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CERTAINTY & UNCERTAINTY IN KOREAN
Learn all the various structures needed to express both certainty and uncertainty in Korean.
Whether an event or action might happen or not, you’ll know how to express it, in all its nuances.
EXPRESSING CERTAINTY
In Korean, the following grammar structure can be used to express certainty on an event or an action.
PATTERN
Verb + 다고 / ᄅ 것이라고
A verb conjugated with 다고/ ᄅ것 이라고 is often followed by a verb “생각한다” or “확신한다” which means “think” and “be sure”, respectively.
Let’s see some examples:
I think (I am certain) that she will come to the party tomorrow.
| with 다고 | with ᄅ것 이라고 |
|---|---|
| 그녀가 내일 파티에 온다고 생각한다. | 그녀가 내일 파티에 올 것이라고 생각한다. |
I am sure that it will snow this afternoon.
| with 다고 | with ᄅ것 이라고 |
|---|---|
| 오후에 눈이 내린다고 확신한다. | 오후에 눈이 내릴 것이라고 확신한다. |
View More Phrases
I think (I am certain) that he is at home.
| 그가 집에 있다고 생각한다. | 그가 집에 있을 것이라고 생각한다. |
I am sure that my brother did his homework.
| 동생이 숙제를 했다고 확신한다. | 동생이 숙제를 했을 것이라고 확신한다.. |
WITH ADVERBS
Adverbs such as “꼭” or “분명히” can be used to emphasize the certainty.
PATTERN
Verb + 꼭 / 분명히 + 다고/ᄅ 것이라고
Examples on expressing certainty with adverbs:
I think she will certainly come to the party tomorrow.
| with 꼭 | with 분명히 |
|---|---|
| 그녀가 내일 파티에 꼭 온다고 생각한다. | 그녀가 내일 파티에 분명히 온다고 생각한다. |
View More Phrases
I bet it will snow this afternoon.
| with 꼭 | with 분명히 |
|---|---|
| 오후에 꼭 눈이 내린다고 확신한다. | 오후에 분명히 눈이 내린다고 확신한다. |
I think he is certainly at home.
| with 꼭 | with 분명히 |
|---|---|
| 그가 꼭 집에 있다고 생각한다. | 그가 분명히 집에 있다고 생각한다.. |
I am sure that my brother certainly did his homework.
| with 꼭 | with 분명히 |
|---|---|
| 동생이 꼭 숙제를 했다고 확신한다. | 동생이 분명히 숙제를 했다고 확신한다. |
EXPRESSING UNCERTAINTY
In Korean, different expressions can be used depending on the degree of uncertainty.
| Verb+ᄅ지 | Verb + 는지 | Verb + ᄊ는/을지 |
|---|---|---|
| #1 General uncertainty. The subject has no bias on the degree of uncertainty. | #1 The subject has bias on the degree of uncertainty, typically on the side that the event or action will not take place. | #1 General uncertainty for past event/action. |
| #2 Uncertainty on the future/present event | #2 Uncertainty on the present event |
A verb conjugated with ᄅ/ᄂ 지 is often followed by a verb “모른다” or “모르겠다,” which mean “I am not sure.”
So all together, verb + ᄅ/ᄂ 지 모른다 or 모르겠다 express the subject’s uncertainty on something (the object), where the object is a likely event or action.
In both cases, if “도” is added after ᄅ지 or 는지, the subject is more certain that the event/action is likely to happen.
EXAMPLE #1
I am not sure whether she will come to the party tomorrow
| korean | notes |
|---|---|
| 그녀가 내일 파티에 올지 모르겠다. | The subject is not sure without a bias |
| 그녀가 내일 파티에 오는지 모르겠다. | The subject is more certain on the side that she will not come to the party tomorrow |
|
그녀가 내일 파티에 올지도 모르겠다.
그녀가 내일 파티에 오는지도모르겠다. | The subject is more certain that she is likely to come to the party tomorrow |
EXAMPLE #2
I am not sure whether it will snow this afternoon.
| korean | notes |
|---|---|
| 오후에 눈이 내릴지 모르겠다. | The subject is not sure without a bias |
| 오후에 눈이 내리는지 모르겠다. | The subject is more certain on the side that it will not snow |
|
오후에 눈이 내릴지도 모르겠다.
오후에 눈이 내리는지도 모르겠다. | Both sentences mean “I think it may snow this afternoon.” The subject is more certain that it is likely to snow this afternoon |
EXAMPLE #3
| korean | english | notes |
|---|---|---|
| 그가 집에 있을지 모르겠다. | I am not sure whether he is at home. | The subject is not sure without a bias |
| 그가 집에 있는지 모르겠다. | I am not sure whether he will be at home. | The subject is more certain on the side that he is not at home |
EXAMPLE #4
| korean | english | notes |
|---|---|---|
|
동생이 숙제를 했는지 모르겠다.
