Reporting a Hotel Room Problem | Learn Korean in English

Sentence explanations

1. 제 방의 에어컨이 작동하지 않아요.

   The air conditioner in my room is not working.

   제

   my

   방

   room

   에어컨

   air conditioner

   작동하지 않아요

   does not work

   More detail

   제 means “my” here. It is the polite contraction of 저의 (“my”), based on 저 (“I” in the humble/polite form) plus the possessive marker 의. It is used before a noun: 제 방 = “my room.” 방 means “room.” In 제 방, it is the place being specified as belonging to the speaker. A useful contrast is 집 (“house/home”), which is a different noun; 방 refers to an individual room. 에어컨 means “air conditioner.” This is a noun used as the subject of the sentence. The subject marker 이 follows it because 에어컨 ends in a consonant sound: 에어컨이. 작동하지 않아요 means “does not work” or, more literally, “does not operate.” The base verb is 작동하다 (“to operate, function”). 작동하지 않다 forms a negative expression by placing -지 않다 after the verb stem; 않아요 is the polite present-style ending of 않다 in this expression. Example: 컴퓨터가 작동하지 않아요. — “The computer does not work.” The pattern N이/가 작동하지 않아요 says that a device or machine is not functioning. The subject marker has two forms: 이 after a consonant-ending noun and 가 after a vowel-ending noun. Here, 에어컨이 identifies the air conditioner as the nonfunctioning device. Together, 제 방의 에어컨이 작동하지 않아요 means “The air conditioner in my room is not working.” 제 방의 uses 의 to mark the room as the reference location or relation for the air conditioner, and 이 marks 에어컨 as the subject. The polite ending -아요 makes the statement suitable for ordinary respectful conversation.

2. 죄송합니다.

   I am sorry about that.

   죄송합니다.

   I'm sorry.

   More detail

   죄송합니다. is a polite, formal way to apologize. Its base form is 죄송하다, meaning “to be sorry” or “to feel apologetic.” The observed form uses the formal polite ending -ㅂ니다; with 죄송하다, 하다 changes to 합니다, giving 죄송합니다. The Korean sentence does not state a separate subject such as “I”; the apology is expressed directly. Here, the fixed translation identifies the meaning as “I am sorry about that,” so the apology concerns the situation already mentioned. The same expression can be reused when apologizing politely in other situations. Whole utterance: 죄송합니다. = “I am sorry about that.” It is a concise, respectful apology.

3. 리모컨을 사용해 보셨나요?

   Have you tried the remote?

   리모컨

   remote control

   사용해

   use

   보셨나요?

   have you tried?

   More detail

   리모컨 means “remote control” here. It is a noun used directly as the object of the action. The object marker 을 follows it because 리모컨 ends in a consonant: 리모컨을. Example: 리모컨을 찾았어요. — “I found the remote control.” 사용해 comes from the verb 사용하다, “to use.” The form 사용해 is the connective form used before another verb or construction; here it links 사용하다 with 보다. 사용해 보다 means “to try using” something, rather than simply “to use” it. Example: 이 기능을 사용해 보세요. — “Please try using this function.” 보셨나요? is the question form built from 보다, “to see” or, in this construction, “to try,” with the honorific marker 시, past marker 었, and the polite question ending 나요. In 사용해 보셨나요?, 보다 is functioning as an auxiliary-like verb meaning “try,” so the combined meaning is “have you tried using ...?” The observed form is honorific and politely asks about the listener’s experience. The ending 나요? makes it a question; it does not itself mean “try.” Together, 리모컨을 사용해 보셨나요? means “Have you tried the remote?” More literally, it asks whether the listener has tried using the remote control. The following context’s 사용해 봤어요 uses the same 사용해 보다 pattern in a non-honorific polite past form: “I tried using it.”

4. 사용해 봤어요.

   I tried it.

   사용해 봤어요

   tried using it

   More detail

   사용해 봤어요 is a reusable pattern meaning “tried using ….” It combines 사용하다 (“to use”) in its connective form 사용해 with 보다 (“to see”) used as an auxiliary. In this pattern, -아/어 보다 means to try doing the preceding action; it does not mean literally “see.” 봤어요 is the polite past form of 보다 in this auxiliary use, so the sentence describes a completed attempt. The subject and object are unstated. Here, the fixed translation identifies the subject as “I” and the object as “it”; the preceding context identifies the remote as the relevant object. Korean commonly leaves such recoverable subjects and objects unstated. Reusable pattern: 동사-아/어 봤어요 = “tried [doing the verb].” The subject is supplied by context rather than encoded by this pattern. For example, 먹어 봤어요 means “I tried eating it” when the context identifies the subject as “I.” This example introduces a general pattern and is not part of the supplied conversation. Together, 사용해 (“use,” linked to the auxiliary) + 봤어요 (“tried,” polite past) gives “I tried using it.”

