Korean for Dummies (4 page)

Taking the First “No, Thank You” Literally................................................287

Picking Up Your Rice Bowl and Using Your Spoon to Eat .......................287

Chapter 19: Ten Favorite Korean Expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .289

ppalli ..............................................................................................................289

gwaenchanayo ..............................................................................................289

jeongmal, jinjja, cham..................................................................................290

a, geuraeyo....................................................................................................290

jamkkanmanyo .............................................................................................291

mwo haeyo....................................................................................................291

mollayo ..........................................................................................................291

joayo ..............................................................................................................291

jal doetneyo ..................................................................................................292

jeoreon, ireon................................................................................................292

Chapter 20: Ten Phrases That Make You Sound Korean . . . . . . . . . .293

akkapda .........................................................................................................293

eojjeol su eopgun .........................................................................................294

geureonde itjanayo ......................................................................................294

jom .................................................................................................................295

jjajeungnanda ...............................................................................................295

jukgetda .........................................................................................................296

kkeunnaejunda .............................................................................................297

neukkihada....................................................................................................297

siwonhada .....................................................................................................298

sugohaeyo .....................................................................................................299

Part V: Appendixes ....................................................301

Appendix A: Korean Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .303

Appendix B: Mini-Dictionary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .307

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Appendix C: Answer Key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .331

Appendix D: On the CD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .337

Tracks on the CD ..........................................................................................337

System Requirements ..................................................................................340

Customer Care..............................................................................................340

Index........................................................................341

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Introduction

You probably know more about Korean than you think you do. Maybe you

own a Korean-made cellphone or car. You may have had some Korean

food or watched a Korean film, and maybe you’ve even heard something

interesting about Korea in the news. But if you want to learn how to speak Korean, you’re probably interested in speaking and interacting with Korean people. Perhaps you’re doing business with a company in Korea, or perhaps you’re planning to travel to Korea. Whatever the case,
Korean For Dummies
will go a long way toward helping you get a handle on the Korean language.

Some people say that speakers of different languages perceive things differently. If that’s truly the case, perhaps learning a bit of Korean will help you see things the way a Korean does. Regardless of whether the language changes your perception, however, Koreans will perceive
you
differently when you try speaking some Korean. Speaking their language will certainly give them a good first impression! If you want to befriend people at school, on the job, or while traveling, show them that you’re not only interested in them, but also that you’re trying to understand and live by their culture.

Korean For Dummies
helps you take those first steps toward understanding some Korean and tells you about some Korean mannerisms. As with anything, the first few steps can be the hardest to take, but they’re worthwhile.

After you make some friends using the Korean that you pick up from this book, you’ll know that learning Korean is rewarding and fun!

About This Book

If you don’t like memorizing tables upon tables of grammatical rules and declensions, or if you love it but don’t have much time, this book is for you.

Each chapter is organized so that you can look up and say a little something in the many situations that you may encounter while shopping, traveling, eating, and so on.

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Learn a few words and sentences as you go along through this book, and surprise Koreans with a few well-placed phrases. Pick up this book when you need it, and flip through the sections that you find useful. Each section has a few phrases and cultural pointers that are meant to give Koreans a “Where did you learn that from?” sort of reaction. And if you’re interested, you can learn a few sentence structures that you can add to as you become more comfortable with the language. The chapters are structured so that you can take away the bits that you need when you need them, so get ready to learn by speaking a little bit at a time as opposed to memorizing a whole lot at once.

Conventions Used in This Book

I use a few conventions in this book to help your reading go smoothly:

Web addresses appear in monofont.

Korean terms are in
boldface
to make them stand out.

Korean words are spelled out phonetically, so that you see how to

pronounce them.

Definitions, which are shown in parentheses, follow the phonetically spelled Korean words the first time they appear in a section.

Throughout the book, I give a nonliteral translation of the dialogues and phrases and, when necessary, I add a literal translation to help you

better understand not only the phrase that you’re saying, but also how and when to use it.

Degrees of politeness are very important in Korean phrases. For important sentences, the formal polite, informal polite, intimate, and plain degrees of politeness are pointed out as necessary.

Verb and adjective conjugations are given in the following order:

dictionary stem and informal polite stem.

