Comprehensive Korean Study Guide: Dates, Past Activities, and Adjectives

Fundamental Questions and Calendar Inquiries

• Key Questions about Dates:

  • $오늘이 몇 월 며칠이에요?$ (What month and day is today?)
  • $오늘이 며칠이에요?$ (What day is today?)
  • $여러분은 언제 한국어를 배워요?$ (When do you all learn Korean?)

• Specific Calendar Context (Example from March 2024):

  • The transcript references a March calendar where weeks are categorized as follows:
    • $지난주$ (Last week): The week prior to the current one (e.g., Dates 1–4).
    • $이번 주$ (This week): The current week (e.g., Dates 11–17).
    • $다음 주$ (Next week): The upcoming week (e.g., Dates 18–25).
    • Specific Daily Indicators (relative to the 8th):
      • $어제$ (Yesterday): The 7th.
      • $오늘$ (Today): The 8th.
      • $내일$ (Tomorrow): The 9th.

Vocabulary: Dates and Days of the Week

• Common Time Units:

  • $년$ (Year): Read using Sino-Korean numbers.
    • $1995\text{년}$: 천구백구십오 년
    • $2023\text{년}$: 이천이십삼 년
    • $2024\text{년}$: 이천이십사 년
    • $2040\text{년}$: 이천사십 년
  • $월$ (Month): Read using Sino-Korean numbers (1-12).
    • $1\text{월}$ (January): 일월
    • $2\text{월}$ (February): 이월
    • $3\text{월}$ (March): 삼월
    • $4\text{월}$ (April): 사월
    • $5\text{월}$ (May): 오월
    • $6\text{월}$ (June): [유월] - Note: the '$ㅂ$' in '$십$' is dropped in speech.
    • $7\text{월}$ (July): 칠월
    • $8\text{월}$ (August): 팔월
    • $9\text{월}$ (September): 구월
    • $10\text{월}$ (October): [시월] - Note: the '$ㅂ$' in '$십$' is dropped in speech.
    • $11\text{월}$ (November): 십일월
    • $12\text{월}$ (December): 십이월
  • $일$ (Day): Read using Sino-Korean numbers (1-31).
    • $1\text{일}$ (1st): 일 일
    • $4\text{일}$ (4th): 사 일
    • $10\text{일}$ (10th): 십 일
    • $11\text{일}$ (11th): 십일 일
    • $19\text{일}$ (19th): 십구 일
    • $20\text{일}$ (20th): 이십 일
    • $31\text{일}$ (31st): 삼십일 일

• Days of the Week ($요일$):

  • $월요일$: Monday
  • $화요일$: Tuesday
  • $수요일$: Wednesday
  • $목요일$: Thursday
  • $금요일$: Friday
  • $토요일$: Saturday
  • $일요일$: Sunday
  • $평일$: Weekdays
  • $주말$: Weekend

Grammar I: Identifying Dates ($N\text{월 } N \text{ 일이에요}$)

• Sentence Structure for Dates:

  • Question: $N\text{이/가 (몇 월) 며칠이에요?}$ (What month and day is [Noun]?)
  • Answer: $N\text{은/는 N월 N일이에요.}$ (Noun is [Month] [Day].)
  • Example: "가: $오늘이 며칠이에요?$ 나: 오늘은 } 3\text{월 } 12\text{ 일이에요.} (Today is March 12th.)"

• Sentence Structure for Days:

  • Question: $N\text{이/가 무슨 요일이에요?}$ (What day of the week is [Noun]?)
  • Answer: $N\text{은/는 N요일이에요.}$ (Noun is [Day of the week].)
  • Example: "내일은 금요일이에요." (Tomorrow is Friday.)

• Key Examples and Scenarios:

  • Today is June 14th ($6\text{월 } 14\text{일}$).
  • A party is on August 11th ($8\text{월 } 11\text{일}$), which is a Sunday.
  • Exam ($시험$) is July 19th ($7\text{월 } 19\text{일}$).
  • Birthday ($생일$) examples: April 26th ($4\text{월 } 26\text{일}$), June 1st ($6\text{월 } 1\text{일}$).

