Core Grammar Level 10
Lesson 17
10:38
 
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Lesson 17

This lesson is about an expression you can use to rephrase or correct what someone else says, or to make your description about something more accurate. It can be translated to "rather than", "it is more correct to say", or "it is more of a... than...".

Conjugation

Present tense:
Action verb stem + -ㄴ/는다기보다
Descriptive verb stem + -다기보다
Noun + -(이)라기보다

Past tense:
Verb stem + -았/었/였다기보다
Noun + -이었다기보다 or -였다기보다


Understanding the meaning in more detail

-다기보다 is the shortened form of -다고 하기보다, and -라기보다 is shortened from -라고 하기보다. Both have the meaning of "rather than saying..."


-보다 is used to compare things and means "than" or "compared to".
-기 is used to turn a verb into its noun form.


So when using -다 (verb ending) + 기보다 or -라기보다, you are saying "rather than saying A, I think B is a more accurate way to put it". To emphasize the contrast between two descriptions, -는 is commonly added as well to form -다기보다는 or -라기보다는. The overall meaning of the sentence still stays the same with -는 added.

Sample Sentences

하기 싫다기보다는, 시간이 안 될 것 같아요.
= It is not really that I do not want to do it, but that I do not think I will have time.

어렵다기보다 시간이 오래 걸려요.
= Rather than being difficult, (it is more accurate to say that) it is time-consuming.

그건 일이라기보다는 취미예요.
= Rather than being work, it is (more of) a hobby.

많이 먹는다기보다는 자주 먹어요.
= It is not really that I eat a lot, but rather that I eat often.


Commonly used structures
There are some words and phrases that are often used in conjunction with -다기보다/라기보다 to make the meaning of the sentence more clear. Some of the examples below use -는 at the end of -다기보다/라기보다, and others do not.

  1. 꼭 + -다기보다/라기보다
    꼭 means "must, specifically, without fail", and in this structure, it adds the meaning of "not necessarily".
    Ex)
    꼭 제 말이 맞는다기보다, 이런 부분도 생각하자는 거예요.
    = I am not necessarily saying I am right. I am suggesting we should think about this aspect, too.
  2. -다기보다/라기보다 + -에 가까워요
    Ex)
    이건 일이라기보다는 취미에 가까워요.
    = Rather than being work, it is closer to a hobby.
  3.  딱히 + -다기보다/라기보다
    When combined with a negative sentence or meaning, 딱히 means "not particularly" or "not specifically".
    Ex)
    딱히 하기 싫다기보다, 안 해도 될 것 같다는 말이에요.
    = I am not specifically saying that I do not want to do it, but that I feel like I do not have to do it.
  4. -다기보다/라기보다 + 그냥
    Ex)
    저는 스키를 잘 탄다기보다 그냥 좋아해요.
    = I am not really good at skiing. It is more accurate to say I just like it.
  5.  -다기보다/라기보다 + -것 같아요
    Ex)
    그 사람은 엄청 미남이라기보다는, 특별한 매력이 있는 것 같아요.
    = Rather than being incredibly handsome, I think he has his own special charm.
  6. -다기보다/라기보다 + -(으)ㄴ/는 편이에요
    Ex)
    그 사람은 머리가 좋다기보다는 노력을 많이 하는 편이에요.
    = Rather than being smart, I think he tends to work very hard.
  7.  -다기보다/라기보다 + -는 거죠
    Ex)
    하고 싶어서 한다기보다는, 해야 되니까 하는 거죠.
    = I do not necessarily do it because I want to, but because I have to.