D.J.

Silva

Unit 2: Hello

In this unit, you will learn how to:

ƒ introduce yourself;
ƒ identify people and objects;
ƒ ask for information using the word 무엇 "what";
ƒ locate objects in space using the demonstratives 이 "this", 그
"that", and 저"that over there";
ƒ name common objects and countries.

Begin by working with the CD-ROM. First learn the first half of the
monologue; then work with the second half of the monologue. Finally,
spend time learning the material in the dialogue. In each case, don't
forget to access the CD-ROM's footnotes (green underlined links) to
access important grammatical and cultural information.

Additional Grammatical Notes

Demonstrative Adjectives: 이 "this", 그 "that", and 저 "yon"

When locating objects in space, Korean speakers make a three-way
distinction:

entity near the speaker 이 this

entity near the listener 그 that
entity away from both 저 that over there / yon
speaker and listener

Nouns
Like Korean verbs, Korean nouns also and marked with various particles.
In the case of the nouns, these particles typically indicate the role that the
noun plays in the sentence. These sentential roles include subject, topic,
direct object, indirect object ("to/for somebody"), possessive (also known
as the "genitive"), locative (used to indicate where an event occurs), and
instrumental (indicating that the noun is employed to accomplish a
particular function). These various noun particles will be introduced
gradually over the course of several units.

In Korean, nouns referring to things are generally not marked for

plurality. Hence, a word such as 책 can mean either "book" or "books."
Context can help to disambiguate the intended meaning.

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Beginning Korean: A Grammar Guide

Noun Particles: Subject Markers and Topic Markers

The most commonly used noun particles are those used to mark the
subject of the sentence and those used to mark the topic of a sentence.
р ѳҕ҂Ҋ҅҃ҔрѭҁҒҋ҅Ғғр ѴҏҐ҉҃рѭҁҒҋ҅Ғғр

ѷ҈҅ҎрҔ҈҅рҎҏҕҎр҅Ҏ҄ғр
җ҉Ҕ҈рҁрҖҏҗ҅Ҍьрҕғ҅њр
эࠖр эສр
э҇ҁр р
эҎ҅ҕҎ

ѷ҈҅ҎрҔ҈҅рҎҏҕҎр҅Ҏ҄ғр
җ҉Ҕ҈рҁр҃ҏҎғҏҎҁҎҔьрҕғ҅њр
э⎊р э⍖р
э҉р э҅ҕҎр

Both subject markers and topic markers are used to indicate the
person/thing that is main actor/element in the sentence. The difference
between subject and topics in Korean represents a distinction not directly
found in English; as such, knowing understanding the difference between
subject markers and topic markers is difficult for beginning language
learners. There are some basic principles that govern the use of each.

ƒ A subject marker is often attached to a noun that the speaker

wishes to introduce into the conversation for the first time. It has
no direct interpretation into English.
ƒ A topic marker is generally attached to a noun that has already
been established in the conversion. The noun "X-는" can often
be interpreted "as for X, …".

In a conversation that involves identifying people or things, the opening

question often includes a noun with a subject marker. The corresponding
response would mark the same entity with a topic marker: it's already
been established as part of the discourse.

subject marker

이 것이 무엇이에요? What is this (thing)?

그 것은 책이에요. That thing is a book.
(lit: "As for that thing, (it) is a book.")

topic marker

In most of the sentences that you will encounter at this point, there will
be either a subject or a topic: it's much less common to find both types of
particles in a single sentence. There is one important exception: A
sentence that include the verb 아니다 "to not be":

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 D.J. Silva

이 것은 책이 아니에요. This thing is not a book.

(lit: "As for this thing, a book it is not.")

Knowing exactly when to use one as opposed to the other takes time and
experience. In the meantime, acquaint yourself with the grammatical
patterns found in Unit 2 and open yourself to absorbing new intuitions
about how these two particles function.

The Linking Verbs –이다 "to be" and 아니다 "to not be"
The verb -이다 (-ida) is a linking verb that requires a noun be attached
to it. It is best interpreted as "is (a) ___."

