Korean Grammar Bank

WHENEVER & WHEN IN KOREAN

“When I do this”, “Whenever they’ll do that”… We will teach you how to express whenever and when in Korean in this lesson.

With an extra sentence structure for “about when” in Korean.

EXPRESSING WHEN

The following structure can be used to express when in Korean: Verb + ᄅ 때.

This structure is used to indicate a discrete time or moment and cannot be used for duration or for an exact time frame such as birthday, days of a week, a specific date, etc.

PATTERN

Verb + ᄅ 때

청소를할음악을틀어놓는다.

I put music on when I clean the house.

아침에일어났을기분이좋았다.

I felt good when I woke up this morning.
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내가 학교에 도착했을 비가오기 시작했다.When I arrived at school, it started raining.
너무더울는밖에나가지않는것이좋다.When it is too hot, it is better not to go out.
생선을구울창문을여는것이좋다.It is good to open the window when grilling fish.
그녀가 도착했을 마침 전화벨이 울리기 시작했다.When she arrived, the phone bell rang.
엄마가시장에갔을나는숙제를끝냈다.I finished my homework when my mom went to the market.
목이 마를 는 음료수보다는 물을 마셔야 한다.When you are thirsty, it is better to drink water than soda.
슬플는책을읽으면도움이된다.It is helpful to read a book when feeling sad.
공부를 할 조용한 분위기를 선호한다.I prefer a quite setting when I study.

“When” can be also expressed as noun + 때, but it is typically used in an informal and colloquial setting, and not for a formal and written setting.

PATTERN

Noun + 때

여름휴가 어디에 가셨어요?

Where did you go for summer vacation?

오늘저녁뭐해요?

What are you doing for dinner today?
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내생일받고싶은선물이있어요I have a gift I want to get for my birthday.
아침식사 신문 보는 것을 좋아해요.I like to read newspaper during breakfast.
크리스마스 가족이 다함께 모여요.All my family members get together at Christmas.
임신초기는 안정을 취해야 해요.It is good to stay rested at the beginning of pregnancy.
학생 공부를 열심히 해야 한다.When you are a student, you should study hard.
선생님은 회의 늦으셨어요.The teacher was late for the meeting.

EXPRESSING WHENEVER

To express whenever in Korean we would use the following structure: Verb + ᄅ 때마다.

PATTERN

Verb + ᄅ 때마다

내가 학교에 갈 때마다 비가왔다.

Whenever I went to school, it rained.

슬플 때마다 책을 읽었다.

Whenever I felt sad, I read a book.
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생선을구울때마다창문을여는것이좋다.It is good to open the window whenever grilling fish.
전화벨이 울릴때마다 아기가 깨어 울었다.Whenever the phone bell rang, the baby woke up and cried.
엄마가 시장에 갈 때마다 간식을 사주셨다.Whenever mom went to the market, she bought snack for me.
목이 마를 때마다 물을 조금씩 마셨다.Whenever I felt thirsty, I drank a bit of water.
청소를 할 때마다 음악을 틀어 놓는다.I put music on whenever I clean the house.
친구가 방문할 때마다 함께 영화를 본다.Whenever my friend visits me, we watch a movie together.
영화관에 갈 때마다 팝콘을 사먹는다.I buy popcorns whenever I go to the movie theatre.
여름에 더울 때마다 수영장에 간다.Whenever it gets hot in summer, I go to the swimming pool.

EXPRESSING AROUND WHEN

To express an estimated time point, such as “around the time”, following expressions can be used in Korean.

structure #1structure #2
Verb + ᄅ 때 즈음Verb + ᄅ 무렵

Let’s see some examples:

내가 학교에 갈때즈음 비가 왔다.
내가 학교에 갈무렵 비가 왔다.
Around the time I go to school, it started raining.
전화벨이 울릴 때즈음 아기가 울었다.
전화벨이 울릴 무렵 아기가 울었다.
Around the time the phone bell rang, the baby cried.
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생선을 구울 때즈음 동생이 창문을 열었다.
생선을 구울 무렵 동생이 창문을 열었다.
Around the time I grilled fish, my brother opened the window.
엄마가 시장에 갈 때즈음 간식을 먹었다.
엄마가 시장에 갈 무렵 간식을 먹었다.
Around the time mom went to the market, I ate my snack.
목이 마를 때즈음 수업이 끝났다.
목이 마를 무렵 수업이 끝났다.
Around the time I felt thirsty, the class was over.
잠이 올 때즈음 커피를 마셨다.
잠이 올 무렵 커피를 마셨다.
Around the time I felt sleepy, I drank a cup of coffee.
청소를 할 때즈음 친구가 방문했다.
청소를 할 무렵 친구가 방문했다.
Around the time I cleaned my room, a friend visited me.
영화가 시작할 때즈음 팝콘을 뜯었다.
영화가 시작할 무렵 팝콘을 뜯었다.
Around the time the movie started, I opened a bag of popcorn.

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FAQs

How to say When in Korean?

The following structure can be used to express when in Korean: Verb + ᄅ 때.

This structure is used to indicate a discrete time or moment and cannot be used for duration or for an exact time frame such as birthday, days of a week, a specific date, etc.

“When” can be also expressed as noun + 때, but it is typically used in an informal and colloquial setting, and not for a formal and written setting.

How to say Whenever in Korean?

To express whenever in Korean we would use the following structure: Verb + ᄅ 때마다.

How to say around when in Korean?

To express around when in Korean we used two structures:

#1 Verb + ᄅ 때 즈음

#2 Verb + ᄅ 무렵

How to make a formal suggestion in Korean?

To make a formal suggestion in Korean we use the structure Verb + ᄇ / 읍시다

다음주에 영화를 봅시다. Let’s go to see a movie next week.

오늘 저녁을 같이 먹읍시다. Let’s have dinner together today.

Learn more about suggestions in Korean here.

How to say might be in Korean?

In Korean, following expression can be used to express “might be/seem to”.

This expression is generally used in future tense.

Verb + ᄅ것 같다

Learn more about might be in Korean here.

Where to find more lessons like this?

You can visit our Korean Grammar Bank for more lessons on levels A1, A2 and B1.

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