What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the verb 자다 (to sleep) in its connective form 자게 (so that [I] sleep) and 해줘 (do for me/let me).
Which one should you use?
While 자게 해줘 focuses on the permission to sleep, 그만해 (stop it) is often used in similar contexts to tell someone to stop bothering you.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
For more formal or polite situations, you can use 제발 자게 해주세요 (Please let me sleep) or 죄송하지만 조용히 자도록 해 주세요 (I'm sorry, but please let me sleep quietly).
Is it said differently in some regions?
In the Gyeongsang Province dialect, you may hear 자게 두라 to mean "let me sleep".
How does it change in a sentence?
To make the request more polite rather than casual, you can add 요 to the end of 자게 해줘 to say 자게 해줘요. For people you are not close with, the form 자게 해주세요 is a more formal and polite way to make the request.
How do you pronounce it?
jage haejwo
Did you know?
- While 자게 해줘 is a request for sleep, Koreans often use the term 꿀잠 (honey sleep) to describe a deep, sweet, and undisturbed slumber.
- In high-stress academic environments, Korean students use the term 벼락치기 (thunder-strike) for cramming, which often leads them to desperately use phrases like 자게 해줘 after all-night study sessions.
- Using 자게 해줘 with a superior or an elder would be a major social error, even if you are exhausted, because the casual form implies you are on equal footing or higher.
Examples in context
- 제발 좀 자게 해줘.jebal jom jage haejwo.Please, just let me sleep.
- 시끄러워, 자게 해줘.sikkeureowo, jage haejwo.It's noisy, let me sleep.
- 내일 일찍 가야 하니까 자게 해줘.naeil iljjik gaya hanikka jage haejwo.I have to go early tomorrow, so let me sleep.
Example conversation
Minji is trying to sleep while Dohyun keeps making noise in the room.
- 민지 Min-ji도현아, 너무 시끄러워.Dohyeon-a, neomu sikkeureowo.Dohyun, it is too noisy.
- 도현 Do-hyeon미안해, 금방 조용히 할게.Mianhae, geumbang joyonghi halge.I'm sorry, I'll be quiet right away.
- 민지 Min-ji제발 나 좀 자게 해줘.Jebal na jom jage haejwo.Please, just let me sleep.
- 도현 Do-hyeon응, 이제 조용히 할게.Eung, ije joyonghi halge.Okay, I'll be quiet now.
