Learning a New Word | Learn Korean in English

Sentence explanations

1. 이 단어는 무슨 뜻이에요?

   What does this word mean?

   이

   this

   단어

   word

   무슨

   what kind of; which

   뜻

   meaning

   이에요

   is

   More detail

   이 means “this” and is a demonstrative placed before a noun. Here it identifies 단어 as “this word.” Demonstratives such as 이, 그, and 저 differ by the speaker’s demonstrative choice and context; the form 이 itself does not show the noun’s number or gender. 단어 is the noun “word.” It can be used in reusable phrases such as 새 단어 (“a new word”) and 단어를 외워요 (“I memorize words”). In this sentence, 이 단어 is the noun phrase “this word.” 은 marks 이 단어 as the topic. After a consonant-final noun, the topic marker is 은; after a vowel-final noun, it is 는. For example, 책은 means “as for the book,” while 학교는 means “as for the school.” 무슨 is an interrogative determiner meaning “what” or “what kind of,” and it comes before a noun. In 무슨 뜻, it asks which meaning or what meaning is involved. This is different from 뭐, which commonly functions as an independent “what”: 뭐예요? means “What is it?” 뜻 is the noun “meaning” or “sense.” The useful pattern 무슨 뜻 means “what meaning,” and 무슨 뜻이에요? is a natural way to ask what a word, expression, or sentence means. 이에요 is the polite present form of the copula, connecting a noun to an identification or definition, here making 무슨 뜻이에요? literally a polite question of the form “What meaning is it?” The form 이에요 follows a consonant-final noun such as 뜻; 예요 follows a vowel-final noun. For example, 학생이에요 means “(someone) is a student,” while 의사예요 means “(someone) is a doctor.” Together, 이 단어는 sets “this word” as the topic, and 무슨 뜻이에요? asks what meaning it has. Thus the whole utterance means “What does this word mean?”

2. 작은 방이라는 뜻이에요.

   It means a small room.

   작은

   small

   방

   room

   이라는 뜻이에요

   means

   More detail

   작은 means “small” here and comes from the Korean descriptive verb 작다 (“to be small”). 작은 is the form used before a noun, so it directly modifies 방. Example: 작은 집 means “a small house.” 방 is the noun “room.” In 작은 방, the adjective comes before the noun, producing “small room.” Example: 방이 커요. means “The room is large.” 이라는 뜻이에요 is a reusable noun-based pattern meaning “means …” or “has the meaning …” in a polite style. 이라는 follows a noun ending in a consonant, as 방 does; after a noun ending in a vowel, 라는 is used instead. 뜻 means “meaning,” and 이에요 is the polite form of the copula after a consonant-ending noun. Example: 학생이라는 뜻이에요. means “It means ‘student.’” Together, 작은 방 is “a small room,” and 작은 방이라는 뜻이에요 says that the meaning is “a small room.” Thus the whole utterance means “It means a small room.”`

3. 천천히 발음해 줄 수 있어요?

   Can you pronounce it slowly?

   천천히

   slowly

   발음해

   pronounce

   줄 수 있어요

   can do it for me?

   More detail

   천천히 means “slowly” here and modifies the pronunciation action. It is an adverb, so it can be placed before another verb to describe how the action is done. Example: 천천히 말해 주세요. — “Please speak slowly.” 발음해 is the 해 form of 발음하다, “to pronounce.” In this sentence it connects to the following helping construction rather than ending the request by itself. 발음하다 is the useful dictionary form; 말하다 means “to speak/say,” so it is broader and does not specifically express pronouncing something. 줄 수 있어요 expresses whether someone can do an action as a favor for the speaker. 주다 means “to give,” but after an action stem, -아/어 주다 means “do the action for someone.” 수 있다 expresses ability or possibility, and 있어요 is the polite present form of 있다 in this construction. Thus, -아/어 줄 수 있어요? is a reusable polite pattern meaning “Can you do … for me?” Example: 도와줄 수 있어요? — “Can you help me?” Together, 천천히 specifies the manner, 발음해 supplies the action “pronounce,” and 줄 수 있어요? asks whether the listener can perform that action for the speaker. The object of “pronounce” is understood from context and is not stated as a separate Korean word here. The complete meaning is: “Can you pronounce it slowly?”

4. 제가 여러 부분으로 나눠서 말할게요.

   I'll break it into parts.

   제가

   I (subject)

   여러

   several; multiple

   부분

   part; section

   나눠서

   by dividing; after splitting

   말할게요

   I’ll say; I’ll explain

   More detail

   제가 combines 저 (“I,” a humble first-person pronoun) with the subject marker -가. It presents the speaker as the person who will perform the action. The form 저 is used before a subject marker here; in other roles, related forms include 저를 (“me,” object) and 저의 (“my”). 여러 means “several” or “multiple” and comes before the noun it describes. It indicates more than one without stating an exact number, as in 여러 질문 (“several questions”). 부분 means “part” or “section.” 여러 부분 therefore means “several parts.” The noun can also be used in combinations such as 한 부분 (“one part”) or 부분별로 (“by section,” “section by section”). 나눠서 comes from the verb 나누다, “to divide” or “to split.” It is the contracted form of 나누어서: 나누다 + -어/아서. This connective links dividing with the following action, often with a meaning like “by dividing” or “after dividing.” A reusable pattern is [verb stem]+-아/어서 [next action], which can connect actions or show how one action is carried out. 말할게요 comes from 말하다, “to say” or “to speak,” with -ㄹ게요. After a vowel-final verb stem such as 말하-, this ending gives the speaker’s commitment or intention, directed toward the listener: “I’ll say it,” “I’ll explain,” or “I’ll do it.” It is different from a neutral prediction about the future; it commonly presents what the speaker is now undertaking. For example, 제가 다시 설명할게요. means “I’ll explain it again.” Together, 제가 여러 부분으로 나눠서 means “I’ll divide it into several parts,” with -으로 marking the resulting form or arrangement. 말할게요 adds the speaker’s commitment to explain or say it. The complete utterance therefore means “I’ll break it into parts,” matching the fixed translation. It is a useful way to announce a clear explanation or presentation structure.