이 것은 책이에요. As for this thing, (it) is a book.

저 사람은 최선생이에요. That person over there is Teacher Choe.
그 것이 무엇이에요? What is that? (lit: "That thing is-what?")
이 것이 중국 신문이에요? Is this thing a Chinese newspaper?

When the noun attached to the verb ends in a consonant, the verb takes
the form "-이에요"; when the noun ends a vowel, the verb takes the form
"-예요" (or, according to some, "-에요").

책 책이에요. It's a book.

신문 신문이에요. It's a newspaper.
의자 의자예요. It's a chair.
지도 지도예요. It's a map.

The opposite of –이에요 is 아니에요. Unlike –이에요, the verb

아이에요 does not involve a directly attached noun. Rather, the pattern
for using 아이에요 is this: TOPIC (은~는) SUBJECT (이~가) VERB.

이것은 책이 아니에요. This thing is not a book.

(lit: "As for this thing, a book is-not.")
그 사람은 학생이 아니에요. That person is not a student.
(lit: "As for that person, a student is-not.")
이 것도 신문이 아니에요. This isn't a newspaper, either.
(lit: "As for this thing also, a newspaper is-not.")

The Noun Particle –도 "also"

The particle –도 is attached to nouns to indicate that the noun should be
included in a larger group, along with a previously mentioned noun. It
can be translated into English as "also" or "too."

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Beginning Korean: A Grammar Guide

A: 이것은 미국책이에요. This is an American book.

B: 저것도 미국책이에요? Are those American books, too?
A: 네, 저것도 미국책이에요. Yes, those are also American books.

Before working on the following exercises, go to the CD-ROM and work

on the two additional lessons indicated at the bottom of the page, one
about countries and the other about common objects.

Exercises
Exercise A. Answer the following questions.

1. 이것이 무엇이에요?

2. 이것이 무엇이에요?

3. 이것은 책이에요?

4. 이것은 가방이에요?

5. 이것은 연필이에요?

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 D.J. Silva

6. 이 지도는 미국지도예요?

7. 이 지도는 한국지도예요?

8. 이 지도는 텍사스 지도예요?

9. 이 국기는 일본국기예요?
(You should be able to figure out 국기…)

10. 이 국기는 캐나다 국기예요?

Exercise B. Using the following script, construct a monologue in which

you describe yourself. Be prepared to present your monologue to your
Korean friends and colleagues.

1. 저는 ___________________(이)에요. Your name

2. 저는 ___________________(이)에요. Your current profession.

3. __________________사람이에요. Your nationality.

4. 전공 과목 _____________(이)에요. Your academic major.

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Beginning Korean: A Grammar Guide

Here is a partial list of academic majors. If yours is not here, consult with
a Korean speaker and/or an English-Korean dictionary. You should know
how to explain your major; it's an important part of who you are.
경제학 kyeongchehak Economics
고학 konghak Engineering
교육 kyoyuk Education
국제학 gukjehak International Studies
물리학 mullihak Physics
범죄학 beomjoehak Criminology
사업 sa-eop Business
사회학 sahoehak Sociology
생물학 saengmulhak Biology
생화학 saenghwahak Biochemistry
수학 suhak Mathematics
언어학 eon-eohak Linguistics
역사 yeoksa History
연국 yeon-guk Theater
영문학 yeongmunhak English Language and Literature
예술 yesul Art
외교학 oegyohak Diplomacy
음악 eum-ak Music
인류학 illyuhak Anthropology
정치학 jeongchihak Political Science
지리학 jirihak Geography
철학 cheolhak Philosophy
춤 chum Dance
통계학 tonggyehak Statistics
통신학 tongsinhak Communications
화학 hwahak Chemistry

Don't forget to use the CD-ROM for additional practice. You should spend time working
on the multiple-choice questions, the fill-in-the-blank exercises, and the dictation. Don't
forget to quiz yourself using the flashcard function, too.

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