Lesson 12
You use the “narrative” form (-(ㄴ/는)다) when you want to express your thoughts as self-talk or an exclamation. You can still use this form while speaking in 존댓말 because it’s like you’re talking to yourself, but it’s essentially in the 반말 category.
Here are some examples of things you can say in the narrative form.
- 어, 저기 있다! (Oh, there it is!)
- 이거다! (It’s this one!)
- 맛있다! (It’s tasty!)
- 나 간다! (I’m leaving!) ← This one can only be used in a fully 반말 conversation.
There is also two sentence endings that are specifically used in 반말, and they are -니? and -냐? These endings usually add an even more casual and “talking down” kind of vibe to your question, and sometimes depending on the tone, the sentence can sound more endearing and affectionate.
Standard 반말 → More casual (or nitpicking) → (Usually) even more casual
- 뭐 해? (What are you doing)? → 뭐 하니? → 뭐 하냐?
- 또 게임 해? (You’re playing video games again?) → 또 게임 하니? → 또 게임 하냐?