동생이 숙제를 했을지 모르겠다. | Both sentences mean “I am not sure whether my brother did his homework” | The subject is not sure without a bias |
|
동생이 숙제를 했는지도 모르겠다.
동생이 숙제를 했을지도 모르겠다. | Both sentences mean “I think my brother may have done his homework.” |
(UN)CERTAINTY FOR AN UNLIKELY EVENT/ ACTION
To express certainty or uncertainty for an unlikely event or action, simply add ‘안’ in front of the verb. There is a slight difference between the expression for certainty and that for uncertainty.
EXPRESSING CERTAINTY FOR AN UNLIKELY EVENT OR ACTION
PATTERN #1
안 + Verb + 다고/ᄅ 것이라고
PATTERN #2
Verb+ 않 +는 다고/ᄅ 것이라고
*For the verb “이다” the opposite verb “없다” is used instead of adding “안” in front of the verb. Examples on expressing certainty on an unlikely event.
I think (I am certain) that she will not come to the party tomorrow.
| 그녀가내일파티에안온다고 생각한다. | 그녀가내일파티에안올것이라고 생각한다. |
| 그녀가 내일 파티에 오지 않는다고 생각한다. | 그녀가내일파티에오지않을 것이라고 생각한다. |
View More Phrases
I am sure that it will not snow this afternoon.
| 오후에 눈이 안 내린다고 확신한다. | 오후에눈이안내릴것이라고확신한다. |
| 오후에 눈이 내리지 않는다고확신한다. | 오후에 눈이 내리지 않을 것이라고확신한다. |
I am sure that he is not at home.
| 그가 집에 없다고 확신한다. | 그가 집에 없을 것이라고 확신한다. |
EXPRESSING UNCERTAINTY FOR AN UNLIKELY EVENT OR ACTION
PATTERN #1
Verb + ᄅ지 + 안+ Verb + ᄅ지
| I am not sure whether she will come to the party tomorrow or not. | 그녀가 내일 파티에 올지 안올지 모르겠다. |
| I am not sure whether it will snow this afternoon or not. | 오후에 눈이 내릴지 안내릴지 모르겠다. |
PATTERN #2
Verb + 는지+안 + Verb + 는지
| I am not sure whether she will come to the party tomorrow or not. | 그녀가 내일 파티에 오는지 안오는지 모르겠다. |
| I am not sure whether it will snow this afternoon or not. | 오후에 눈이 내리는지 안내리는지 모르겠다.. |
PATTERN #3
Verb + ᄊ는 / 을지+ 안 + Verb + ᄊ는 / 을지
I am not sure whether he is at home or not. |
그가 집에 있을지 없을지 모르겠다.
그가 집에 있는지 없는지 모르겠다. |
*For the verb “이다” the opposite verb “없다” is used instead of adding “안” in front of the verb.
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FAQs
How to express certainty in Korean?
In Korean, following expression can be used to express certainty on an event or an action.
Verb + 다고/ᄅ 것이라고
A verb conjugated with 다고/ ᄅ것 이라고 is often followed by a verb “생각한다” or “확신한다” which means “think” and “be sure”, respectively.
Example:
I think (I am certain) that she will come to the party tomorrow.
그녀가 내일 파티에 온다고 생각한다.
그녀가 내일 파티에 올 것이라고 생각한다.
How to express uncertainty in Korean?
In Korean, different expressions can be used depending on the degree of uncertainty.
VERB+ᄅ지
#1 General uncertainty. The subject has no bias on the degree of uncertainty.
#2 Uncertainty on the future/present event.
VERB + 는지
#1 The subject has bias on the degree of uncertainty, typically on the side that the event or action will not take place.
#2 Uncertainty on the present event
VERB + ᄊ는/을지
#1 General uncertainty for past event/action.
— View our full lesson for sentence examples.
What is 꼭 used for?
Adverbs such as “꼭” or “분명히” can be used to emphasise the certainty of an event/action happening.
Verb + 꼭 / 분명히 + 다고/ᄅ 것이라고
Examples:
I think she will certainly come to the party tomorrow.
그녀가 내일 파티에 꼭 온다고 생각한다.
그녀가 내일 파티에 분명히 온다고 생각한다.
Any sentences to express certainty in Korean?
I am sure that it will snow this afternoon.
WITH 다고
오후에 눈이 내린다고 확신한다.
WITH ᄅ것 이라고
오후에 눈이 내릴 것이라고 확신한다.
—
I think (I am certain) that he is at home.
WITH 다고
그가 집에 있다고 생각한다.
WITH ᄅ것 이라고
그가 집에 있을 것이라고 생각한다.
Any sentences to express uncertainty?
I am not sure whether she will come to the party tomorrow.
그녀가 내일 파티에 올지 모르겠다.
I am not sure whether it will snow this afternoon.
오후에 눈이 내리는지 모르겠다.
Where to find more lessons like this?
You can visit our Korean Grammar Bank for more lessons on levels A1, A2 and B1.