Korean grammar · Level 5
V-기 일쑤이다 · V-기 십상이다
It keeps happening · It's bound to happen — bad things, often or likely
Taught in Level 5, Unit 2: First quarter
at work you report two kinds of trouble — what keeps going wrong (the first day always slips) and what will go wrong if nobody is careful (skim a contract and you pay extra). Korean has a tidy pair for exactly that: -기 일쑤이다 and -기 십상이다.
Example
입사 첫해에는 서류를 빠뜨리기 일쑤였어요.
In my first year at the company, I was forever leaving out documents.
The full explanation is in the unit · part of the Level 5 Pass, opening soon · Level 5, Unit 2
Practise it in context · Level 5, Unit 2
First quarter
The rule with a table, Sori’s tips, practice that checks itself, a review room and a one-page cheat sheet.
See the unit preview →