5. 온도가 바뀌지 않아요.

   The temperature does not change.

   온도

   temperature

   바뀌지 않아요

   does not change

   More detail

   온도 means “temperature.” It is a noun and can be used with different kinds of temperature: 온도가 높아요 means “The temperature is high,” while 온도가 낮아요 means “The temperature is low.” In the fixed sentence, 온도 is the thing whose state is discussed; the sentence does not identify a particular person or object controlling it. 바뀌지 않아요 is the polite present form meaning “does not change” here. Its base form is 바뀌다, “to change” or, depending on context, “to be changed.” The form 바뀌지 않다 is made by putting -지 않다 after the verb stem to negate it: 바뀌다 → 바뀌지 않다. The ending -아요 makes the statement polite in this context. Example: 계획이 바뀌지 않아요. — “The plan does not change.” Together, 온도가 바뀌지 않아요 means “The temperature does not change.” The noun 온도가 marks temperature as the subject, and 바뀌지 않아요 states that no change occurs. The utterance is a polite present-tense statement.

6. 직원을 보내서 확인해 드릴게요.

   I will send someone to check it.

   직원

   employee; staff member

   보내서

   by sending; send and then

   확인

   checking; confirmation

   드릴게요

   I’ll do it for you

   More detail

   직원 means “employee” or “staff member.” Here it is the object of 보내다 (“to send”), marked by the following 을: 직원을 보내다 means “to send an employee.” The fixed translation presents this staff member naturally as “someone.” Example: 직원을 불렀어요. — “I called a staff member.” 보내서 comes from 보내다 (“to send”) plus the connective ending -아서/어서. It links the sending with the later checking and can express a sequence or a purpose: “send someone and then…” or “send someone to…”. In this sentence, the speaker undertakes to send the staff member, while the sent person is understood as the one who will check. Example: 사람을 보내서 도와드릴게요. — “I’ll send someone to help you.” 확인 means “checking” or “confirmation.” Its useful verb form is 확인하다, “to check” or “to confirm.” In the sentence, 확인해 is the 해 form of 확인하다, and it combines with 드리다 in 확인해 드리다, meaning “to check something for someone.” The fixed translation indicates that the thing being checked is understood as “it”; the sentence does not name that thing. 드릴게요 consists of 드리다 plus -ㄹ게요. 드리다 is used when the speaker presents an action as being done for another person, with deferential wording. -ㄹ게요 presents the speaker’s intention or commitment and is often translated “I’ll…”. Thus 확인해 드릴게요 means “I’ll check it for you.” Example: 다시 설명해 드릴게요. — “I’ll explain it again for you.” Together, 직원을 보내서 means “by sending an employee” or, in this context, “send an employee to…”. 확인해 드릴게요 means “I’ll check it for you,” with the checking carried out by the person sent. The whole utterance therefore means: “I will send someone to check it.”

7. 수리에 얼마나 걸릴까요?

   How long might the repair take?

   수리

   repair

   얼마나

   how much; how long

   걸릴까요?

   might it take?

   More detail

   수리 is a noun meaning “repair” here. It can also refer to repair work or maintenance in other contexts. For example, 수리가 끝났어요 means “The repair is finished.” 얼마나 asks about degree or amount. With a duration expression such as 얼마나 걸리다, it means “how long.” It is not itself a verb or a time unit. For example, 얼마나 기다려야 해요? means “How long do I have to wait?” 걸릴까요? comes from the verb 걸리다, “to take [time]” in this use. The form 걸리다 changes to 걸릴까요?: the ending -(으)ㄹ까요? presents a question about an expected or estimated situation in a polite way. Here, it asks for an estimate of the time required; it does not assert that the speaker knows the exact duration. 얼마나 걸려요? is a more direct present-style question, “How long does it take?” Together, 수리에 marks “for the repair,” 얼마나 asks for the amount of time, and 걸릴까요? asks how much time it is expected to take. The whole utterance means, “How long might the repair take?”

8. 잘 모르겠습니다.

   I am not sure.

