A Polite Message About Noise | Learn Korean in English

Sentence explanations

1. 이웃이 어젯밤에 꽤 시끄러웠어요.

   The neighbor was quite noisy last night.

   이웃

   neighbor

   어젯밤

   last night

   꽤

   quite

   시끄러웠어요

   was noisy

   More detail

   이웃 means “neighbor.” It is a noun and can be reused with particles: 이웃이 marks the neighbor as the subject, while 이웃을 would mark the neighbor as an object. Example: 이웃을 만났어요. — “I met a neighbor.” 어젯밤 means “last night.” It is a time noun that can appear directly before the predicate, as here, or with the time particle: 어젯밤에. Example: 어젯밤에 잤어요. — “I slept last night.” 꽤 is an adverb meaning “quite” or “fairly.” It increases the degree of the description that follows: 꽤 시끄러워요 means “is quite noisy.” 시끄러웠어요 means “was noisy” here. Its base form is the descriptive verb 시끄럽다, “to be noisy.” The form changes as follows: 시끄럽다 → present polite 시끄러워요 → past polite 시끄러웠어요. The -었어요 ending places the state in the past and gives a polite sentence ending. Korean descriptive verbs describe states, so this form functions like the English adjective phrase “was noisy.” Example: 그 방은 조용했어요. — “That room was quiet.” Together, 이웃이 identifies the neighbor as the subject, 어젯밤에 places the situation last night, 꽤 adds the meaning “quite,” and 시끄러웠어요 says that the neighbor was noisy. The whole utterance is therefore: “The neighbor was quite noisy last night.”

2. 우리가 자려고 할 때 저는 시끄러운 음악 소리를 들었어요.

   I heard loud music while we were trying to sleep.

   우리가

   we

   자려고

   trying to sleep

   할 때

   when doing

   저는

   as for me

   시끄러운

   loud; noisy

   음악

   music

   소리

   sound

   들었어요

   heard

   More detail

   우리가 is 우리 (“we”) plus the subject marker -가. Korean does not mark an inclusive/exclusive “we” distinction here, so the form itself does not specify whether the listener is included. 자려고 comes from 자다 (“to sleep”) with -(으)려고, which expresses an intention or an action one is preparing or trying to carry out. In this sentence, it contributes “trying/intending to sleep.” Example: 집에 가려고 해요. — “I intend to go home.” 할 때 is 하다 (“to do”) in its modifier form 할 plus 때 (“time/when”). The pattern 동사-(으)ㄹ 때 means “when [someone] does/is going to do something.” Together with the preceding 자려고, 자려고 할 때 means “when we were trying to sleep” or “while we were about to sleep.” The subject of this time clause is supplied by 우리가. 저는 is 저 (“I,” humble/polite first-person pronoun) plus the topic marker -는. It presents the speaker as the topic of the main clause: “as for me, I…” The marker does not itself mean “I heard”; that meaning comes from the verb later in the sentence. 시끄러운 is the attributive form of the descriptive adjective 시끄럽다 (“to be noisy/loud”). It modifies the noun after it, 음악, and therefore means “loud/noisy” here. Its useful forms include 시끄럽다 (base form), 시끄러워요 (polite present form), and 시끄러운 (noun-modifying form). Example: 시끄러운 방 — “a noisy room.” 음악 means “music.” Here it combines with the following noun 소리 in 음악 소리, literally “music sound,” referring to the sound of music. Example: 음악을 들어요. — “I listen to music.” 소리 means “sound” or “noise.” In 음악 소리, it specifies the audible sound associated with the music; 음악 identifies what kind of sound it is. Example: 밖에서 소리가 났어요. — “There was a sound outside.” 들었어요 is the polite past form of 듣다 (“to hear/listen”). 듣다 has a ㄷ-irregular change before a vowel: 들어요 is the polite present form, and 들었어요 is the polite past form. In this utterance, it means “heard,” describing a completed hearing event rather than the ongoing activity of listening. Example: 새 소식을 들었어요. — “I heard the new information.” The sentence is assembled as 우리가 자려고 할 때 (“while we were trying to sleep”) + 저는 (“as for me”) + 시끄러운 음악 소리를 (“the sound of loud music”) + 들었어요 (“heard”). Korean places the object before the verb, and the time clause comes before the main clause here. Thus the whole utterance means: “I heard loud music while we were trying to sleep.”

