Korean Lessons ᚛ Level 6 - Upper-Intermediate Korean #1 (Lessons 151 to 180) ᚛ Lesson 177 - To pretend in Korean [-(으)ㄴ/는 척하다] [체하다]

To pretend in Korean [-(으)ㄴ/는 척하다] [체하다]

In this course: 척 / 척하다 / 체 / 체하다 / ㄴ 척 / 는 척 / 은 척 / ㄴ 체 / 는 체 / 은 체

In this lesson, we are going to study two ways of expressing the fact of pretending, of faking, of simulating an action. For this, we are going to need two words that represent a pretense: 척 and 체, which are generally accompanied by the verb 하다:

  • 척을 하다 / 척하다
  • 체를 하다 / 체하다

To pretend with -(으)ㄴ/는 척하다

In Korean, the fact of pretending or faking an action that does not match reality can be expressed with the help of the verb 척하다 in the following manner:
[Present or past adjectival form] 척하다

Reminder: the adjectival form

형은 나를 학교에서 만날 때마다 모르는 척했다.
→ My older brother pretended not to know me every time he ran into me at school.

그 사실에 대해서 미리 알고 있었지만 처음 들은 것처럼 놀라는 척했다.
→ I already knew about it, but I pretended to be surprised, as if I were hearing it for the first time.

그 남자는 만날 때마다 새로 산 물건이나 새 차를 보여 주며 그렇게 잘난 척을 했어요.
→ Every time I met that man, he acted so full of himself, showing off the things he had just bought or his new car.

지아는 자신이 순진한 척했지만 아무도 그녀를 순진하다고 생각하지 않았다.
→ Jia pretended to be innocent, but nobody thought she was.

회식 도중에 은정이는 화장실로 가는 척하면서 술자리를 조용히 빠져나왔어요.
→ In the middle of the company dinner, Eunjung pretended to go to the restroom and quietly slipped out of the drinking party.

그의 메시지를 못 본 척할 거야?
→ Are you going to pretend you didn’t see his message?

To pretend with 체하다

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