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Questions & Answers about eumagi johayo.
Why is 음악이 좋아요 often translated as “I like music” when it literally means “Music is good”?
Literally, 음악이 좋아요 is “Music is good.” In Korean, the descriptive verb 좋다 (“to be good”) is used to express liking something, so the thing you like becomes the subject. In English we use “I like music,” but in Korean you say “Music is good” to mean “I have a liking for music.”
What is the function of the particle 이 after 음악?
이 is the subject-marking particle used after a noun ending in a consonant (음악 ends in “ㄱ”). It tells us that 음악 is the subject of the sentence, the thing that “is good.” After a vowel-ending noun you’d use 가 instead.
Why isn’t 음악 marked with the object particle 을/를? Isn’t music the object of liking?
Because 좋다 is not a transitive verb in Korean—it’s a descriptive verb (adjective) meaning “to be good.” Thus the thing that’s “good” is the subject, not the object. If you want to use a transitive verb, you switch to 좋아하다, which takes an object marker.
What’s the difference between 좋다 and 좋아하다?
- 좋다 (descriptive verb): “to be good, to be likable.” You use the thing you like as the subject: 음악이 좋아요.
- 좋아하다 (action verb): “to like (actively).” You mark the thing you like with the object particle: 음악을 좋아해요. Both sentences mean “I like music,” but one uses a descriptive structure and the other an action verb.
What is the dictionary form of 좋아요, and why is it conjugated like that?
The dictionary form is 좋다. To make it polite and present tense, you drop -다 to get the stem 좋-, then add -아요, yielding 좋아요. This is standard polite speech (해요체).
What does the -요 ending signify? Can I drop it?
-요 marks polite (rather than casual or plain) speech. In informal/familiar situations (friends, kids), you can drop -요 and say 음악이 좋아. In very formal writing or speeches you might use 좋습니다 instead.
Could I replace 음악이 with 음악은? How does that change the nuance?
Yes. 음악은 좋아요 makes 음악 the topic rather than just the subject, implying a contrast or that you’re talking about music in particular (“As for music, it’s good”). It’s often used when comparing music to something else or when music has already been introduced in the conversation.
Is it possible to say 음악을 좋아해요 instead, and what’s the difference from 음악이 좋아요?
Yes. 음악을 좋아해요 uses the action verb 좋아하다 and the object marker 을. Both 음악이 좋아요 and 음악을 좋아해요 mean “I like music,” but:
- 음악이 좋아요: descriptive, “Music is good (to me).”
- 음악을 좋아해요: active verb, “I like music.” The second is more explicitly “I do the action of liking.”