LEARN + KOREAN / 115 of 125 TOPIK II

I Thought It Was -는 줄 알다

You thought someone was quiet until you got to know them. Looking back, you remember the café where you used to meet. -줄 알다 reports what you believed; -던 attaches a remembered activity or state to a noun.

What You Believed to Be True

Use -는 줄 알다 for a present action, -(으)ㄴ 줄 알다 for a completed action or present adjective, -(으)ㄹ 줄 알다 for an expected event, and -인 줄 알다 for a noun. In the past, 알았어요 often contrasts an earlier belief with what you now know.

jisuga joyonghan saramin jul arasseoyo.

I thought Jisu was a quiet person.

hoeuiga beolsseo kkeunnan jul arasseoyo.

I thought the meeting had already ended.

Attach a Remembered Experience to a Noun

Stem + -던 looks back at an ongoing, repeated, or unfinished action, or a past state: 자주 가던 카페, 읽던 책, 조용하던 거리. The recollection is central; -던 by itself does not simply mean every action happened once and finished.

yeogineun uriga jaju mannadeon kapeyeyo.

This is the café where we used to meet often.

ikdeon chaegeul gabange neoeosseoyo.

I put the book I had been reading into my bag.

Hint · 힌트

Compare 읽은 책, “a book I read,” with 읽던 책, “the book I was reading.” Also distinguish belief from skill: 수영할 줄 알아요 can mean know how to swim; this page focuses on what someone takes to be true.

Vocabulary

Korean	English
조용하다 joyonghada	to be quiet
회의 hoeui	meeting
벌써 beolsseo	already
자주 jaju	often
거리 geori	street
넣다 neota	to put in
첫인상 cheosinsang	first impression
외향적이다 oehyangjeogida	to be extroverted
내성적이다 naeseongjeogida	to be introverted
사교적이다 sagyojeogida	to be sociable
낯을 가리다 nacheul garida	to be shy with strangers
고집이 세다 gojibi seda	to be stubborn
자신감이 넘치다 jasingami neomchida	to be full of confidence
차갑다 chagapda	to be cold or distant
부드럽다 budeureopda	to be gentle
명랑하다 myeongnanghada	to be cheerful
상냥하다 sangnyanghada	to be kind and friendly
추억 chueok	recollection
기억하다 gieokhada	to remember
어렸을 때 eoryeosseul ttae	when young

YOUR PROGRESS

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