Spoken Korean

Spoken Korean

•    운동 하면서 매트릭스 봤어. = While doing exercise, I watched Matrix
•     노래 들으면서 지리 공부 했어. = While listening to music, I studied geography.
•(호머는)    자면서 코 골았어. = While sleeping, Homer snored.
•(민지는)      스타벅스에서 잡지 읽으면서 커피 마셨어. = At Starbucks, while reading a
magazine, Minji drank coffee.
•(준호는)       차 타고 회사 가면서 라디오 들었어. = While going to work by car, Junho
listened to radio.
매트릭스 = Matrix (The movie)
노래 = music, song
지리 = geography
호머 = Homer (a male name as in Simpsons)
민지 = Minji (a female name)
스타벅스 = Starbucks
잡지 = magazine
커피 = coffee
회사 = work, company
라디오 = radio
준호 = Junho (a male name)
Note:
The spoken Korean usually omits a subject because it is usually understood by the speakers as to
who they are talking about. For example, if I were talking about myself, I wouldn't need to use 나는
to say something about me because it is assumed that I am talking about me.
Likewise, the third person subjects like    호머는 and    민지는 can also be omitted when a person being
talked about is already known by people having a conversation.
The object particle, 를/을, is omitted in spoken Korean.

5W1H
5W1H - When, Where, Who, What, How and Why
Note: Please refer to Verbs - Present/Past for the spoken form of verbs.
When, where, who, what, how and why are very useful words to make a question and they are
convenient to use in conversations with friends. Here are some simple sentences. You may hear
these this pattern of the speech a lot from Korean dramas, animations, and people.
To show you how they are used, I've made simple sentences using the verb,"go".
•When:    언제 가? = When do you go? (Lit. when go?)
•Where:    어디 가? = Where do you go?
•Who:    누가 가? = Who is going?
•What:    뭐가 가? = What is going?
•How:    어떻게 가? = How do you go?
•Why:    왜 가? = Why do you go?
Note: The subject is usually omitted.
Eg.
•Sam: I will go to school.
•Jenny:    언제 가? [Here, it would mean 'When will you go?']
•Sam: Peter told me that we are going to a museum!
•Jenny:    언제 가? [When are we going?]
•   언제 와? = When do you come?
•   왜 쳐? = Why do you hit me?
•   왜 울어? = Why do you cry?
•   뭐 줘? = What do I give to you? or What do you give to me? [Depends on the context]
Honorific Form
While the spoken form above is used between close friends or when older people are talking to
younger people in informal situations. The honorific form is used commonly between adults, by
people in formal situations or when younger people are speaking to older people.
● Just add    요 at the end of a sentence.
•When:    언제 가요? = When do you go? (Lit. when go?)
•Where:    어디 가요? = Where do you go?
•Who:    누가 가요? = Who is going?
•What:    뭐가 가요? = What is going?
•How:    어떻게 가요? = How do you go?
•Why:    왜 가요? = Why do you go?

•   언제 와요? = When do you come?
•   왜 쳐요? = Why do you hit me?
•   왜 울어요? = Why do you cry?
•   뭐 줘요? = What do I give to you? or What do you give to me? [Depends on the context]