Korean grammar · Level 4 · 4급
-(으)ㄹ 겸
Partly to…, partly to…
-(으)ㄹ 겸 gives two purposes for one action: “both to… and to…”. The full pattern is A-(으)ㄹ 겸 B-(으)ㄹ 겸, usually with 도 on each object. With nouns, use N 겸 N: 아침 겸 점심 (brunch).
| When | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ends in a vowel | -ㄹ 겸 | 쉬다 → 쉴 겸 · 쐬다 → 쐴 겸 |
| ends in a consonant | -을 겸 | 읽다 → 읽을 겸 |
| nouns | N 겸 N | 아침 겸 점심 · 거실 겸 공부방 |
Examples
편지도 읽을 겸 바람도 쐴 겸 소나무 아래에 왔어요.
I came to the pine tree to read the letter and get some fresh air.
운동도 할 겸 기분 전환도 할 겸 산책을 했어요.
I went for a walk, partly for exercise and partly for a change of mood.
아침 겸 점심으로 호떡을 먹었어요.
I had hotteok for brunch.
Practise it in context · Level 4, Unit 5
Words and proverbs
A dialogue with audio, practice that checks itself, Hoya’s mistakes, a reading and a writing task.
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