State and Change

🌟 Expressing Yourself in Korean: State & Change

The Magic of Describing Your World

Imagine you’re a storyteller. You need words to say:

• “I think it might rain…” 🌧️
• “I’m planning to eat pizza!” 🍕
• “The sky became dark…” 🌑

In Korean, we have three magical tools for this. Let’s discover them together!

🔮 Tool #1: “것 같다” (It Seems / I Think)

The Story

You’re looking at clouds. You’re not 100% sure, but you think it will rain. In Korean, we use 것 같다 (geot gatda) to say “it seems like” or “I think.”

Think of it like a magic crystal ball 🔮 - you’re making a guess, not stating a fact!

How It Works

것 = thing 같다 = to be like/similar Together = “It seems like” or “I think”

Building Blocks

Real Examples

Present Guessing:

비가 오는 것 같아요. It seems like it’s raining.

Past Guessing:

그 사람이 떠난 것 같아요. I think that person left.

Future Guessing:

내일 눈이 올 것 같아요. I think it will snow tomorrow.

With Adjectives

For adjectives, it’s simpler:

Examples:

이 음식이 맛있는 것 같아요. This food seems delicious.

어제 날씨가 추웠던 것 같아요. The weather yesterday seemed cold.

💡 Pro Tip

Koreans use 것 같다 ALL the time! It makes you sound polite and humble instead of too direct.

🎯 Tool #2: “-(으)려고 하다” (Intending To / Planning To)

The Story

You’re standing in front of a pizza shop. You’re about to go in. You intend to buy pizza! In Korean, we use -(으)려고 하다 to express your plans and intentions.

Think of it like an arrow 🏹 pointing to your goal - you’re aiming to do something!

How It Works

-려고 = in order to 하다 = to do Together = “I’m planning to” or “I intend to”

Building Blocks

Real Examples

Simple Plans:

한국어를 배우려고 해요. I’m planning to learn Korean.

영화를 보려고 해요. I intend to watch a movie.

Right Now Intentions:

지금 나가려고 해요. I’m about to go out now.

Question Form:

뭐 하려고 해요? What are you planning to do?

Past Intention (Didn’t Happen)

When you planned to do something but didn’t:

어제 공부하려고 했어요. I was planning to study yesterday (but didn’t).

전화하려고 했는데 시간이 없었어요. I was going to call, but I didn’t have time.

💡 Key Difference

🦋 Tool #3: “-아/어지다” (To Become / To Get)

The Story

A caterpillar becomes a butterfly. 🐛➡️🦋 The sky gets darker. You become happier. In Korean, we use -아/어지다 to show something changes state.

Think of it like a transformation spell ✨ - something is changing!

How It Works

Take an adjective, add -아/어지다, and it becomes a verb meaning “to become [adjective].”

Building Blocks

Real Examples

Weather Changes:

날씨가 추워졌어요. The weather became cold.

하늘이 어두워졌어요. The sky got dark.

Emotional Changes:

기분이 좋아졌어요. I became happy. / My mood improved.

슬퍼졌어요. I became sad.

Physical Changes:

건강해졌어요. I became healthy.

예뻐졌어요. You became prettier.

Common Transformations

With Verbs: Passive Meaning

When used with action verbs, it creates a passive meaning:

문이 열렸어요. → 문이 열어졌어요 ❌ 문이 열리다 (open) → 문이 열렸어요 ✅ The door opened. (by itself)

Note: For most verbs, Korean has separate passive forms. But some use -지다:

만들다 → 만들어지다 to make → to be made

팔다 → 팔리다 to sell → to be sold

🎭 Putting It All Together

Let’s see our three tools in action in one conversation:

A: 오늘 비가 올 것 같아요.
   (It seems like it will rain today.)

B: 그래요? 저는 운동하려고 했는데...
   (Really? I was planning to exercise...)

A: 날씨가 추워졌어요. 집에 있는 게 좋아요.
   (The weather became cold. It's better to stay home.)

B: 네, 그럴 것 같아요.
   (Yeah, it seems that way.)

📊 Quick Comparison

graph TD
    A["Expressing State & Change"] --> B["것 같다"]
    A --> C["려고 하다"]
    A --> D["아/어지다"]

    B --> B1["Guessing"]
    B --> B2["Opinions"]
    B --> B3["Soft Statements"]

    C --> C1["Plans"]
    C --> C2["Intentions"]
    C --> C3["About to do"]

    D --> D1["Become"]
    D --> D2["Change state"]
    D --> D3["Transform"]

🌈 Remember This!

🚀 You Did It!

You now have three powerful tools to express yourself in Korean:

1. 것 같다 - Share your guesses and opinions softly
2. 려고 하다 - Tell people about your plans
3. 아/어지다 - Describe how things change

Practice these, and you’ll sound like a natural Korean speaker in no time! 화이팅! 💪