다정하다
dajeonghada
In Korean, the phrase for someone is sweet is 다정하다 (dajeonghada).
다정하다 is used to describe a person's personality or temperament. It specifically refers to someone who is kind, warm and attentive to others.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is composed of 다 (many) and 정 (affection/feeling), literally meaning 'having much affection'.
Which one should you use?
While 다정하다 describes a sweet personality, do not use 달콤하다 to describe a person. 달콤하다 refers specifically to the sweet taste of food or a sweet scent.
How does it change in a sentence?
To use this in a standard polite conversation, you change the dictionary form 다정하다 to the polite form 다정해요.
How do you pronounce it?
dajeonghada
Did you know?
- In romantic contexts, someone who is especially 'sweet' or attentive to their partner's needs is often described as being 스윗하다 (seu-wit-hada), which is a phonetic adaptation of the English word 'sweet'.
- The word 정 (jeong) is so central to the idea of being sweet that it also appears in 미운 정 (mi-un jeong), which refers to the 'affection' one develops for someone they actually dislike.
- While 다정하다 describes a sweet personality, Koreans use the word 츤데레 (tsundere), borrowed from Japanese, to describe someone who is sweet on the inside but acts cold on the outside.
Examples in context
- 그녀의 웃음 소리는 정말로 달콤하다.Her laughter is really sweet.
- 그 학생은 항상 상냥하고 다른 사람을 배려한다.That student is always kind and considerate towards others.
- 그는 성격이 참 다정하다.geuneun seonggyeogi cham dajeonghada.He has a very sweet personality.
