marcus aurelius
4 quick questions about the expression 그렇게 A very important person in my life used to frequently say 그렇게... For example... Me: Hey people should be nice to old ladies Her: 그렇게 Me: Hey I think eating fried chicken without beer is kind of a waste Her: 그렇게 At the time I never asked her why. I just kind of assumed it meant, yeah sure I agree. #1. Is this something only girls do? Or can guys say it to? #2. Is this an age thing? As an old guy myself (30s) can I use this? #3. Can you use this in 존댓말 situations? 재수 없는 부장님: 나 오늘 김치 땡겨 Me: 그렇게 . 저도 김치 먹고 싶어요 #4. What kind of nuance is it? Like... "oh I see" or "yes and..." or "interesting" or "hmmm" or "yeah okay" [neutral]
Oct 13, 2015 5:21 AM
Answers · 1
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#1. Is this something only girls do? Or can guys say it to? => It has nothing to do with the gender. Anyone can say it. #2. Is this an age thing? As an old guy myself (30s) can I use this? => Nothing to do with age either. Yes, you or anyone can use it. #3. Can you use this in 존댓말 situations? 재수 없는 부장님: 나 오늘 김치 땡겨 Me: 그렇게 . 저도 김치 먹고 싶어요 => First of all, it is 그러게, not 그렇게. The pronunciation is not the same (그렇게 pronounces like 그러케, whereas 그러게 is 그러게). Next time you can listen for the last syllable to see whether it is 케 or 게. As for the meaning, 그렇게 is "in that way" or "so", which is an adverb, while 그러게 is an exclamation (감탄사) meaning "Yeah, sure I agree" as you said. So they are totally different things. About saying it to your superior, yes you can do it, but use "요" at the end (그러게요) as you would with any other phrase. #4. What kind of nuance is it? It is just a light agreement, like "Yes, sure, that is true". It originates from 그러하게요, which is 그러하다 + -게 (a sentence ending form). 그러하다 means "so it is", so that's all your saying.
October 13, 2015
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