BEG 22 | ~(으)면 If
MEANING
- Used both for hypothetical, imaginative situations as well as likely situations (“if and when”)
- English “when” is translated as “~(으)면” when talking about general tendencies
CONJGUATION
| Dictionary stem | 다 |
| Consonant | 으면 |
| Vowel | 면 |
Used with both verb and adjective stems
Can be used with different tenses : ~았/었으면 (past), ~(으)ㄹ 거면(probability, future)
| 좋다 | to be good | 좋으면 if good | 오늘 날씨 좋으면 공원에 가자. If today’s weather is good, let’s go to the park. |
| 싫다 | to be undesirable | 싫으면 if not good | 커피 싫으면 차 줄까? If you don’t want coffee, shall I give you tea? |
| 있다 | to exist, there is… | 있으면 if there is | 시간 있으면 잠깐 만나자. If you have time, let’s meet up briefly. |
| 바쁘다 | to be busy | 바쁘면 if busy | 너 지금 바쁘면 내일 이야기하자. If you are busy now, let’s talk tomorrow. |
| 가다 | to go | if go(es) | 집에 가면 전화해(문자해)! When you go home, call me (text me)! |
| N(이)다 | to be N | C이면 V면 | 친구면 서로를 믿어야죠. If you are friends, you should trust each other. |
RREGULAR CONJUGATION
| 그렇다 to be so | 그러면 | 네 생각이 그러면 어쩔 수 없지…. If you think so, I have no other choices…. |
| 이렇다 to be this | 이러면 | 자꾸 이러면 나 그냥 갈 거야. If you keep being this way, I’ll just leave. |
| 듣다 to listen | 들으면 | 저는 슬플 때 음악을 들으면 기분이 좋아져요. When I am sad, if I listen to music, my mood becomes good. |
| 걷다 to walk | 걸으면 | 저는 우울할 때 걸으면 기분이 좋아져요. When I am down, if I walk, my mood becomes good. |
| ㅂ | 우면 | |
| 춥다 to be cold | 추우면 | 추우면 자켓 입어. If it’s cold, put on the jacket. |
| 맵다 to be spicy | 매우면 | 너무 매우면 물 마셔. If it’s too spicy, drink water. |
| ㄹ | 면 | |
| 벌다 to earn money | 벌면 | 돈 많이 벌면 세계여행하고 싶어요. If I make lots of money, I want to travel the world. |
| 멀다 to be far | 멀면 | 너무 멀면 택시 타자. If it’s too far, let’s take a taxi. |
USEFUL EXPRESSION
~(으)면 좋겠다: it would be nice if~ [wishes, hopes]
한국어를 잘하면 좋겠어요. It’d be nice if I were good at Korean.
피부가 좋으면 좋겠어요. It’d be nice if my skin was good.
코로나가 사라지면 좋겠어요. It’d be nice if COVID disappears.
한국에 여행 가면 좋겠어요. It’d be nice if I travel to Korea.
