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~아/어야 말이지: Expressing Annoyance that Something Must Happen
Vocabulary
Nouns:
악보 = sheet music
살맛 = livability
폭동 = riot
소재 = whereabouts
남획 = overfishing
단서 = clue
어종 = species of fish
개울 = brook
동해 = east sea
동해안 = east sea coast
사다리 = ladder
합창단 = choir
한복판 = absolute middle of something
용의자 = suspect (in crime)
담당자 = person in charge, person responsible
Verbs:
진압하다 = to suppress
수색하다 = to search for a person
넘어가다 = to go over and keep going
체포하다 = to arrest
수사하다 = to investigate
Adjectives:
잠잠하다 = to be calm, quiet
For help memorizing these words, try using our mobile app.
Introduction
In this lesson, you will continue to see how versatile the noun 말 can be. Specifically we will see how using 말 at the end of a sentence, but preceded by something different than the previous lesson, you can create an entirely different meaning. Let’s get started.
~아/어야 말이지: Expressing Annoyance that Something Must Happen
말 is one of the most versatile nouns in the Korean language. In the previous lesson, you saw that 말 can be used at the end of a sentence to have quite a complex meaning and nuance. There are other ways that 말 can be used at the end a sentence.
Let’s start without 말. If I were to simply say the following sentence:
그렇게 해야 돼
The speaker would be expressing that something must be done “that way.” There is no implied nuance, and the meaning is quite simple.
By attaching ~아/어야 to a verb or adjective and following it with 말 (and typically conjugated with 이다 + 지), you can get the following structure.
그렇게 해야 말이지
Here, the speaker is expressing that something must be done “that way.” However, there is a nuance that the speaker is frustrated over this situation, as it should be obvious to the listener. The speaker is expressing that they shouldn’t have to say this, but must in order to make the obvious fully known and clear.
That’s a lot of nuance wrapped into a few extra syllables. As always, it’s difficult to translate this nuance, but it could be something like:
그렇게 해야 말이지
= Of course, that’s the way it has to be done
= That’s what needs to happen
Without context it’s difficult to come up with a genuine translation. I created a situation with a bit more of a backstory to show this nuance:
합창단에서 노래를 부르려면 악보를 미리 받아야 하는데, 담당자가 아직 안 줬어. 이렇게 준비가 안 되면 연습을 어떻게 하라는 거야? 빨리 줘야 말이지!
= We need to get the sheet music in advance to sing in the choir, but the person in charge hasn’t given it to us yet. If we’re this unprepared, how can they tell us to practice? They need to give it to us quickly, you know!
Imagine you’re in a choir. You would definitely be frustrated if you weren’t given the sheet music in advance. The person in charge better give it to you quickly. Does this even need to be said? You would think it is obvious!
The italicized portion of the text above described the nuance that ~아/어야 말이지 carries. Let’s look at some more examples:
경제도 어렵고 월급도 오르지 않아서 요즘 살맛이 나려면 좀 더 안정된 직장이 있어야 말이지
= The economy is bad, and my salary isn’t increasing, so for life to feel worthwhile, I need a more stable job, you know!
In these sentences, how do I encompass the nuance that I described earlier? I will do it, as you see above, with “you know!” at the end of the English sentence. When reading the sentences I have provided, try to focus on the Korean sentence and think of the nuanced meaning I described above.
도심 한복판에서 또 폭동이 발생했대. 사람들이 불안하지 않으려면 경찰이 빨리 진압해야 말이지
= Another riot broke out in the middle of the city. If people aren’t going to feel anxious, the police need to control it quickly, you know!
날씨가 너무 더운데 근처 개울에서 발이라도 담그려면 물이 깨끗해야 말이지
= It’s so hot today, and I’d love to dip my feet in the brook, but the water needs to be clean, you know!
경찰이 용의자의 소재를 확인하지 못해서 수색을 진행하려고 해도 단서가 더 있어야 말이지
= The police haven’t confirmed the suspect’s whereabouts, so even if they wanted to continue the search, they need more clues, you know!
여름 휴가로 동해에 가고 싶은데 바닷물이 맑아야 말이지
= I want to go to the East Sea for summer vacation, but the water needs to be clear, you know!
이번 태풍으로 동해안의 피해가 심각한데 복구하려고 해도 정부의 지원이 빨리 와야 말이지
= The typhoon caused severe damage to the East Sea coast, and even if recovery were to happen, government support needs to come quickly, you know!
예전엔 이 바다에서 다양한 어종을 볼 수 있었는데, 남획이 너무 심해서 지금이라도 보호 대책이 마련되어야 말이지
= There used to be a variety of fish species in this sea, but overfishing has become too severe, so now we need conservation measures, you know!
지붕 수리를 하려면 높은 곳에 올라가야 하는데 튼튼한 사다리가 있어야 말이지
= I need to climb up high to fix the roof, but I need a sturdy ladder, you know!
이렇게 강한 바람이 불면 다리 위를 넘어가다가 위험할 수도 있어. 다리를 건너려고 해도 날씨가 좀 잠잠해야 말이지
= If the wind is this strong, it might be dangerous to go over the bridge. Even if you wanted to cross safely, the weather needs to calm down, you know!
범인이 계속 도망 다니고 있는데 경찰이 빨리 체포하다 못 하면 더 큰 사고가 날 수도 있어. 하루빨리 수사를 제대로 해야 말이지.
= The suspect keeps running away, and if the police don’t arrest them quickly, something worse could happen. They really need to conduct a proper investigation soon, you know!
That’s it for this lesson!