Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 9 - Advanced Korean #2 (Lessons 241 to 270) ᚛ Lesson 254 - To end up, to do it whatever it takes, in Korean [-고 말다] [-고 말겠다]
To end up, to do it whatever it takes, in Korean [-고 말다] [-고 말겠다]
The verb 말다 first means "to stop", "not to do": 하지 마세요. Placed as an auxiliary after -고, it takes on a completely different meaning, that of an outcome: -고 말다, "to end up", "to finally". In the past, -고 말았다 tells of a result you did not want or could not prevent, "I ended up missing my flight", "they ended up breaking up". In the future, with -겠- or -(으)ㄹ 거야, the same form switches to determination: -고 말겠다, "I will do it, whatever it takes". In both cases, the shared idea is that of a final point: the action went all the way.
"To end up", the unwanted result: -고 말았다
[Verb]-고 말았다 / [Verb]-고 말았어요
-고 말았다 is used for an unfortunate result that came about despite the speaker's intentions or efforts: you resisted, then gave in; you wanted to avoid it, and it happened. It is very close to -아/어 버리다, and the two readily combine, -아/어 버리고 말았다, to stress that there is no going back. The adverbs 결국, "in the end", and 못 참고, "unable to hold back", often go with it. When the result is a happy one, the form rings false, as if announcing a misfortune: you would rather say 결국 … -았/었다 or -게 되었다.
오늘 고속도로에서 사고가 나는 바람에 비행기를 놓치고 말았어요.
→ Because of an accident on the motorway today, I ended up missing my flight.
야식을 끊으려고 했는데 오늘도 못 참고 치킨을 시키고 말았어.
→ I meant to stop late-night snacks, but today again I couldn't resist and ended up ordering fried chicken.
요즘 회사에서 받은 스트레스를 쇼핑으로 풀다가 월급을 다 써 버리고 말았어요.
→ Relieving my work stress with shopping lately, I ended up spending my whole salary.
민지는 남자친구랑 하루가 멀다고 다투더니 결국은 헤어지고 말았다.
→ Minji was arguing with her boyfriend almost every day, and they ended up breaking up.
"After all that…", with -더니 결국
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Determination: -고 말겠다, -고 말 거야
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Exercises
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