Grammar II: Particles of Time and Location ($N\text{에}$ and $N\text{에서}$)

• Time Particle ($N\text{에}$):

  • Indicates the time when an action occurs.
  • Formula: $N(\text{Time}) + \text{에}$
  • Usage Examples:
    • $주말에$: During the weekend.
    • $이번 주에$: During this week.
    • $월요일에 한국어를 배워요.$ (Learn Korean on Monday.)
    • 2\text{월 } 14\text{일에 가족이 한국에 와요. (Family comes to Korea on February 14th.)
    • $금요일에 홍대에서 맥주를 마셔요.$ (Drink beer at Hongdae on Friday.)

• Location Particle ($N\text{에서}$):

  • Indicates the location where an action takes place.
  • Activity Examples:
    • $공원에서 산책을 해요.$ (Take a walk in the park.)
    • $도서관에서 책을 읽어요.$ (Read a book in the library.)
    • $학생 식당에서 밥을 먹어요.$ (Eat a meal at the student cafeteria.)
    • $영화관에서 영화를 봐요.$ (Watch a movie at the cinema.)
    • $홍대에서 친구를 만나요.$ (Meet a friend at Hongdae.)
    • $카페에서 공부를 해요.$ (Study at a cafe.)

Dialogue Analysis: Plans and Activities

• Conversation between Karin and Mark (Weekly Plans):

  • Karin: "Mark, what are you doing this week?" ($마크 씨, 이번 주에 뭐 해요?$)
  • Mark: "I am going to the library on Tuesday. I will do homework there."
  • Karin: "Tomorrow I will study alone at home. And on Thursday, I will meet a friend at Myeongdong ($명동$)."

• Chen and Karin (Weekend Performance):

  • Karin learns dancing and singing at a dance academy ($댄스 학원$) every Tuesday and Thursday.
  • Karin is performing near Hongdae this weekend (Saturday evening and Sunday lunch).
  • Chen cannot go because he has an exam next Monday ($다음 주 월요일$) and needs to study over the weekend.

Pronunciation: Character '$ㅎ$' Deletion ($ㅎ \text{ 탈락}$)

• Rule: When a vowel follows a final consonant '$ㅎ$', the '$ㅎ$' is eliminated and not pronounced.
• Examples:
  • $좋 + 아 \rightarrow [조아]$
  • $좋아해요 \rightarrow [조아해요]$
  • $싫어해요 \rightarrow [시러해요]$
  • $많이 \rightarrow [마니]$
  • $괜찮아요 \rightarrow [괜차나요]$
  • $넣어요 \rightarrow [너어요]$
  • $잃어버렸어요 \rightarrow [이러버려써요]$
  • $않아요 \rightarrow [아나요]$

Adjectives and Descriptive Vocabulary

• Adjectives Set I:

  • $재미있다$ (Interesting/Fun) vs. $재미없다$ (Uninteresting/Boring)
  • $맛있다$ (Delicious) vs. $맛없다$ (Not delicious)
  • $싸다$ (Cheap) vs. $비싸다$ (Expensive)
  • $많다$ (Many/Much) vs. $적다$ (Few/Little)
  • $좋다$ (Good) vs. $작다$ (Small)

• Adjectives Set II:

  • $깨끗하다$ (Clean)
  • $조용하다$ (Quiet)
  • $똑똑하다$ (Smart)
  • $친절하다$ (Kind)
  • $피곤하다$ (Tired)
  • $멋있다$ (Cool/Stylish)

• Menu Price Examples:

  • Americano: $2,500\text{ won}$
  • Cafe Latte: $3,000\text{ won}$
  • Cafe Mocha: $4,000\text{ won}$
  • Caramel Macchiato: $4,500\text{ won}$

Grammar III: '$으$' Irregular and Past Tense

• '$으$' Deletion Rule ($\text{'으' 탈락}$):

