Excuse me” but this Korean expression, 저기요 is ONLY used for situation number 3 and 4 above. How do you say “Excuse me.” when you want to pass through? You can say: 잠시만요. [jam-si-man-yo] (literal meaning: “Just a second.”) 죄송합니다. [joe-song-ham-ni-da] (literal meaning: “I am sorry.”) 잠깐만요. [jam-kkan-man-yo] (literal meaning: “Just a second.”) ** Yes, “jamsimanyo” and “jamkkanmanyo” are the same thing. These are the most commonly used expressions. You don’t have to memorize them right now, but they are just good to know! http://TalkToMeInKorean.com