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12 votes
Accepted

What are the differences between 는 / 은 and 가 / 이?

은/는 mark the "topic" of a sentence, while 이/가 mark a "subject". This alone doesn't really help all that much to know when exactly to use which. For me, it really clicked when I learned longer English ...
파울울's user avatar
  • 959
8 votes
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How to make passives with the 에게 form

I think there is a lexical sensitivity to the choice between 에게 and the more formal and universal 에 의하여 (for 'by'). That is to say, most any active form can go into the passive and take 에 의하여. Your ...
Catomic's user avatar
  • 1,287
8 votes
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Are both 집에 있다 and 집에서 있다 correct? Is there a difference in meaning?

Both 에 and 에서 are both 조사(助詞 - Particle)1 used after a noun, used to describe a location. 에 is a 조사 that describes 상태(狀態 - state of being).1 에서 is a 조사 that describes 행동(行動 - state of action).1 For ...
Phonics The Hedgehog's user avatar
8 votes
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Is there a special meaning of '이' when added on to names?

Here 이 is not a particle, but a suffix added to human's name whose last character has final consonant. (See here) 지현이 아영이 아름이 정복이 *철수이 *영희이 When someone call one's full name, ...
choco_addicted's user avatar
7 votes

What does it mean when we add 이/가 on to the object of the verb?

To answer the very question asked, why would we not just use 는/은 for that (그 것은 알고 싶다 , 사과는 먹고 싶어요)? that's because it would sound very strange. I can assure you that no native speaker would say ...
Catomic's user avatar
  • 1,287
6 votes

two subjects in 당신은 이름이 뭐예요?

This is how the sentence is explained in Korean school grammar: 당신은 (이름이 뭐예요) 이름이 뭐예요 forms a single predicate clause, and the subject of the predicate clause is taken by 당신은. That means there are ...
MujjinGun's user avatar
  • 7,442
6 votes

The use of 는 after 에

The particle 은/는 is sometimes used as an emphasiser. Ultimately, you could argue that this is always what it is being used as. Although Korean learners are taught (at least I was) that 은/는 is a ...
Vladhagen's user avatar
  • 3,924
6 votes
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two subjects in 당신은 이름이 뭐예요?

There are different ways to analyse the grammar, but one common way employed is to say that this sentence has a Topic - Comment structure. In a topic - comment sentence, the topic does not necessarily ...
gaeguri's user avatar
  • 5,994
5 votes

What are the different causal connectives and how do they differ in nuance?

From what I've read, Koreans use the word '접속사'(接續詞 - Conjunction) when discussing English conjunctions. To be really exact, the examples you gave have more complicated labels than just '접속사'. For the ...
Phonics The Hedgehog's user avatar
5 votes
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When listing many objects, use one 과/나 or many?

(이)나 is pretty much the equivalent of 'or' (although, it's a more restrictive 'or' since 아니면 covers the part that (이)나 can't). However, in a list that doesn't outline options or selections to choose ...
blimpy's user avatar
  • 1,009
5 votes
Accepted

Why 아무도, not 아무가 to express "nobody"?

Explaining 아무도 as "nobody" is a bit misleading. 아무 is translatable to "any" and "anyone". 아무 말이나 해 봐라. say anything. 아무나 할 수 있습니다. anybody can do it. 아무 때나 찾아와. come find me anytime. And, of ...
MujjinGun's user avatar
  • 7,442
5 votes
Accepted

Why use 가 in 의사가 되세요?

I'm learning about the usage on (으)세요, but my textbook explains that you cannot use 이다 in (으세요) form. So the following sentence is invalid: 의사이세요 You can add the honorific particle (으)시 to 이다 ...
Нет войне's user avatar
5 votes
Accepted

Absence of subject marker?

비행기를 보는 사람이 많습니다. [pihaenggi-reul po-neun saram-i manh-seumni-da] Presumably, 이 is the verb "to be" Here, 이 is the subject marker. 많습니다 on its own conveys the full meaning of 'there are a ...
Нет войне's user avatar
4 votes

two subjects in 당신은 이름이 뭐예요?

I don't know how modern grammarians interpret similar sentences, but when I learned Korean grammar in middle school, they were called 서술절 ("verb clauses"). It is not found in English or (I ...
jick's user avatar
  • 7,217
4 votes

The particle (이)야 and its exact meaning

이야 is just an emphasizing particle(put after nouns or adverbs), nothing else. In other words, you can drop it or replace it with 은/는 with no changes in meaning. 남이야 하나 마나 우린 꼭 합시다. = 남이 하나 마나 우린 꼭 ...
MujjinGun's user avatar
  • 7,442
4 votes

What does the particle -이자 mean?

-이자 consists of two parts: 이다 and -자. 이다 is just the standard copula, and -자 is a verb ending, which indicates both states are simultaneously engaged. So yes, it does mean "as well as" when it's ...
MujjinGun's user avatar
  • 7,442
4 votes

A subject marker question

"저는 여기가 처음이에요" actually has a very interesting structure, called 서술절: it seems this term is translated into English as "predicative clause" or "predicate clause". Basically, "여기가 처음이에요" (literally, "...
jick's user avatar
  • 7,217
4 votes

How do I use 도 (also, too)?

You always attach 도 to a noun, so if you want to use it with a verb, you have to use a noun form of that verb. Also, depending on which word you attach 도 to, you emphasize that the "also/too" refers ...
Hanna's user avatar
  • 41
4 votes
Accepted

Does the suffix 다 identify verbs and adjectives?

First, the choice of -다 as "base dictionary form" is, in a sense, an arbitrary convention. Unlike English, Korean verbs always require a suffix. You will never see someone just saying "...
jick's user avatar
  • 7,217
3 votes

When should I use 이/가 as a 'copular complement particle'?

이/가 is used at the end of a noun to express that the noun it accompanies plays the role of the subject of the sentence. That being said, 이/가 can be used with any verb or the verb-like form of any ...
Stephen Cheong's user avatar
3 votes

What are the differences between 는 / 은 and 가 / 이?

The 는 and 은 markers are "topic markers" and are used when introducing a new subject. The 가 and 이 markers are "subject markers" and are used when discussing a known topic. The difference can be subtle. ...
Eilon's user avatar
  • 146
3 votes
Accepted

Is it true that Korean nouns and pronouns use different particles?

I would say it is false. There are hundreds of Korean pronouns in the Standard Korean Language Dictionary (SKLD) and 47 pronouns have often been used in speaking or writing according to 한국어 학습용 어휘 목록....
Klmo's user avatar
  • 3,238
3 votes
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Doubt about "Both X and Y"

You can say: 카페도 많고 식당도 많습니다. 카페와 식당이 많습니다. (These two are almost equivalent, I personally can't tell any difference.) 카페도 식당도 많습니다. (This also makes sense, but my personal impression is that this ...
Absol's user avatar
  • 694
3 votes
Accepted

What is wrong with: 저는 펜을 있어요

'을' is an object particle(목적격/대격 조사). In that case, '펜' should be an object, and we need a transitive verb. In the sentence '있다' seems to have the meaning 'to have', but lexically it just means 'to ...
SKG's user avatar
  • 46
2 votes

What are the differences between 는 / 은 and 가 / 이?

이 or 가 is used as the following: A "subject" marker (I would call it a subjective "focus/topic" introducer.) 꽃이 예쁘다. 비가 내린다. 어떤 사람이 걷는다. 종이가 하얗다. 어린애가 생각이 많다. (어린애 is the ...

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