dallineun geon jaemiisseo.

Running is fun.

Breakdown of dallineun geon jaemiisseo.

• 재미있다: fun
• ~은: topic particle
• 달리다: to run
• 것: thing

Questions & Answers about dallineun geon jaemiisseo.

What does 달리는 건 literally mean and how is it formed?

달리는 건 comes from the verb 달리다 (“to run”). Here’s the breakdown:

• 달리- is the stem of 달리다.
• -는 turns the verb into its present–attributive (relative) form, like “running.”
• 것 means “thing” or “act,” so 달리는 것 is “the act of running.”
• -은 is the topic marker, making 달리는 것은 (“as for running”).
  In casual speech, 것은 often contracts to 건, giving 달리는 건.

Why is 것은 contracted to 건 here?

In spoken Korean, 것은 frequently becomes 건 to sound more natural and concise. The contraction happens because:

• 것 + 은 → 것은
• Rapid pronunciation slurs 것은 into 건
  This is common in informal contexts (반말).

Why do we use -는 before 것? What role does -는 play?

The ending -는 is the present–attributive form (현재형 관형사형) of a verb. It allows the verb to modify a noun:

• 달리다 (to run) → 달리는 (running)
  By saying 달리는 것, you treat “running” as a noun phrase (“the act of running”). Without , you couldn’t link directly to .