Korean · Intermediate (B1) · Chapter 1 of 12
Stories and memories
그때 그 시절Geuttae geu sijeol
Tell stories about the past in Korean: when (-(으)ㄹ 때), before and after, used to (-았/었었-), and polite past questions to older people.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Say when something happened with -(으)ㄹ 때 and -았/었을 때
- Put events in order: before, after, at first, then, in the end
- Say what used to be true with -았/었었-
- Ask an older person about their past with the honorific -(으)셨어요
Listen
In Busan, Kim Soyun asks her grandmother, Choi Sunja, about her first years in the city. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Soyun
할머니, 부산에 처음 오셨을 때 몇 살이셨어요?
Halmeoni, Busane cheoeum osyeosseul ttae myeot sarisyeosseoyo?
Grandma, how old were you when you first came to Busan?
Grandma
스물두 살. 결혼하기 전에는 고향 안동에 살았었어. 결혼하고 바로 부산으로 이사했어.
Seumuldu sal. Gyeolhonhagi jeoneneun gohyang Andonge sarasseosseo. Gyeolhonhago baro Busaneuro isahaesseo.
Twenty-two. Before I got married, I lived in my hometown, Andong. Right after the wedding we moved to Busan.
Soyun
부산에 오신 후에 처음에는 어떠셨어요?
Busane osin hue cheoeumeneun eotteosyeosseoyo?
What was it like at first, after you came to Busan?
Grandma
정말 힘들었어. 친구도 없고 일도 없었어.
Jeongmal himdeureosseo. Chingudo eopgo ildo eopseosseo.
It was really hard. I had no friends and no work.
Soyun
그럼 시장 가게는 언제 시작하셨어요?
Geureom sijang gageneun eonje sijakhasyeosseoyo?
So when did you start the shop at the market?
Grandma
너희 아빠가 두 살 때. 처음에는 국제시장에서 작은 옷 가게를 했어.
Neohui appaga du sal ttae. Cheoeumeneun Gukjesijangeseo jageun ot gagereul haesseo.
When your dad was two. At first I had a small clothes shop at Gukje Market.
Soyun
가게를 하실 때는 보통 몇 시에 일어나셨어요?
Gagereul hasil ttaeneun botong myeot sie ireonasyeosseoyo?
When you ran the shop, what time did you usually get up?
Grandma
다섯 시에. 너희 아빠 아침을 만들고, 그다음에 가게에 갔어.
Daseot sie. Neohui appa achimeul mandeulgo, geudaeume gagee gasseo.
At five. I made your dad's breakfast, and after that I went to the shop.
Soyun
그 가게는 지금도 있어요?
Geu gageneun jigeumdo isseoyo?
Is that shop still there?
Grandma
아니. 그러다가 할아버지가 많이 아프셨어. 그래서 결국 가게를 팔았어.
Ani. Geureodaga harabeojiga mani apeusyeosseo. Geuraeseo gyeolguk gagereul parasseo.
No. Then Grandpa became very ill, so in the end I sold the shop.
Soyun
그 시절이 그리우세요?
Geu sijeori geuriuseyo?
Do you miss those days?
Grandma
가끔 그리워. 그때는 나도 젊었어. 옛날 시장 사람들 얼굴이 아직도 기억나.
Gakkeum geuriwo. Geuttaeneun nado jeolmeosseo. Yennal sijang saramdeul eolguri ajikdo gieongna.
Sometimes I do. I was young then too. I still remember the faces of the people at the market back then.
Understand
When: -(으)ㄹ 때 and -았/었을 때
(ttae) means “time” or “when”. After a noun it's simple: (seumuldu sal ttae), when I was twenty-two; (haksaeng ttae), when I was a student. After a verb or adjective, add -ㄹ 때 if the stem ends in a vowel or ㄹ (, gal ttae; , sal ttae), and -을 때 after other consonants (, meogeul ttae).
For an action that was already finished at that moment, put the past -았/었- in front: -았/었을 때. (hanguge gal ttae) is “when I was going to Korea”, on the way or before the trip; (hanguge gasseul ttae) is “when I went to Korea”, once I was there. The tense of the whole sentence comes from the last verb.
With an older person, add the honorific -(으)시-: (cheoeum osyeosseul ttae), when you first came; (gagereul hasil ttae), when you ran the shop.
| Verb | when (doing, going to do) | when (it had happened) |
|---|---|---|
| (gada), to go | (gal ttae) | (gasseul ttae) |
| (meokda), to eat | (meogeul ttae) | (meogeosseul ttae) |
| (salda), to live | (sal ttae) | (sarasseul ttae) |
| (osida), to come (honorific) | (osil ttae) | (osyeosseul ttae) |
- 어렸을 때는 부산에 살았어요.Eoryeosseul ttaeneun Busane sarasseoyo.When I was little, I lived in Busan.
