Welcome back. This is the 17th post in the series of 1000 Korean words for everyday use by analyzing the word frequency of more than 1,000 episodes of Korean dramas.
Today, let’s explore the meaning and context of 5 key Korean words “잠시, 빨리, 놈, 시간, 나가다” with sample sentences.
Click the play button below to listen to all the words and sample sentences in this post.
Basic Korean words : 잠시, 빨리, 놈, 시간, 나가다
81. 잠시 [jam-si] – for a moment, briefly
– 잠시 [jam-si] means “for a moment” or “briefly”, indicating a short period of time.
– 잠깐 [jam-kkan] is another word with a similar meaning and is often used interchangeably with 잠시.
Example sentences:
잠시만 기다려 주세요. Please wait for a moment.
잠깐만 기다려 줄래요? Can you wait for a short moment?
82. 빨리 [ppal-li] – quickly, fast
– 빨리 [ppal-li] means “quickly” or “fast” indicating a high speed or short duration.
– 빠르다 [bba-reu-da] is the adjective form of 빨리 and means “to be fast”.
Example sentences:
빨리 와요, 기다렸어요. Come quickly, I’ve been waiting.
그 자동차 정말 빠르다. That car is really fast.
83. 놈 [nom] – guy, jerk, bastard
– 놈 [nom] is a colloquial term used to refer to a “guy”, but it can have negative connotations and may be offensive.
– 이놈 [i-nom], 그놈 [geu-nom] and 저놈 [jeo-nom] add demonstrative particles to emphasise the person, similar to “this guy”, “that guy” and “that jerk”.
Example sentences:
저놈이 왜 그래? What’s wrong with that guy?
이놈이 뭐 장난치는 거야? What’s this guy joking about?
그놈이 어떻게 그러지? How can that guy act like that?
저놈을 이해할 수 없어. That guy is incomprehensible.
84. 시간 [si-gan] – time
– 시간 [si-gan] refers to “time” in a general sense.
– 시계 [si-gye] refers specifically to a “clock” or “watch” used to measure time.
Example sentences:
시간이 정말 빨리 간 것 같아. It feels like time has gone by so quickly.
시계를 보고 싶어요. I want to look at the clock. [I want to check the time.]
85. 나가다 [na-ga-da] – to go out, to leave.
– 나가다 [na-ga-da] is used to express the action of “going out” or “leaving” from a place.
Example sentences:
밖으로 나가서 공기를 마셔요. Go outside and get some fresh air.
Grammar & Study Resources
Korean verb conjugation
Korean verbs are conjugated using the verb stem, dictionary form, and informal polite form.
Korean verb dictionary form
The dictionary form is what you would look up in a Korean dictionary. It’s like English infinitives, to go, to eat. And all dictionary forms of Korean verbs end with -다.
ex)가다, 괜찮다
Korean verb stem
Just remove the -다 at the end of the dictionary form.
ex)가 is the verb stem of 가다, 괜찮 is the verb stem of 괜찮다
Note that these verb stems are never used alone.
Informal polite Korean
하다(hada, to do) is the dictionary form and there are several conjugations of 하다 in Korean.
1)해라(haera) 2)해(hae) 3)해요(haeyo) 4)하십시오(hasipsio)
해요, 해 are informal and are usually used in everyday conversation.
The politeness level is 1 < 2 < 3 < 4.
Using -요 at the end of verbs shows respect for the people you are talking to.
For example, 가요 is the informal polite form of 가다, 괜찮아요 is the informal polite form of 괜찮다.