어젯밤 어땠어?
eojetbam eottaesseo?
In Korean, "how was your night?" is expressed as 어젯밤 어땠어? (eojetbam eottaesseo?)
This phrase is a question used to ask someone about their experiences or quality of sleep during the previous night. While 어젯밤 어땠어? asks about the night in general, Koreans more commonly use 잘 잤어? (Did you sleep well?) to ask about someone's night/sleep. You may also use 잘 주무셨어요? to ask "Did you sleep well?" or 좋은 꿈 꿨어요? to ask "Did you have good dreams?"
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase includes 어땠어?, which is the past tense of the verb 어떻다 (to be how/what kind of) and translates to "how was it?"
Which one should you use?
The shortened 밤 어땠어? is an informal way to ask how someone's night was.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The default form 어젯밤 어땠어? is used with friends or people younger than you. Use 어젯밤 어떠셨어요? when speaking to someone older than you or in a formal setting.
How do you pronounce it?
eojetbam eottaesseo?
Did you know?
- The phrase 어젯밤 어땠어? appears in its Middle Korean form as 어젯〮밤〮 in the 1459 text Worin seokbo.
- Korean uses a distinct honorific form 잘 주무셨어요? for the act of sleeping when addressing elders, which is different from the standard verb for sleep.
- While English speakers might ask 'how was your night?' to inquire about a party or an event, in Korean, the context of sleep is almost always implied unless you specify a different activity.
Examples in context
- 어젯밤 어땠어?eojetbam eottaesseo?How was your night?
- 어젯밤 어땠어? 별일 없었지?eojetbam eottaesseo? byeollil eopseotji?How was your night? Nothing unusual happened, right?
Example conversation
Ji-hoon and Seo-yeon are meeting for breakfast.
- 지훈 Ji-hun좋은 아침이야! 어젯밤 어땠어?joeun achim-iya! eojetbam eottaesseo?Good morning! How was your night?
- 서연 Seo-yeon완전 꿀잠 잤어. 너는?wanjeon kkuljam jasseo. neoneun?I slept like a baby. How about you?
- 지훈 Ji-hun나는 조금 뒤척였어.naneun jogeum dwicheok-yeosseo.I tossed and turned a bit.
- 서연 Seo-yeon커피 마시면 좀 나을 거야.keopi masimyeon jom naeul geoya.You'll feel better if you drink some coffee.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 어젯밤, CC BY-SA 4.0.
