LEARN + KOREAN / 37 of 125 TOPIK I

Before That -기 전에

Before leaving the house, you check for your keys: 나가기 전에 열쇠를 확인해요. Add -기 전에 after a verb stem to say “before doing.” There is no vowel harmony to sort out; the phrase attaches the same way across verbs.

babeul meokgi jeone soneul ssiseoyo.

I wash my hands before eating.

Hint · 힌트

기 전에 is the simpler cousin of -(으)ㄴ 후에. No vowel-or-consonant split, no irregular shifts, because 기 converts the verb into a plain form first, before anything else attaches to it.

jagi jeone ireul dakkayo.

I brush my teeth before sleeping.

suyeongeul hagi jeone junbi undongeul haeyo.

I do warm-up exercises before swimming.

hakgyoe gagi jeone sukjereul haeyo.

I do homework before going to school.

gohyange doragagi jeone seonmureul sal geoyeyo.

I will buy gifts before returning to my hometown.

yeohaengeul gagi jeone yeogwoneul hwaginhaeyo.

I check my passport before a trip.

Hint · 힌트

Tense never touches the verb sitting right before 전에, even in a fully past-tense sentence. 밥을 먹기 전에 손을 씻었어요 (I washed my hands before eating) keeps 먹기 in its bare form; it’s never 먹었기 전에. Only the main clause carries tense.

Vocabulary

Korean	English
이 i	tooth
닦다 dakkda	to brush, to wipe
준비 운동 junbi undong	warm-up exercise
고향 gohyang	hometown
돌아가다 doragada	to return, to go back
확인하다 hwaginhada	to check, to confirm
출발하다 chulbalhada	to depart
도착하다 dochakhada	to arrive
샤워하다 syawohada	to shower
화장하다 hwajanghada	to put on makeup
미리 miri	in advance, beforehand
서두르다 seodureuda	to hurry
깜빡하다 kkamppakhada	to forget for a moment, to slip one's mind
늦잠(을) 자다 neutjam(eul) jada	to sleep in, to oversleep
세수하다 sesuhada	to wash one's face
머리를 감다 meorireul gamda	to wash one's hair
정신없다 jeongsineopda	to be frantic, disorganized
여유롭다 yeoyuropda	to be leisurely, relaxed
습관적으로 seupgwanjeogeuro	habitually
알람을 맞추다 allameul matchuda	to set an alarm

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