Expression of the Week

Seo Tae-soo: 명신이랑 송별회는 잘했어?

Did you have a good farewell party with Myung-shin?

Seo Ji-an: 응. 송별회는 잘했는데, 비행기표는 오픈으로 바꿨어.

Yes, we had a good party, but I changed my ticket to an open ticket.

아빠, 순진한 거야, 단순한 거야? 

Are you naïve or just simple-minded?

말하지 말랬다고, 우리 가족들이 말을 안 하겠어?

Did you think our family wouldn’t tell just because they were told not to?

나중에 나한테 죽을라고. 

They’d know I would kill them if I found out.

Seo Tae-soo: 다시 바꿔. 제 날짜에 가. 

Change the ticket. Leave when you were supposed to.

Seo Ji-an: 못 가. 

I can’t leave.

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못 가 (I can’t leave)

못 – adverb ‘not’ the word the negates the action represented by the ver that follows 

가 – verb ‘go’

Casual – 못 가

Semi-polite – 못 가요

Polite – 못 갑니다 

>>’못’ is an adverb that is usually used before a verb and negates the action represented by the verb. 

ex) 점심을 먹었다 vs 점심을 못 먹었다 

à 못 negates 먹었다 which means ‘to eat’ 

à I ate lunch vs I couldn’t eat lunch 

à 못 gives the impression that it wasn’t the speaker who did not want to have lunch but could not have it due to a particular reason

>>Although 가 usually means ‘go,’ in the dialogue it means ‘to leave’ as Tae-soo says “제 날짜에 가” which means Ji-an should leave on the set date