3. 정중한 메시지를 남길까요?

   Should we leave a polite message?

   정중한

   polite

   메시지

   message

   남길까요?

   shall we leave it?

   More detail

   정중한 describes 메시지 as polite or formal in tone. It comes from the adjective 정중하다 (“to be polite/formal”); before a noun, -다 is replaced by the attributive ending -ㄴ, with 하다 becoming 한, giving 정중한 메시지. This form describes the message rather than stating a separate action. 메시지 is the noun “message.” It is a useful loanword for a written or digital message. In this sentence, 메시지 is marked as the object of the verb, so the speaker asks about leaving a message. 남길까요? means “shall we leave it?” here. The base verb is 남기다, “to leave” or “to leave behind.” Before -까요, the verb stem 남기- takes -ㄹ까요, producing 남길까요; the ㄹ is added to the stem, rather than the verb having a different base form. The ending -(으)ㄹ까요? commonly asks for a suggestion or proposal, so this form asks whether the speaker and listener should do the action together. Korean does not require an explicit subject here; the intended “we” is supplied by the fixed translation and the proposal meaning. This differs from a simple information question about whether someone is going to leave something. Together, 정중한 메시지 means “a polite message,” and 정중한 메시지를 남길까요? means “Should we leave a polite message?” The particle -를 marks 메시지 as the object of 남기다. The question proposes leaving that kind of message, without specifying in the sentence who will receive it or where it will be left.

4. 메시지는 친절하게 쓰고 화난 것처럼 쓰지 말아야 해요.

   We should make it friendly, not angry.

   메시지는

   the message

   친절하게

   kindly

   쓰고

   write and

   화난 것처럼

   as if angry

   쓰지 … 말아야 해요

   should not write

   More detail

   메시지는 means “as for the message.” 메시지 is a noun meaning “message,” and 는 marks it as the topic. The topic marker does not itself identify who will write the message. 친절하게 means “in a kind/friendly way.” It is the adverbial form of 친절하다 (“to be kind/friendly”): 친절하다 → 친절하게. Adverbs in -하게 commonly describe how an action is carried out. 쓰고 comes from 쓰다, “to write,” followed by -고, which connects actions or descriptions with “and.” Here it introduces the first part of the recommendation: write the message kindly, and then apply the following restriction. Example: 이름을 쓰고 보내세요. — “Write your name and send it.” 화난 것처럼 means “as if angry” or “in an angry way.” 화나다 means “to become/be angry,” and its attributive form 화난 comes before 것; 것처럼 forms the pattern “like/as if ….” In this sentence, the phrase describes the manner the message should not have. Example: 그는 모르는 것처럼 행동했어요. — “He acted as if he did not know.” 쓰지 말아야 해요 means “should not write” or “must not write.” It combines 쓰다 with -지 말다, the construction for telling someone not to do an action, and -아/어야 하다, which expresses necessity or obligation. The resulting negative obligation is 쓰지 말아야 하다: “must/should not write.” The polite ending -해요 makes the recommendation polite. The same pattern is reusable with another verb: 늦지 말아야 해요. — “You should not be late.” Together, the utterance says: “As for the message, we should write it kindly and should not write it as if angry.” The omitted subject is understood here as “we,” as specified by the fixed translation. The two occurrences of 쓰다 make the contrast parallel: the desired manner is 친절하게, while the prohibited manner is 화난 것처럼.

5. 소음 때문에 우리가 잠을 못 잤다고 말할게요.

   I'll say the noise kept us from sleeping.

