Lesson 15

This is an Advanced Idiomatic Expressions lesson related to 기분, feelings or emotions. In order to fully understand and use the expressions introduced in this series, it is essential that you understand the grammatical structure of the sentences. When you come across a grammar point that you are unfamiliar with, please go back and review the related TTMIK lessons.

Keyword:
기분 = feeling, emotion, mood

1. 기분이 좋다 = to feel happy, to feel upbeat
▷ 좋다 = to be good

When your 기분 (feeling) is good, it means that you are feeling great and happy in general. When you say that you feel good in English, it can also be related to your health, but in Korean, it is mostly related to your feelings at that moment. You can also use 기분이 좋다 when you feel good because of a cool breeze or a soothing massage, just not about your general health condition on a certain day.

Ex)
오늘 기분이 좋아 보이는데, 좋은 일 있어요?
= You look happy today. Is there something good happening?

2. 기분이 나쁘다 = to be in a bad mood, to feel unpleasant
▷ 나쁘다 = to be bad

When you say that you “feel bad” in English, it can mean that you are sorry about something and you want to apologize or you feel responsible for a bad result. But in Korean, when you say 기분이 나쁘다, it never means that you are apologetic. Rather, it indicates that you are feeling upset or unpleasant. You can also say 기분이 나쁘다 about something or someone that you find unpleasant.

Ex)
그 사람이 저를 보고 웃으면 왠지 기분이 나빠요.
= When he smiles at me, for some reason, it feels unpleasant.

3. 기분 좋게 = willingly, with good cheer
▷ 좋게 = nicely

기분 좋게 is basically the adverbial form of 기분 좋다. It can be used to either describe how someone does something willingly without feeling forced or upset about having to do it, or to describe how someone is actually feeling happy while doing something. If you say 기분 좋게 만들다, it means “to make someone feel good”.

Ex)
원래는 기분 좋게 도와주려고 했는데, 기분 나빠졌어요. 혼자 하세요.
= At first I was going to help you cheerfully, but I feel angry now. You can do it by yourself.

4. 기분을 풀다 = to relieve or resolve one’s feelings

풀다 literally means to “resolve” or “untangle” something, so when you untangle someone’s feelings of being upset, you make them feel better or less upset. You can also use 기분을 풀다 to describe how you divert yourself and relieve stress.

Ex)
제가 맛있는 거 사 줄 테니까 이제 기분 좀 풀어요.
= I will buy you something delicious, so please stop being angry at me.

5. -(으)ㄹ 기분이 아니다 = to be not in the mood for

This expression is very similar to the English expression, “to be not in the mood” to do something.

Ex)
저 지금 농담할 기분 아니에요.
= I am not in the mood to joke (with you).
지금 피자 먹을 기분이 아니에요.
= I am not in the mood to eat pizza.

6. 기분이 상하다 = to be offended
▷ 상하다 = to rot, to go bad
* 상하다 is often used with food to mean that it is rotten or has gone bad.

You can use 기분이 상하다 when someone’s feelings are hurt by what someone else said, or when someone is offended by something that happened.

Ex)
그냥 농담이었는데 기분 상했어요?
= I was just joking. Did I hurt your feelings?

7. 기분 내키는 대로 = just the way one wants
▷ 내키다 = to feel like, to be inclined
▷ -(으/느)ㄴ 대로 = the way something goes

The expression 기분 내키는 대로 has a slightly negative connotation, so when you say it about someone, you are usually not very happy about the way that person behaves.

Ex)
그 사람은 기분 내키는 대로 행동하는 게 꼭 어린아이 같아요.
= He does whatever he feels like, just like a child.

8. 기분이 들뜨다 = to be excited, to be exhilarated
▷ 들뜨다 = to be excited

Ex)
내일 런던에 갈 생각에 기분이 들떴어요.
= I am very excited by the thought of going to London tomorrow.

9. 기분 전환을 하다 = to refresh oneself

전환 means transition or change, so when you “do” a “기분 전환 (mood transition)”, it usually means that you refresh yourself or get some fresh air, usually by doing something different like going for a walk, meeting friends, or going on a short trip. 전환 is often used with 기분, and not by itself.

Ex)
기분 전환 하러 잠시 밖에 나갔다 왔어요.
= I went out for a bit to refresh myself.

10. 기분 탓이다 = to be just one’s imagination
▷ 탓 = reason, fault, blame

When there is no real issue or substantial problem but you feel like something is wrong or something is happening, you can say that it is just the fault of your 기분 (feeling). You can often hear people saying “기분 탓인가? (= It is just me?)” or “기분 탓일 거예요 (= You are just feeling that way)”.

Ex)
그냥 기분 탓일 거예요. 너무 걱정 마세요.
= You are just imagining things. Do not worry too much.

11. -(으/느)ㄴ 기분이 들다 = to feel that…, to have a feeling that...
▷ 들다 = to come in

기분이 들다 literally means “a feeling enters” so when you get the feeling that something is happening or will happen, you can use this phrase.

Ex)
왠지 오늘은 좋은 일이 있을 것 같은 기분이 들어요.
= For some reason, I feel like something good is going to happen (to me) today.

12. 기분이 가라앉다 = to feel down
▷ 가라앉다 = to sink

In English, if you say “I feel down”, it sounds like you were already feeling down before you said it out loud. However in Korean, if you say 가라앉다, you are emphasizing that you were feeling good but now you feel down.

Ex)
그 얘기를 들으니 기분이 가라앉았어요.
= After hearing that news, I felt down.