왜 슬퍼요?
The English phrase "why are you sad" is translated into Korean as 왜 슬퍼요?
The word 왜 means "why" in English.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of 왜 (why) and 슬퍼요 (to be sad in a polite form).
Which one should you use?
The default form 왜 슬퍼요? is polite and suitable for most social situations with people you are not intimately close to. In contrast, you can use the informal 왜 슬퍼? for close friends or people younger than you.
How does it change in a sentence?
The informal version 왜 슬퍼? is used with close friends or people younger than you.
Did you know?
- While 슬프다 is used for sadness, Koreans use the term 한 to describe a deep, collective feeling of sorrow and unresolved resentment. This is a cultural concept unique to the Korean identity and history.
- The word 왜 is a homonym that can also mean 'Japan' in a derogatory historical context. While the meaning is clear from the grammar of the sentence, the character 倭 is a distinct Sino-Korean word used to refer to the Japanese people.
- In Korean, when asking why someone is sad, you might omit the subject 'you' entirely. Saying just 왜 슬퍼요? is often more natural than including a pronoun, as Korean relies heavily on context to identify who is being discussed.
Examples in context
- 왜 많이 슬퍼?Why are you very sad?
- 갑자기 왜 슬퍼요?Gapjagi wae seulpeoyo?Why are you sad all of a sudden?
- 무슨 일이에요? 왜 슬퍼요?Museun irieyo? wae seulpeoyo?What happened? Why are you sad?
Example conversation
Hyunwoo sees Minji looking upset in the park.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo민지 씨, 왜 슬퍼요?Minji ssi, wae seulpeoyo?Minji, why are you sad?
- 민지 Min-ji그냥 좀 우울해요.Geunyang jom uulhaeyo.I'm just feeling a bit down.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo무슨 고민 있어요?Museun gomin isseoyo?Do you have something on your mind?
- 민지 Min-ji아니에요, 괜찮아요.Anieyo, gwaenchanayo.No, it's okay.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 왜, CC BY-SA 4.0.
