#20: Korean Sentence Endings: How to Sound Natural & Express Emotion

March 04, 2025

Choosing the right sentence ending in Korean can make all the difference in how polite, natural, or expressive you sound! In this episode, we’ll break down some of the most commonly used sentence endings, explain their meanings, and show you how they appear in the TOPIK II exam.

By the end of this episode, you’ll know exactly when to use endings like -거든요, -잖아요, -네요, and -지 to sound more fluent and confident in Korean! 🇰🇷✨

📌 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

✅ How different sentence endings change the meaning of a sentence
✅ When to use -요 vs. -습니다 (politeness levels)
✅ How to use -거든요 (giving background info) & -잖아요 (reminding someone)
✅ Expressing impressions with -네요 & seeking agreement with -지
✅ How these endings appear in the TOPIK reading, writing, and listening sections
✅ Tips for using the right sentence endings in your own writing and conversations

📝 TOPIK Focus:

💡 Reading Section: Recognizing sentence endings in multiple-choice questions
💡 Writing Section: Using the correct ending to match tone and intent
💡 Listening Section: Understanding speaker intention based on sentence endings

📌 Your Challenge: Write a sentence using one of today’s sentence endings and post it on Instagram!
📸 Tag @korean.joaacademy and use #topikandbeyond so I can see your examples and give feedback!

⭐ If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating or review! Your support helps more Korean learners discover this podcast. 💜

📣 Follow & Connect:

📍 Instagram: @korean.joaacademy
📍 Website: www.joaacademy.com
📍 Hashtag: #topikandbeyond

감사합니다, 여러분! See you in the next episode! 😊

Episode Transcript

안녕하세요, 여러분! TOPIK & Beyond에 오신 걸 환영합니다. 저는 엘라이자입니다!
Have you ever felt unsure about which Korean sentence ending to use? Maybe you've wondered, Should I say -요 or -습니다? What about -거든요 or -잖아요? Choosing the right ending can make a huge difference in how polite, natural, or expressive you sound in Korean!
In today’s episode, we’ll break down the most common sentence endings, when to use them, and how they appear on the TOPIK II exam. By the end of this episode, you’ll feel more confident about using the right endings in different situations.
🎵 [Cue Music] 🎵

여러분, 다시 안녕하세요! Welcome back to TOPIK & Beyond!
Korean has many different sentence endings, and using the wrong one can sometimes make you sound unnatural—or even rude! But don’t worry, today we’ll cover:
✔️ The difference between formal and informal endings
✔️ Expressive endings like -거든요, -잖아요, -네 and how to use them correctly
✔️ How these endings appear in TOPIK reading, writing, and listening sections
Plus, at the end of the episode, I’ll give you a challenge to help you practice these endings in your own sentences. So, grab your notebook, and let’s get started!
🎙️ History/Story/Overview
Have you ever had this experience while learning Korean?
Maybe you said “정말 맛있어요!” (It’s really delicious!) to a Korean friend, and they replied, “오~ 정중하네~” (Oh, that sounds really formal!) or casually said “맛있네!” (Oh, it’s good!) instead.
Or maybe while watching a K-drama, you kept hearing sentence endings like “-거든요” or “-잖아요”, but you weren’t quite sure what they meant.
In Korean, the way you end your sentence plays a big role in expressing your tone, politeness, and even emotions!
There are many ways to make a sentence polite, emphasize a point, or soften a statement, and choosing the right ending can completely change the feeling of your sentence.
For example:
🗣️ “오늘 날씨 좋아.” → Neutral statement (just stating the fact)
🗣️ “오늘 날씨 좋아요.” → Polite speech
🗣️ “오늘 날씨 좋잖아요!” → Used when reminding someone of a fact they already know
🗣️ “오늘 날씨 좋거든요~” → Used when explaining a reason or giving background information
🗣️ “오늘 날씨 좋네!” → Used when expressing surprise or impression
Even though all of these sentences mean “The weather is nice today,” they each have a different nuance depending on the sentence ending!
To sound more natural and fluent in Korean, you need to understand and use these sentence endings correctly.
So in today’s episode, we’ll break down some of the most commonly used sentence endings, explain how they are used in different situations, and even look at how they appear in the TOPIK exam!
Are you ready? Let’s get started!
🎙️ Vocabulary & Grammar Breakdown: Korean Sentence Endings
Now that we understand why sentence endings are so important in Korean, let’s break them down one by one! Today, we’ll focus on five commonly used sentence endings that will help you sound more natural in conversations and write more effectively in TOPIK II.
1) -요 vs. -습니다 (Politeness Levels)
📌 -요 → Standard polite ending
📌 -습니다 → Formal polite ending (used in official settings)
💡 Example:
🗣️ 내일 시간 있어요? → “Do you have time tomorrow?” (Standard polite)
🗣️ 내일 시간 있습니까? → “Do you have time tomorrow?” (Formal, often in news or official speeches)
✅ When to use them:
* Use -요 in everyday conversations with people you don’t know well or in polite settings.
* Use -습니다 in formal situations like business meetings, news reports, or public speeches.
2) -거든요 (Giving Background Information)
📌 -거든요 is used when you want to give extra information or explain something the listener might not know yet.
💡 Example:
🗣️ 이 카페 자주 가요. 커피가 맛있거든요!
→ “I come to this café often. Their coffee is really good (you might not know this)!”
✅ When to use it:
* When you’re explaining a reason for something
* When the listener doesn’t know the full context yet
3) -잖아요 (Reminding Someone of a Known Fact)
📌 -잖아요 is used when you remind someone of something they already know or when you’re correcting them gently.
💡 Example:
🗣️ 지금 가면 늦어요! 영화 벌써 시작했잖아요!
→ “If we go now, we’ll be late! The movie already started (remember?)!”
✅ When to use it:
* When you and the listener already know the information
* When you’re correcting someone’s misunderstanding
4) -네(요) (Expressing Surprise or Impression)
📌 -네(요) is used when you’re noticing something for the first time or expressing a reaction to new information.
💡 Example:
🗣️ 이 케이크 진짜 맛있네!
→ “Wow, this cake is really good!”
✅ When to use it:
* When you’re impressed or surprised by something
* When you just realized or noticed something new
5) -지 (Casual Ending for Emphasis or Confirmation)
📌 -지 is a casual ending used to seek agreement or emphasize something in an informal way.
💡 Example:
🗣️ 날씨 진짜 좋지?
→ “The weather is really nice, right?”
✅ When to use it:
* When speaking casually with friends
* When asking for confirmation in an informal way