   소음

   noise

   때문에

   because of

   우리가

   we

   잠을

   sleep

   못 잤다고

   could not sleep, that…

   말할게요

   I’ll say

   More detail

   소음 means “noise.” It is a noun and can combine with particles such as 이/가 for a subject or 때문에 for a cause. Example: 소음이 커요. — “The noise is loud.” 때문에 marks a cause, commonly after a noun: N 때문에 means “because of N” or “due to N.” Here, 소음 때문에 means “because of the noise.” It does not itself express the result; the result appears in the following clause. 우리가 is 우리 (“we/us”) plus the subject particle 가. In this sentence, it marks the people who could not sleep. 우리 can refer to a group including the speaker; the form 우리가 marks its grammatical role, not the group’s size or gender. 잠을 is 잠 (“sleep”) plus the object particle 을. Korean commonly uses 잠을 자다, literally “sleep sleep,” for “to sleep”; 잠을 marks sleep as the object of 자다. Example: 잠을 잘 자요. — “I sleep well.” 못 잤다고 contains 못 자다 (“be unable to sleep” or “not manage to sleep”), the past form 잤다 of 자다, and -다고, which quotes or reports a statement. Thus 못 잤다고 means “that [someone] could not sleep.” 못 expresses inability or an unsuccessful result, unlike simple negation with 안: 잠을 못 잤어요 means “I couldn’t sleep,” while 잠을 안 잤어요 means “I didn’t sleep” without necessarily focusing on inability. 말할게요 is the -ㄹ게요 form of 말하다 (“to say”). -ㄹ게요 presents the speaker’s intention or commitment, often naturally translated as “I’ll …” Here it means “I’ll say.” The subject is understood as the speaker from the form and context; this ending does not by itself identify the speaker’s gender or state that the action has already happened. Together, 소음 때문에 gives the cause, 우리가 잠을 못 잤다고 reports the content “that we could not sleep,” and 말할게요 says “I’ll say.” The whole utterance means: “I’ll say that the noise kept us from sleeping.” A reusable pattern is A 때문에 B-다고 말할게요 — “I’ll say that A caused B / that B happened because of A.”

6. 저녁에는 바쁠 수 있다는 걸 우리도 안다고 덧붙여요.

   Add that we know evenings can get busy.

   저녁에는

   in the evening(s)

   바쁠 수 있다는 걸

   that it can be busy

   우리도

   we too

   안다고

   know that

   덧붙여요

   add

   More detail

   저녁에는 means “in the evening(s).” 저녁 is “evening,” and -에 marks a time when something applies. The added 는 makes that time frame a topic, often with a mild “as for evenings” effect. Example: 아침에는 한가해요. — “In the morning, I’m free.” 바쁠 수 있다는 걸 expresses “that it can be busy.” 바쁘다 means “to be busy”; its form 바쁠 is the attributive form used before 수 in -을 수 있다, a pattern for possibility or ability. Here 바쁠 수 있다 means “can be busy,” not “must be busy.” -다는 것 turns the preceding proposition into a noun-like idea, and 것을 is commonly shortened to 걸. Example: 비가 올 수 있다는 걸 알아요. — “I know that it may rain.” 우리도 means “we too” or “we also.” 우리 is “we/our,” and the particle 도 adds the sense of “also” or “too.” In this sentence, it marks the group as also knowing the stated fact. Example: 저도 알아요. — “I know too.” 안다고 is the quoted-content form of 알다, “to know.” It introduces the proposition that the subject knows: 알다 → 안다고 in this present-tense quoted construction. The following verb supplies the meaning “add that we know …”; 안다고 alone means “that [someone] knows,” rather than simply “know” as an independent command. Example: 그가 안다고 말했어요. — “He said that he knows.” 덧붙여요 comes from 덧붙이다, “to add on” or “to append,” and is its polite present form. It is useful when adding one more point to what has already been said. Example: 마지막으로 한마디 덧붙여요. — “I’ll add one last remark.” Together, 저녁에는 sets evenings as the time frame, 바쁠 수 있다는 걸 identifies the fact that evenings can be busy, 우리도 안다고 says that we also know this fact, and 덧붙여요 says to add that point. The whole utterance means: “Add that we know evenings can get busy.”

7. 그러면 메시지가 더 부드럽고 분명해져요.

   That keeps the message softer and clearer.