5. 예를 들어 줄 수 있어요?

   Can you give me an example?

   예를 들어

   for example

   줄

   give

   수 있어요?

   can you?

   More detail

   예를 들어 means “for example” here. It is also a reusable expression for introducing an illustration: 예를 들어, ... means “For example, ...”. In this sentence, it combines with 주다 to frame the requested action as giving an example. 줄 is the form of 주다 used before 수 in the ability pattern -을/ㄹ 수 있다. The verb 주다 means “to give”; before 수, its stem takes -ㄹ, producing 줄. This form is not the noun “a line.” 수 있어요? completes the ability question. 수 expresses a possible way or ability, and 있어요 is the polite present form of 있다, “to exist/be available.” Together, -을/ㄹ 수 있어요? asks whether someone can do something. The subject is omitted in Korean; the fixed translation identifies it as “you” here. A reusable example is 도와줄 수 있어요? — “Can you help?” Putting the chunks together, 예를 들어 줄 수 있어요? asks politely whether the listener can give an example. The wording is suitable for a polite request.

6. 이 방은 깨끗하고 밝아요.

   This room is clean and bright.

   이

   this

   방

   room

   깨끗하고

   clean and

   밝아요

   is bright

   More detail

   이 means “this” and is a demonstrative placed before a noun: 이 방 = “this room.” Its form does not show the noun’s number or grammatical gender. 방 means “room.” It is a noun and can be used in other combinations such as 큰 방 (“a big room”) or 방이 넓어요 (“the room is spacious”). 깨끗하고 means “clean and.” The base form is 깨끗하다 (“to be clean”). The ending -고 connects this descriptive predicate to the next one, so 깨끗하고 밝아요 presents “clean” and “bright” as two descriptions of the same room. In this sentence, 깨끗하고 is not the final polite form; the final predicate supplies the sentence’s polite ending. 밝아요 means “is bright.” Its base form is 밝다 (“to be bright”), and 밝아요 is its present polite form. Korean descriptive predicates can function as the predicate of a sentence without a separate word meaning “is.” The form 밝아요 is therefore the polite predicate here, not a verb meaning “make bright.” Together, 이 방 identifies the subject, and 깨끗하고 밝아요 gives it two coordinated descriptions. The complete meaning is “This room is clean and bright.”

7. 그 단어를 사용해서 연습하고 싶어요.

   I want to practice using it.

   그

   that

   단어

   word

   사용해서

   using

   연습하고 싶어요

   want to practice

   More detail

   그 appears directly before 단어, so it is a demonstrative determiner meaning “that” and specifies the noun that follows. In this sentence, 그 단어 corresponds to “it” in the fixed translation: “that word.” The form 그 itself does not show number or gender. 단어 means “word.” It is a noun and can be reused with demonstratives or other modifiers: 이 단어 means “this word,” while 그 단어 means “that word.” 사용해서 comes from the verb 사용하다, “to use.” The ending -해서 connects this action to the main action and commonly means “using” or “by using” in this pattern. Thus, 그 단어를 사용해서 means “using that word.” 그 단어를 marks “that word” as the object of 사용하다; 를 is the object-marking particle after a noun ending in a vowel. 연습하고 싶어요 expresses a present desire to practice. 연습하다 means “to practice”; its stem combines with -고 싶다 to form the pattern 동사-고 싶다, “want to do [the verb].” Here, 연습하고 is the verb part and 싶어요 is the polite present form of 싶다. For example, 한국어를 배우고 싶어요 means “I want to learn Korean.” The subject “I” is understood from the fixed translation and is not stated in the Korean sentence. Together, 그 단어를 사용해서 (“using that word”) and 연습하고 싶어요 (“I want to practice”) produce the whole meaning: “I want to practice using it.”

8. 짧은 문장에서 사용해 보세요.

   Try it in a short sentence.

   짧은

   short

   문장

   sentence

   사용해 보세요

   try using it

   More detail

   짧은 means “short” here and describes 문장. It is the attributive form of 짧다 (“to be short”): 짧다 becomes 짧은 before a noun. For example, 짧은 글 means “a short text.” 문장 means “sentence.” It is a noun, so 짧은 문장 is the noun phrase “a short sentence.” Korean places this kind of description before the noun it describes. 사용해 보세요 expresses a polite suggestion or request to try using something. 사용해 comes from 사용하다 (“to use”), and 보다 after another verb can mean “try doing that action”; here it appears as 보세요, a polite ending. The object is omitted in the Korean sentence and is understood from the context; the fixed translation represents it as “it.” For example, 읽어 보세요 means “Try reading it.” Together, 짧은 문장에서 means “in a short sentence”: 에서 marks the place or setting where the action occurs. 사용해 보세요 then says “try using it,” giving the complete meaning, “Try it in a short sentence.”