   잘

   well

   모르겠습니다

   I am not sure

   More detail

   잘 means “well” here, but with a verb of knowing, 잘 모르다 is a common expression meaning “not know clearly” or “be unsure.” Thus it contributes to the sentence’s uncertainty rather than describing a physical manner. For example, 저는 그 답을 잘 몰라요. means “I’m not sure of that answer.” 모르겠습니다 is the formal-polite form built from 모르다, “to not know.” In this form, -겠- presents the speaker’s judgment or uncertainty, and -습니다 gives a formal polite ending. In this utterance, the natural meaning is “I’m not sure,” rather than a blunt “I don’t know.” The shorter polite form 몰라요 can also mean “I don’t know” or “I’m not sure,” but it is less formal. Together, 잘 + 모르겠습니다 forms 잘 모르겠습니다, literally something like “I do not know well,” and conventionally “I’m not sure.” The complete utterance is a formal, polite way to express uncertainty about the matter being discussed.

9. 잠시 후에 누군가 올 수 있어요.

   Someone can come shortly.

   잠시 후에

   shortly; after a short while

   누군가

   someone

   올 수 있어요

   can come

   More detail

   잠시 후에 means “after a short while” or “shortly.” 잠시 refers to a short period, and 후 means “after” or “later.” The particle 에 marks the time when something occurs. Example: 잠시 후에 만나요. — “Let’s meet shortly.” 누군가 is an indefinite pronoun meaning “someone” or “somebody.” It identifies an unspecified person; the sentence does not say who that person is. Example: 누군가 문을 두드려요. — “Someone is knocking on the door.” 올 수 있어요 expresses the possibility or ability to come. The base verb is 오다, “to come.” Its stem 오- combines with -ㄹ 수 있다 to form 올 수 있다; because 오- ends in a vowel, the form is 올. In this sentence, 수 있어요 presents the coming as possible, rather than stating that it definitely happens. 있어요 is the polite present form used in this construction. Example: 오늘 올 수 있어요. — “I can come today.” Together, 누군가 올 수 있어요 means “someone can come” or “someone may come,” and 잠시 후에 places that possibility shortly in the future. The complete utterance therefore means “Someone can come shortly.”

10. 방에서 기다릴게요.

    I will wait in the room.

    방

    room

    에서

    in; at (place of an action)

    기다릴게요

    I’ll wait

    More detail

    방 means “room” here. It is a noun and can combine with location particles: 방에 marks a place where someone or something is, while 방에서 marks the place where an action happens. Example: 방에서 공부해요. — “I study in the room.” 에서 marks the location of the action 기다리다 (“to wait”). In this sentence, it links the waiting activity to the room; it does not mean that the speaker is merely located there without an action. 기다릴게요 is the polite form of 기다리다 (“to wait”) with -(으)ㄹ게요. The stem 기다리- ends in a vowel, so the form is 기다릴게요, not 기다리을게요. This ending presents the speaker’s willingness or commitment to do something, often with the listener’s situation in mind. It is different from the plain polite 기다려요, which simply says “I wait” or “I am waiting,” depending on context. The final 요 makes the expression polite. Together, 방에서 (“in the room, as the place of the action”) and 기다릴게요 (“I’ll wait / I’m willing to wait”) produce: “I will wait in the room.”

11. 문제가 계속되면 알려 주세요.

    Please let us know if the problem continues.

    문제가

    the problem

    계속되면

    if it continues

    알려 주세요

    please let us know

    More detail

    문제가 means “the problem” here. 문제 is the noun “problem,” and -가 marks it as the subject of what follows. The ending -가 is one subject-marker form; -이 is used after a noun ending in a consonant, while -가 is used after a vowel. 계속되면 means “if it continues.” Its base form is 계속되다, “to continue,” and -면 makes a conditional meaning such as “if” or “when.” The form 계속되면 combines the verb stem 계속되- with -면; it does not mean that the continuation has already happened. Example: 비가 오면 집에 있어요. — “If it rains, I stay at home.” 알려 주세요 means “please let us know.” 알리다 is the base verb “to inform” or “to let someone know.” Here it appears as 알려, the connective form used before 주세요; 주세요 is a polite request meaning “please give [it]” and, after an action form, softens the request to “please do it.” The intended object or information is understood from the situation rather than stated separately. Example: 주소를 알려 주세요. — “Please let me know the address.” Together, 문제가 계속되면 sets the condition “if the problem continues,” and 알려 주세요 gives the polite request “please let us know.” The whole utterance therefore means “Please let us know if the problem continues.”