Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 6 - Upper-Intermediate Korean #1 (Lessons 151 to 180) ᚛ Lesson 170 - Listing in Korean [겸]
Listing in Korean [겸]
Adding nouns with 겸
겸 is a very particular little word that allows us to link several nouns so that they form a single entity. This entity is then considered as a whole made up of two or more elements. 겸 is used in the following manner:
[Noun 1] 겸 [Noun 2] (겸 [Noun 3] 겸 …)
겸 specifically indicates that several nouns, added together, represent a single entity. In English, 겸 can be rendered by a slash "/", a hyphen "-" or an "and", depending on the expression.
오늘 만난 그 사람은 유명한 극작가 겸 시인이야.
→ The person I met today is a famous playwright / poet.
(the person’s profession is defined as the combination of two nouns: "극작가" + "시인".)
우리 외할머니는 노인정 회장 겸 동네 이장이셔서 매일 바쁘게 생활하셔.
→ My maternal grandmother is the president of the senior citizens’ center and the head of the village, so she is busy every day.
(the person’s role in society is defined as the combination of two nouns: "노인정 회장" + "동네 이장".)
세정이는 오늘 11시에 일어나서 아침 겸 점심을 근사하게 차려서 먹었어요.
→ Sejeong got up at 11:00 today and ate a beautifully prepared brunch.
(the meal is defined as the combination of two nouns: "아침" + "점심".)
한국어 선생님 겸 유튜버인 가자코레의 케빈은 토크쇼에 출연했습니다.
→ Kevin from KajaCoree, Korean teacher / YouTuber, appeared on a talk show.
재현이는 의사 겸 작가 겸 모델 일도 하고 있습니다.
→ Jaehyun works as a doctor / writer / model.
Adding verbs with -(으)ㄹ 겸
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Exercises
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You already know some vocabulary and sentence structures… But when you listen to Koreans speak, do you ever feel like something is missing, the meaning behind the words, the cultural nuance that makes the language truly come alive?
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