Anytime you’re learning a language, you want to reinforce the material that you’re learning by putting your lessons in the correct context. I use the following elements to help you do just that:

Talkin’ the Talk:
These dialogues include bits and pieces of material from each lesson. They put the material in a daily context and show you the situations in which they may happen. Each dialogue has a brief introduction to the scenario in which the conversation takes place and often 03_037188-intro.qxp 6/24/08 11:05 PM Page 3

includes cultural tidbits. Each dialogue has the Korean words spelled

out phonetically so that you can see their English pronunciations, so

reading through them should be a breeze. If they’re not so easy to read at first, look for dialogues that have a CD icon next to them — you can listen to those dialogues on the CD that comes with the book. In no time, you’ll get the hang of speaking Korean!

Words to Know:
On the blackboards in this section, important words are highlighted for you to have at your disposal. I include the informal polite form of the verbs. (Chapter 2 has more information on verb forms and their various endings.)
Fun & Games:
These sections include a few exercises to help jog your memory and reinforce what you learn in the chapter. The exercises help you gauge your performance, so make sure you give them a try.

Foolish Assumptions

Here are a few foolish assumptions that I made about you while writing this book:

You don’t know much Korean aside from a phrase or two that you

picked up from films or from your friends.

You’re not planning to take a proficiency test any time soon, nor are you trying to start translating literature or begin interpreting. All you want to do is learn a few bits of Korean here and there in order to communicate with some Koreans around you.

You don’t want to wake up in a cold sweat after memorizing tables upon tables of grammatical rules and conjugations.

You want to have fun while learning Korean.

How This Book Is Organized

This book is organized thematically into four parts and a set of appendixes.

Each part focuses on a particular theme, such as shopping, introductions, or eating out at a restaurant.

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Part I: Getting Started

This portion of the book introduces you to Korean pronunciation and gives you an overview of basic Korean grammar. If you can, make sure that you go through Part I carefully, because it will significantly help your understanding of what’s happening throughout the rest of the book.

Part II: Korean in Action

Here, you begin learning Korean — and Korean culture — for everyday life.

Meeting someone? Eating? Shopping? Look through this section if you want to look for information and expressions that you can use with your friends.

Part III: Korean on the Go

This part of the book gives you more task-specific expressions to use when you want to travel. If you need to exchange currency, book a hotel room, or ask for directions, go through this chapter.

Part IV: The Part of Tens

Even if you’re really strapped for time, you should go through Part IV. Here I include ten ways to learn Korean quickly, ten phrases to make you sound more Korean, ten expressions that Koreans like to use, and ten things you shouldn’t do in front of Koreans. These sections are short and easy to remember, so go through them when you can.

Part V: Appendixes

This part contains various references that you may want to turn to while flipping through the rest of the chapters. You can find verb tables that show the conjugations of regular and irregular verbs, and a mini-dictionary for Korean-to-English and English-to-Korean words. In addition, check the answers to the Fun & Games sections at the end of each chapter, and look for the list of tracks that appear on the audio CD.

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Icons Used in This Book

Throughout the book, I use icons in the margins and sidebars to help you find information quickly. Here are the icons to look for:

This icon highlights tips that make learning Korean easier.

This icon is used to point out information that bears repeating and

remembering.

Avoid saying or doing things that have this warning sign icon. It marks the faux pas that you may make while speaking or interacting with Koreans.

Throughout the text, these icons mark bits about Korean culture and travel.

The audio CD that accompanies this book gives you a chance to listen to native speakers of Korean. You may have a few Korean friends at your

disposal to pronounce various phrases, but when they’re not there, use the CD to learn Korean faster. This icon lets you know what’s on the CD.

Where to Go from Here

To get a sense of what’s going on behind the scenes in terms of grammar, read Chapter 2. Korean grammar is very different from English grammar. I don’t present all there is to know about Korean grammar, because that’s beyond the scope of this book. You can, however, find enough grammar info to figure out what’s going on and possibly figure out which words are playing what role when you listen to your Korean friends.

Chapter 2 aside, listening and speaking are the focus of this book. And although I try to provide you with as much information on specific topics as I can, the best way to learn is by trial and error. Learning a language involves learning how to interact with people, and no book or language course — however well designed — can trump actual conversation with someone. Go on and read a topic that strikes your fancy, listen to the audio CD, try using a Korean phrase here and there, but most importantly try speaking with a Korean speaker whenever you can. You’ll undoubtedly form friendships and fond memories along the way.

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