Topic particle
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Noun or Pronoun + 은/는
은 - if a word ends in a consonant, 는 - if ends in a vowel
In the examples from previous lessons, sometimes -이/-가 and sometimes -은/-는 were attached to nouns. It's important not to confuse them with each other, as these particles are not interchangeable and not synonyms. They have completely different functions in a sentence.
Particles -은 / -는, which are also called the topic particles in many Korean textbooks, are helping particles that can serve multiple functions in a sentence. In this lesson, we'll only talk about one function since it's too early to talk about other functions. I'll explain them in this lesson.
1. Use -은 / -는 to set or highlight the main topic.
It can be translated as "as for", "with regard to".
See examples,
(click on translation and grammar buttons)
한국은 날씨가 덥습니다.
(As for Korea.)
Korean
한국
날씨
덥다
English
South Korea
weather
hot
The weather in Korea is hot.
한국은 날씨가 덥습니다.
The main topic of the conversation is "Korea" (한국), and the subject of the sentence is the "weather" (날씨)
(not the subject of the conversation, but the subject of the sentence. Subject is one of the roles that parts of speech can have within a sentence.)
저는 취미가 다양합니다.
(As for Me. The main topic is Me.)
Korean
저
취미
다양하다
English
I
hobby
various, diverse
I have lots of hobbies.
저는 취미가 다양하+ㅂ니다.
"I" (저) is the main topic of conversation, "hobby" (취미) is the subject within the sentence.
오늘은 비가 많이 옵니다.
(As for Today.)
Korean
오늘
비
많이
오다
English
today
rain
a lot, much
to come
It's raining a lot today.
오늘은 비가 많이 오+ㅂ니다.
저는 남동생이 있습니다.
(As for Me.)
Korean
저
남동생
있다
English
I
younger brother
to have
I have a younger brother.
저는 남동생이 있습니다.
Often, the particles -은 / -는 are attached to the subject of a sentence. In this case, -이 / -가 markers that sentence subject typically has, disappear.
See examples,
(click on translation and grammar buttons)
이것은 책입니다.
(not 이것이는)
Korean
이것
책
English
this
book
This is a book.
이것은 책입니다.
"This" (이것) is both, the main topic of the conversation and subject of the sentence.
그는 학생입니다.
(not 그가는)
Korean
그
학생
English
he
student
He is a student.
그는 학생입니다.
"He" (그) is both, the main topic of the conversation and subject of the sentence.
Quick reference (click to open)
Vowels: a, e, i, o, u
Consonants: b, c, d, f, g, h, j
Syllable: Bra-zil (2 syllables), Ar-gen-ti-na (4), In-di-a (3), Viet-nam (2), thin-king (2), beau-ti-ful (3), good (1)
Batchim: is a final consonant in a syllable. → Bra-zil (batchim: 'l'), Ar-gen-ti-na (batchims: 'r' and 'n'), In-di-a ('n'), Viet-nam ('t', 'm')
Romanization: is a conversion of text (not pronunciation ! ) from different writing system (Korean, Arabic, Russian, etc.) to the Roman (Latin) alphabet.
IPA: is an alphabetic system of phonetic (pronunciation) notation.
Noun: road, user, sister, table, sky
Pronoun: I, my, we, you, they, her
Verb: to go, to study, to think, to feel
Adjective: cold, kind, hungry, curious, expensive
Adverb: quickly, nicely, never, exactly, urgently
Preposition: from, to, on, in, with, till
Conjuction: and, because, if, but, while
Declarative sentence: I learn Korean.
Interrogative sentence: Do you learn Korean?
Imperative sentence: You must learn Korean!
Exclamative sentence: Wow, you learn Korean!
Verb / Adj. stem in Korean: part of a verb or adj. which is left after removing the last syllable -다 ( e.g. 가다 → 가, 예쁘다 → 예쁘, 듣다 → 듣 ).