  • When a verb/adjective stem ending in '$ㅡ$' meets ending '$아/어$', the '$ㅡ$' is dropped.
  • $아프다 + 아요 \rightarrow 아파요$ (Sick/Hurts)
  • $예쁘다 + 어요 \rightarrow 예뻐요$ (Pretty)
  • $쓰다 + 어요 \rightarrow 써요$ (Write/Bitter)
  • $바쁘다 + 아요 \rightarrow 바빠요$ (Busy)
  • $배가 고프다 \rightarrow 배가 고파요$ (Hungry)
  • $나쁘다 \rightarrow 나빠요$ (Bad)
  • $크다 \rightarrow 커요$ (Big)
  • $끄다 \rightarrow 꺼요$ (Turn off)

• Past Tense ($A/V -았/었어요$):

  • $ㅏ, ㅗ \rightarrow -았어요$ (e.g., $닫다 \rightarrow 닫았어요$, $좋다 \rightarrow 좋았어요$, $보다 \rightarrow 봤어요$, $싸다 \rightarrow 쌌어요$).
  • $ㅓ, ㅜ, ㅣ, \text{etc.} \rightarrow -었어요$ (e.g., $먹다 \rightarrow 먹었어요$, $맛있다 \rightarrow 맛있었어요$, $마시다 \rightarrow 마셨어요$, $크다 \rightarrow 컸어요$).
  • $하다 \rightarrow 했어요$ (e.g., $일하다 \rightarrow 일했어요$, $공부하다 \rightarrow 공부했어요$).

• Past Tense with Nouns ($N\text{이었어요 / N였어요}$):

  • Consonant ending: $N + \text{이었어요}$ (e.g., $목요일이었어요$).
  • Vowel ending: $N + \text{였어요}$ (e.g., $어제였어요$).
  • Example: Olga was an office worker ($회사원$) in her hometown.

Advanced Expressions and Time Relatives

• Relative Time Expressions:

  • Years: $작년$ (Last year) ightarrow $올해$ (This year) ightarrow $내전$ (Next year).
  • Months: $지난달$ (Last month) ightarrow $이번 달$ (This month) ightarrow $다음 달$ (Next month).
  • Days: $그저께$ (Day before yesterday) ightarrow $어제$ (Yesterday) ightarrow $오늘$ (Today) ightarrow $내일$ (Tomorrow) ightarrow $모레$ (Day after tomorrow).

• Specifiers and Social Grammar:

  • $무슨 N$ (What kind of [Noun]):
    • Example: "What kind of coffee do you like?" ($무슨 커피를 좋아해요?$)
    • Answer: "I like Cafe Latte."
  • $N\text{과/와 (같이)}$ (With [Noun]):
    • Vowel ending + $와$ (e.g., $친구와 같이$).
    • Consonant ending + $과$ (e.g., $선생님과 같이, 첸과 같이$).
    • Example: Karin watched a movie at the cinema with a friend.

Reading and Culture: Chen's Birthday and Culture Day

• Chen’s Birthday Party Summary:

  • Location: Chen's house ($첸의 집$).
  • Participants: Many friends attended.
  • Gifts:
    • Emma: Made a cake ($케이크$); it was pretty.
    • Mark: Bought a hat ($모자$); it was cool/stylish.
    • Narrator: Gave clothes and a birthday card ($옷과 생일 카드$).
  • Food: They ate Chinese food ($중국 음식$) and Korean food ($한국 음식$).

• Cultural Note: Culture Day ($\text{문화가 있는 날}$):

  • Date: Designated as the last Wednesday of every month.
  • Benefit: Provides discounts or free admission to various cultural facilities.
  • Locations: Cinemas ($영화관$), Royal Palaces in Seoul ($경복궁, 덕수궁, 창덕궁, 창경궁$), art galleries ($미술관$), and museums ($박물관$).

Writing and Speaking Activities

• Weekend Recap Practice:

  • Discuss where you went, who you were with, what you did, and how it was.
  • Model: "Chen went to Yeonnam-dong ($연남동$) with Lena last weekend. They had lunch (Chinese food). The restaurant was large and clean, but the food was expensive."

• Hometown Activities Writing Prompt:

  • Reflect on frequently performed activities before coming to Korea (e.g., taking walks, studying Korean, watching movies, riding bicycles, drinking beer, playing games, meeting friends).
  • Structure: "I came to Korea on [Date]. In my hometown, I frequently [Activity] with [Person] on [Time/Day]."