   그러면

   then / in that case

   메시지가

   the message

   더

   more

   부드럽고

   soft and

   분명해져요

   becomes clear

   More detail

   그러면 links this sentence to a preceding condition or suggestion. Here it means “then” or “in that case,” rather than naming a time by itself. A reusable pattern is 그러면 + result, as in 그러면 시작해요. — “Then let’s start.” 메시지가 marks 메시지 (“message”) as the subject of the change. 메시지 is a loanword meaning “message,” and -가 is the subject marker used here. The marker itself does not mean “the”; the definite reading comes from the context. 더 means “more” or “even more.” It raises the degree of the descriptive change that follows. For example, 오늘은 더 조용해요. means “Today it is quieter.” 부드럽고 comes from 부드럽다, “to be soft” or, for wording, “to be gentle.” The form 부드럽고 uses -고 to connect this description to the next one: A-고 B means “A and B.” In this sentence, “soft” describes the message’s tone, not its physical texture. 부드럽고 분명한 메시지 is an example meaning “a gentle and clear message.” 분명해져요 comes from 분명하다 (“to be clear”) plus -아/어지다, which expresses becoming or changing into a state, followed here by the polite present ending -어요. Thus 분명해져요 means “becomes clear” or “gets clearer.” The -어요 ending is polite; it does not itself mark past time. Compare 분명해요 (“is clear”) with 분명해져요 (“becomes clear”). Together, 더 부드럽고 분명해져요 says that the message changes so that it has a gentler tone and greater clarity. The subject 메시지가 identifies what undergoes this change, while 그러면 connects the result to the preceding situation. The whole utterance therefore means: “That keeps the message softer and clearer.”

8. 우리는 나중에 그 이웃 집 문 앞에 메시지를 놓을 수 있어요.

   We can put it near their door later.

   우리는

   we; as for us

   나중에

   later

   그

   that; the relevant one

   이웃

   neighbor

   집

   house

   문

   door

   앞에

   in front of; at the front of

   메시지를

   the message

   놓을 수 있어요

   can put or leave

   More detail

   우리는 means “we” and marks the group as the topic with 는. The form 우리 can mean “we/us” or “our” depending on its role; here 는 presents the group as the topic. Example: 우리는 가요. — “We go.” 나중에 means “later.” It is a time adverb and does not need a separate time marker in this sentence. Example: 나중에 만나요. — “See you later.” 그 identifies a relevant or previously established person or thing and comes before the noun or noun phrase it modifies. Here it helps select the relevant neighbor or house; the fixed English translation uses “their” for the intended reference, but 그 itself is not a possessive form meaning “their.” Example: 그 집 — “that house” or “the relevant house,” depending on context. 이웃 means “neighbor.” It is a noun and can modify another noun directly: 이웃 집 means “a neighbor’s house” or “the neighbor’s house,” with definiteness supplied by context. This is a noun combination, not an adjective form. 집 means “house” or “home.” In 이웃 집, it is the head noun of the noun phrase. Example: 집에 가요. — “I go home.” 문 means “door.” In 집 문, it specifies the door associated with the house: “the house door” or “the door of the house.” Example: 문을 열어요. — “I open the door.” 앞에 means “in front of” or “at the front of.” It consists of 앞 (“front”) plus the location particle 에, which marks the place where something is located or put. The construction 명사 앞에 is reusable for “in front of a noun”: 집 앞에 — “in front of the house.” 메시지를 means “the message” as the object of the action. 메시지 is the noun “message,” and 를 marks it as the object. The object marker does not by itself specify whether the message is singular or plural; that information is left to context. 놓을 수 있어요 expresses ability or possibility: “can put” or “can leave.” The lexical verb is 놓다, “to put/place” or, in a suitable context, “to leave.” Its form here is 놓을, the verb stem plus 을 before the possibility pattern -(으)ㄹ 수 있다. 수 있어요 is the polite present form of this pattern; it does not mean that the speaker is already putting the message down. Example: 여기에 놓을 수 있어요. — “It is possible to put it here.” The omitted subject could be understood from context, so the Korean sentence alone does not require “you.” Together, 그 이웃 집 문 앞에 identifies the location as in front of the relevant neighbor’s house door, while 메시지를 놓을 수 있어요 says that the message can be put or left there. With 우리는 and 나중에, the whole utterance means: “We can put it near their door later.” The Korean wording more literally specifies the area in front of the neighbor’s house door. -(으)ㄹ 수 있어요 is a polite, ordinary way to express ability or a possible action.