KOREAN LANGUAGE TUTORIAL

LESSON 71

Korean Lesson: Lessons 71

Like (a noun): (명사)처럼

By attaching the word “~처럼” to a noun, you can create the meaning of “Like (that noun).” For example:
예전처럼 = like old times
평소처럼 = like/as usual
나처럼 = like me
원숭이처럼 = like a monkey
그 전처럼 = Like before
These constructions can then be placed in sentences similar to adverbs to say that something is done “like” something:
우리는 예전처럼 그냥 집에서 영화를 봤어요 = We watched movies at our house like old times
나는 오늘 평소처럼 공부해 야 돼 = I have to study today, as usual
그 사람은 나처럼 돈이 별로 없어 = That person, like me, doesn’t have much money
우리 아들은 밥을 원숭이처럼 먹어요 = Our son eats like a monkey
저는 그 전처럼 하고 싶어요 = I want to do it like before
In the examples I showed above, ~처럼 is always attached to a noun. ~처럼 can also be attached to nouns following a ~는 것 construction. When this is done, the final verb in the sentence is usually “보이다” and the whole sentence has the meaning of “it looks like…” For example:
네가 넘어질 것처럼 보였어요 = It looked like you were going to fall
그렇게 하면 문제가 생길 것처럼 보여요 = It looks like a problem will come up if we do it like that
You already learned in Lesson 36 how to say a person looks like something else:
저의 여자친구는 연예인 같이 보여요 = My girlfriend looks like a celebrity
The ~처럼 보이다 construction is usually used when saying that an object looks like something, whereas the ~같이 보이다 is usually used when saying that a person looks like something/somebody.
There is another grammatical form that is similar to ~처럼, but has it’s differences. I will cover this in the next section.

As if…: ~듯(이)
By adding ~듯(이) in the place of the noun in “~는 것”, you can create the meaning of “as if…” For example:
그가 모르는 듯이 = As if he didn’t know
그가 이해하지 못하는 듯이 = As if he didn’t understand
그는 떠나기 싫다는 듯이 = As if he didn’t want to leave
그가 죽는 듯이 = As if he was dead
These constructions can then be put in sentences similar to adverbs:
그는 몰랐던 듯이 나를 쳐다봤어요 = He starred at me as if he didn’t know
그는 이해하지 못하는 듯이 행동했어요 = He acted as if he didn’t understand
그는 떠나기 싫다는 듯이 울었어요 = He cried as if he didn’t want to leave
그는 죽는 듯이 바닥에 누워 있었어요 = He lied on the ground as if he was dead
There is also a word “듯하다” which can be placed at the end of a sentence to mean “it seems like.” The weird thing about this, is that the word immediately preceding it is conjugated in the ~는 것 form. For example:
선생님은 이 거를 잘 모르는 듯해요 = The teacher seems if he doesn’t understand this
그가 안 간 듯해요 = It seems as though he didn’t go
마치
The word “마치” is another one of those words in English that has no meanings. You have already learned about how the word “만약” goes in sentences with “if”:
만약 네가 안 가면 나도 안 가요 = If you are not going, I am not going
And in sentences with 아/어도, you learned that you can use the word “아무리:”
아무리 그 여자가 예뻐도 저는 그녀가 싫어요 = Regardless of how pretty that girl is, I don’t like her
The word 마치 is a similar word. That is, it has no real meaning, other than the feeling that it gives in a sentence. Putting this word in a sentence gives the listener/reader the feeling that ~처럼 or ~듯이 will be coming. For example:
마치 말처럼 달렸어요 = He ran like a horse
마치 그는 죽는 듯이 바닥에 누워 있었어요 = He lied on the floor as if he was dead