Lesson 24
If you are familiar with the structure -(으)면서, which was introduced in the previous lesson, it is easy to guess what -(ㄴ/는)다면서요 and -(이)라면서요 mean. However, if you try to translate sentences using -(ㄴ/는)다면서요 and -(이)라면서요 literally to English, the translations are very different from the actual meanings of the sentences because -(ㄴ/는)다면서요 and -(이)라면서요 are used as sentence endings.
Origins
-(ㄴ/는)다면서(요) is a combination of -(ㄴ/는)다 and -다고 말하면서, and the literal translation is "saying ABC while doing XYZ". Similarly, -(이)라면서(요) is originally -(이)다 + -라고 말하면서 and, therefore literally translates to "while saying that ABC is XYZ".
However, when used to end a sentence, -(ㄴ/는)다면서(요) and -(이)라면서(요) have a different meaning than when they are used in the middle of a sentence. Note that the endings have -요 at the end for 존댓말.
Actual Usage
-(ㄴ/는)다면서요 and -(이)라면서요 can be used when you want to show your surprise or dissatisfaction after finding out that what you thought was true is not, or when you are fact-checking what you heard before from someone else.
Ex)
집에 가다 + -ㄴ다면서요 = 집에 간다면서요 = you said you were going home (but you are here)
학생 + -이라면서요 = 학생이라면서요 = you said you were a student (yet, apparently, you are not)
There is also another usage that uses the imperative.
Ex)
가다 + -라면서요 = 가라면서요 = you told me to leave (and now you are saying otherwise)
오지 말다 + -라면서요 = 오지 말라면서요 = you told me not to come
Also, for example, if someone gives you a slice of cake and tells you to eat it, and then later gets hungry and asks where the cake is, you can reply, “먹으라면서요! (= You told me to eat it!)” Please note that even though they told you to eat it in the past, you do not use this imperative sentence in the past tense.
These endings do not always turn the sentence into a question, but it is very common to put a question mark at the end of the sentence to emphasize the fact that the speaker is surprised, disappointed, or intrigued, depending on the context.
Sample Sentences
다음 달에 이사 간다면서요?
= I heard you are going to move next month.
벌써 다 끝났다면서요?
= I heard it is already over. Is that right?
아직 학생이라면서요!
= Didn't you say you are still a student?
잘 모르는 사이라면서요!
= You said you did not know each other that well!
형이 의사라면서요?
= I heard your older brother is a doctor.
Please note that the meanings of these can vary depending on your intonation.