- 부산에 갈 때 기차에서 영화를 봤어요.Busane gal ttae gichaeseo yeonghwareul bwasseoyo.On my way to Busan, I watched a film on the train.
- 시간이 있을 때 전화하세요.Sigani isseul ttae jeonhwahaseyo.Call me when you have time.
Before, after, and putting events in order
Before doing something: the verb stem + (gi jeone): (gyeolhonhagi jeone), before getting married; (gagi jeone), before going. After doing something: -ㄴ 후에 after a vowel, -은 후에 after a consonant: (osin hue), after you came; (meogeun hue), after eating. A ㄹ stem loses its ㄹ: (salda) → (san hue).
Never put the past tense inside these patterns, even when the story is in the past: (gyeolhonhagi jeone Andonge sarasseoyo), before I got married I lived in Andong. With a noun, just add (jeone) or (hue): (gyeolhon jeone), (gyeolhon hue).
For two steps in a row you already know -고 (A2): (gyeolhonhago baro isahaesseoyo), we got married and moved right away. These words tie a longer story together:
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| (cheoeumeneun) | at first |
| (geudaeume) | after that, next |
| (geureodaga) | then (while things went on like that, something changed) |
| (geuraeseo) | so, and so |
| (gyeolguk) | in the end, finally (often after difficulties) |
Used to: -았/었었-, and the honorific past
Adding -었- a second time, -았었- / -었었-, says that something was true back then but isn't any more: (Andonge sarasseosseoyo), I used to live in Andong (I don't now). (Busane gasseosseoyo) means “I went to Busan (and came back)”. The simple past (sarasseoyo) is also correct; -았었- just stresses the contrast with now.
Soyun speaks to her grandmother in (haeyoche) with the honorific -(으)시-, which in the past becomes -(으)셨-: (osyeosseoyo), (hasyeosseoyo), (jeolmeusyeosseoyo). A ㄹ stem loses its ㄹ before -시-: (himdeulda) → (himdeusyeosseoyo). Her grandmother answers in (banmal), which is normal in a family: older people speak down, younger people speak up. When she says (neohui appa), your dad, (neohui) is the plural of (neo), used like (uri) for someone's family.
| Verb | Past | Honorific past |
|---|---|---|
| (oda), to come | (wasseoyo) | (osyeosseoyo) |
| (hada), to do | (haesseoyo) | (hasyeosseoyo) |
| (salda), to live | (sarasseoyo) | (sasyeosseoyo) |
| (himdeulda), to be hard | (himdeureosseoyo) | (himdeusyeosseoyo) |
| (myeot sarida), to be how old | (myeot sarieosseoyo) | (myeot sarisyeosseoyo) |
More in the grammar: Linking actions: -고, -아서/-어서, -(으)면서, -다가 · The past tense: -았- / -었-
New words
- 처음cheoeumthe first time; the beginning · (cheoeum wasseoyo), I came for the first time; (cheoeumeneun), at first
- 때ttaetime, when · (seumuldu sal ttae), when I was twenty-two; (geuttae), then, at that time
- 결혼하다gyeolhonhadato get married · (gyeolhonhaesseoyo) also means “I'm married”.
- 고향gohyanghometown, home region
- 이사하다isahadato move (house) · (Busaneuro isahaesseoyo), I moved to Busan.
- 힘들다himdeuldato be hard, tiring · (himdeureoyo); honorific (himdeuseyo)
- 시장sijangmarket
- 가게gageshop, small store · (ot gage), clothes shop; (gagereul hada), to run a shop; (gagereul sijakhada), to start a shop; (gagereul palda), to sell a shop
- 시절sijeoldays, a period of your life · (geu sijeol), those days; (haksaeng sijeol), student days
- 결국gyeolgukin the end, finally
- 그립다geuripdato miss (a person, place, time) · ㅂ irregular: (geuriwoyo). The thing you miss is the subject: (gohyangi geuriwoyo).
- 젊다jeomdato be young (of adults) · (jeolmeoyo); (jeolmeun saram), a young person
- 옛날yennalthe old days, long ago · (yennare), in the old days
- 기억나다gieongnadato remember, to come back to mind · The memory is the subject: (geunari gieongnayo), I remember that day; (eolguri gieongnayo), I remember the face (, eolgul, face).
Practise
1.You had raw fish for the first time once you were in Busan. Which fits? (Busane) ___ (hoereul cheoeum meogeosseoyo).
2.Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.Before I got married, I used to live in my hometown, Andong.
3.Match the Korean with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
4.Soyun wants to ask her grandmother “Was it hard (for you)?” politely. What does she say?
5.What does (babeul meogeun hue keopireul masyeosseoyo) mean?
6.Grandma tells how the story ended. Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.So in the end I sold the shop.
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
어렸을 때 어디에 사셨어요?
Eoryeosseul ttae eodie sasyeosseoyo?
Where did you live when you were young?
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.