피곤하시겠어요
The Korean phrase for "you must be tired" is 피곤하시겠어요.
This phrase is often used as a sympathetic expression to acknowledge someone's hard work or long day, rather than just asking a question.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is built from the root 피곤하다 (to be tired), the honorific suffix –시-, the presumptive suffix –겠– and the polite ending –어요.
Which one should you use?
You might also see 피곤하겠어, which is the informal version used with close friends or people younger than you. It omits the honorific –시– and the polite ending –어요.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The form 피곤하시겠어요 uses the honorific –시– and the polite ending –어요, making it appropriate for speaking to someone older or in a higher social position. In contrast, 정말 힘들겠다 is a casual way to express concern for someone's fatigue among friends or people of similar age groups.
How does it change in a sentence?
The suffix –겠– is used here to express a logical assumption or a guess about the listener's state.
Did you know?
- When responding to 피곤하시겠어요, it is common to reply with a humble 아니에요 (no it isn't). This is not a denial of fatigue but a polite way to downplay one's own hardship to avoid burdening the listener.
- The word 피곤 in 피곤하다 originates from Hanja (Chinese characters), where 피 means 'fatigue' and 곤 means 'exhaustion'. It essentially doubles the meaning of tiredness within a single word.
- If you are the one who is tired, you would never use the presumptive suffix –겠– to describe your own state. Using 피곤하겠어요 for yourself would sound like you are guessing your own feelings from a third-person perspective.
Examples in context
- 오늘 하루 정말 피곤하시겠어요.oneul haru jeongmal pigonhasigesseoyo.You must be really tired from today.
- 밤샘 작업을 해서 피곤하시겠어요.bamsaem jageobeul haeseo pigonhasigesseoyo.You must be tired from working all night.
- 여행 다녀오셔서 피곤하시겠어요.yeohaeng danyeowosyeoseo pigonhasigesseoyo.You must be tired after your trip.
Example conversation
Hyunwoo notices Minji looking exhausted after a long workday.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo민지 씨, 오늘 정말 피곤하시겠어요.Minji ssi, oneul jeongmal pigonhasigesseoyo.Minji, you must be really tired today.
- 민지 Min-ji네, 회의가 너무 길었어요.Ne, hoeiga neomu gireosseoyo.Yes, the meeting was too long.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo빨리 들어가서 쉬세요.Ppalli deureogaseo swiseyo.Please go home and rest quickly.
- 민지 Min-ji감사합니다, 현우 씨.Gamsahamnida, Hyunwoo ssi.Thank you, Hyunwoo.
