You can already say what happened. This week is about saying it in one sentence instead of three.
That sounds like vocabulary — learn a list of connectives, pick the one that means because or but. It is not. Korean connectives carry grammatical constraints that English conjunctions do not have, and those constraints are what actually break learners.
1 · The three constraints
| Constraint | The question | Example of a connective that fails it |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Must the two clauses share a subject? | -느라고 requires the same subject |
| Tense | Can I put -었- before it? | -아/어서 refuses it |
| What follows | Can a command or suggestion come after? | -아/어서 refuses those too |
2 · Subject
Some connectives insist the two halves have the same subject. Others insist they are different. Most do not care.
| Connective | Subjects | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -느라고 | Must be the same | 숙제를 하느라고 늦었어요 |
| -(으)려고 | Must be the same | 사려고 돈을 모았어요 |
| -길래 | Must be different | 친구가 아프길래 병원에 갔어요 |
| -아/어서 | Free | 비가 와서 못 갔어요 |
| -(으)니까 | Free | 제가 할 테니까 쉬세요 |
3 · Tense
Korean usually marks tense once, at the end of the sentence. Most connectives therefore refuse -었- in front of them — the final verb already carried it.
| Connective | -었- before it | Correct form |
|---|---|---|
| -아/어서 | No | 밥을 먹어서 배불러요 |
| -(으)면서 | No | 밥을 먹으면서 봤어요 |
| -느라고 | No | 자느라고 못 받았어요 |
| -(으)니까 | Yes | 밥을 먹었으니까 괜찮아요 |
| -는데 | Yes | 어제 갔는데 문을 닫았어요 |
| -지만 | Yes | 갔지만 못 만났어요 |
4 · What is allowed after
| Connective | Command · suggestion after | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -(으)니까 | Yes | 늦었으니까 택시 타세요 |
| -는데 | Yes | 시간 없는데 그냥 갈까요? |
| -(으)면 | Yes | 끝나면 전화해 주세요 |
| -아/어서 | No | 늦어서 택시를 탔어요 |
| -(으)면서 | No | 먹으면서 이야기했어요 |
비가 오니까 우산 가져가세요
biga onikka usan gajyeogaseyoIt is raining, so take an umbrellaA command follows, so it must be -니까.비가 와서 우산을 가져갔어요
biga waseo usaneul gajyeogasseoyoIt was raining, so I took an umbrellaA statement follows, so -아서 is fine — and more natural here.Day 1 words
서두르다
seodureudato hurry모으다
moeudato gather, to save up데려가다
deryeogadato take someone along배부르다
baebureudato be full (after eating)그냥
geunyangjust, without further ado숙제
sukjehomeworkWhich connective lets a command follow: -아서 or -니까?
Why is 먹었어서 wrong?
Before the quiz
- I can name the three constraints.
- I know -느라고 needs the same subject and -길래 needs different ones.
- I know -아서 refuses -었- and refuses commands.
- I stop marking tense on every clause.