Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 7 - Upper-Intermediate Korean #2 (Lessons 181 to 210) ᚛ Lesson 189 - Observed fact and what followed in Korean [-더니]
Observed fact and what followed in Korean [-더니]
In Korean, to tell what we saw or heard happen to someone else, and then what came next, we use the ending -더니. It links a past fact that we witnessed ourselves to what followed: a consequence ("he ate too fast, and now he has a stomachache") or an unexpected change ("yesterday it was raining, and today it is sunny"). In English, it most often corresponds to "and then", "and as a result", "and now" or "and yet now".
Stating an observed fact with -더니
The -더니 structure is used in the following manner:
[Observed fact: … Present stem]더니 [What followed]
As in many Korean structures, 더 refers to a past fact that we witnessed, just like the past adjectival form -던. Here it is combined with 니, which you know from the cause form -(으)니. Concretely, -더니 allows us to talk about a past fact that we saw, heard or felt ourselves, and about what came out of it. Three points to remember:
- the observed fact generally concerns someone other than the speaker, or a thing (the weather, an object, a sensation); to talk about one’s own action, we use -았/었더니, which is the subject of another lesson;
- the stem stays in the present tense: 더 already carries the idea of the past, so we do not say 먹었더니 in this sense;
- the tense and the speech level are carried by the second part of the sentence.
The consequence of an observed fact
In its first use, -더니 presents what we observed as the cause of what followed. To stress this link, we can translate with "and as a result" or "and sure enough".
동생이 아까부터 계속 하품을 하더니 결국 잠들었어요.
→ My little brother kept yawning, and he ended up falling asleep.
수진이는 아까 허겁지겁 먹더니 체한 것 같다고 했어요.
→ Sujin wolfed down her food earlier, and as a result she says she feels like she has indigestion.
지영이는 유튜브를 보면서 열심히 음식을 만들더니 몇 시간 후에 근사한 저녁을 차려 줬어요.
→ Jiyoung cooked diligently while following YouTube, and a few hours later she served us a wonderful dinner.
마크는 그동안 한국어 공부를 그렇게 열심히 하더니 내년에 한국으로 교환학생을 간다고 했어요.
→ Mark studied Korean so hard all this time, and now he says he is going to Korea next year as an exchange student.
도준이는 바람도 많이 불고 추운데 밖에 나가 놀더니 지금 기침하고 미열도 있는 게 감기에 걸린 것 같아요.
→ Dojoon went out to play even though it was cold and very windy, and now he is coughing and has a slight fever: he must have caught a cold.
재현이는 그동안 말하지 못했던 이야기를 다 쏟아내더니 한동안 아무 말 없이 울기만 했어요.
→ Jaehyun poured out everything he had not been able to say until then, and then he just cried for a long while without a word.
Note that the second part is often in the past tense (잠들었어요, 차려 줬어요) or describes the present state that results from it (감기에 걸린 것 같아요): -더니 itself does not change form.
Contrast and change
In its second use, -더니 contrasts what we observed with the current situation: "it was like this, and now it is different". The change is often unexpected, and the sentence then expresses the speaker’s surprise, annoyance or amusement. We translate with "and now", "and today" or "and yet now".
아침에는 춥더니 오후가 되니까 따뜻해졌어요.
→ It was cold this morning, and now that the afternoon is here, it has turned mild.
어제는 천둥 번개가 치고 비도 많이 내리더니 오늘은 날씨가 화창하네요!
→ Yesterday there was thunder, lightning and pouring rain, and today the weather is glorious!
주희는 회사에 무슨 일이 있었던 것처럼 집에서 펑펑 울더니 오늘은 왜 저렇게 기분이 좋아요?
→ Joohee was sobbing at home as if something had happened at work, and today, why is she in such a good mood?
재현 오빠, 너랑 그렇게 헤어지고 다시는 여자 안 만날 것처럼 굴더니 이번에 결혼한다잖아. 사람 일은 모르는 거라니까?
→ Jaehyun, after your breakup he acted as if he would never date a woman again, and now he is getting married! I told you, you never know what will happen in people’s lives.
태훈 씨, 그때는 아무 말도 안 하더니 지금 와서 나 때문에 기분이 안 좋았다고 하는 거야? 좀 당황스럽네.
→ Taehoon, at the time you said nothing, and now you come and tell me you were upset because of me? That leaves me a bit confused.
남자친구는 생일날 연락도 없더니 심지어 내 생일인 것조차 깜빡 잊고 있었다고 하더라?
→ My boyfriend did not even contact me on my birthday, and on top of that he said he had completely forgotten it was my birthday!
그때 그 사람, 분명히 어디서 봤던 사람인데. 어제는 그렇게 이름이 생각이 안 나더니 오늘에서야 생각이 나네.
→ That person, I am sure I have seen them somewhere before. Yesterday I just could not remember the name, and now it finally comes back to me today.
As the examples about the weather and the forgotten name show, the subject of the observed fact is not necessarily a person: what matters is that the speaker observed this fact from the outside.
After indirect speech: -(ㄴ/는)다더니
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Differences with -(으)ㄴ/는데
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Exercises
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Traveling to South Korea can be an unforgettable experience. But when you don’t speak Korean, everything gets more complicated: ordering in a restaurant or café becomes stressful, you can’t understand signs or directions, asking for help in case of trouble is nearly impossible, and most importantly, you miss out on the very essence of a successful trip to Korea: connecting with the locals.
Since English - Korean machine translators can’t always be trusted (the two languages work in completely different ways), it’s essential to prepare yourself in advance to fully enjoy your trip to South Korea!
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