These sentence endings are used all the time in real conversations, so understanding them will help you sound more natural and expressive in Korean.
But what about TOPIK II? How do these endings show up in the exam? Let’s talk about that next!
🎙️ TOPIK Focus
Now that we’ve gone over these important sentence endings, let’s talk about how they appear in the TOPIK exam—especially in the reading, writing, and listening sections.
1) TOPIK Reading Section (읽기)
📌 In the reading section, you might see sentence endings in multiple-choice questions where you have to pick the correct one.
💡 Example Question:
다음 문장에서 알맞은 문장 끝 표현을 고르세요.
(Choose the correct sentence ending for the sentence below.)
🚀 Question:
A: 오늘 저녁 같이 먹을래요?
B: 아, 미안해요. 저 지금 회사에 있어요. 오늘 야근해야 하 ____.
A) -네요
B) -거든요
C) -잖아요
D) -겠습니다
✅ Correct Answer: B) 거든요
✔️ 저 지금 회사에 있어요. 오늘 야근해야 하거든요. (I’m at work right now. I’ll have to work overtime today.)
Why?
* -거든요 is used when explaining a reason, which fits here because the speaker is giving background information about their situation.
👀 TIP: Pay attention to context clues to figure out which sentence ending best fits the sentence!
2) TOPIK Writing Section (쓰기)
📌 In the writing section, using the correct sentence ending is important for logical flow and nuance.
💡 Example Prompt:
"어떤 새로운 경험을 했을 때의 느낌을 설명하세요."
(Describe how you felt when experiencing something new.)
🚀 Strong Response:
🎯 “처음 한국에 갔을 때 모든 것이 신기했습니다. 특히 한국 음식이 정말 맛있었습니다!”
(When I first went to Korea, everything felt so new. Especially, the food was really delicious! – Expressing an impression.)
👀 TIP:
* As we have to keep formal in writing, use -습니다.
3) TOPIK Listening Section (듣기)
📌 In the listening section, sentence endings are used to show speaker intention—so knowing their meanings will help you choose the right answer.
💡 Example Question:
A: "이번 주말에 뭐 할 거예요?"
B: "친구랑 여행 갈 거예요. 제주도로 가거든요."
🚀 What does B mean?
A) They are unsure about their plans.
B) They are explaining why they are traveling.
C) They are asking for permission.
D) They are making a promise.
✅ Correct Answer: B) They are explaining why they are traveling.
👀 TIP: When you hear -거든요, expect a reason or background information!
Final TOPIK Strategy:
1️⃣ For Reading: Look at the sentence endings in answer choices to guess the speaker’s intent.
2️⃣ For Writing: Choose the right ending to match your tone and message.
3️⃣ For Listening: Pay attention to how speakers use endings to give reasons, emphasize, or express impressions.

Wow, we covered a lot today! Now, you know how different sentence endings like -거든요, -잖아요, -네요, and -지 can change the meaning and tone of a sentence. You’ve also learned how they appear in the TOPIK exam and how to use them naturally in conversation.
But don’t just listen—practice makes perfect! So, here’s your challenge for today:
📌 Your Challenge:
Write a short sentence using one of today’s sentence endings and post it on Instagram!
👉 Tag @korean.joaacademy and use #topikandbeyond, so I can check it out and give you feedback!
💬 Or, if you’re listening on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, send me a DM or leave a comment with your example sentence—I’d love to hear from you!
And one more thing—if you enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating or review! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Your reviews help more Korean learners discover this podcast and stay motivated on their language-learning journey. 💜
감사합니다, 여러분! Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode. 😊

#20: Korean Sentence Endings: How to Sound Natural & Express Emotion

📌 What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

📝 TOPIK Focus:

📣 Follow & Connect:

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