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Questions & Answers about beoseujeongryujangeseo beoseureul gidaryeo bon jeogi isseoyo?
What does 버스정류장에서 mean here?
- 버스정류장 means “bus stop.”
- The particle 에서 marks the location where an action takes place, so 버스정류장에서 literally means “at the bus stop.”
Why is the particle 에서 used instead of 에?
- 에 can mark existence (“at,” as in “I am at home”) or destination (“to”).
- 에서 specifically marks the place where an action occurs. Since 기다리다 (“to wait”) is an action happening at the bus stop, we use 버스정류장에서.
Why does the sentence mention 버스 twice?
- The first 버스 is part of 버스정류장 (“bus stop”).
- The second 버스를 is the direct object of 기다리다 (“to wait for the bus”).
- In English you’d say “at the bus stop” and “wait for the bus,” so Korean also uses two instances of 버스.
What does 기다려 본 적이 있어요? mean grammatically?
- This is the experience-past construction: Verb-(으)ㄴ/아 본 적이 있다, meaning “have you ever done Verb…?”
- Here 기다리다 (“to wait”) becomes 기다려 본 적이 있다, so the whole sentence asks, “Have you ever tried waiting (for a bus) at a bus stop?”
How do you form Verb-아/어 본 적이 있다?
- Take the verb stem: 기다리 from 기다리다.
- Add -아/어 according to vowel harmony: 기다리 + 어 = 기다려.
- Attach 본 적이 있다 (past participle 본
- 적 “experience” + 있다 “to have”).
→ 기다려 본 적이 있어요?
- 적 “experience” + 있다 “to have”).
What’s the difference between 기다려 봤어요? and 기다려 본 적이 있어요?
- 기다려 봤어요? is the casual past tense of “tried waiting,” more like “Did you try waiting?”
- 기다려 본 적이 있어요? emphasizes life experience: “Have you ever waited?” It’s more general and asks if that experience has ever happened.
Why can we omit the subject in this sentence?
- Korean often drops pronouns when context makes them clear.
- Here, it’s understood you’re asking “you,” so 당신이 or 너가 is omitted, making the sentence more natural: 버스정류장에서 버스를 기다려 본 적이 있어요?
Is the intonation important when asking this question?
- Yes. A rising intonation at the end indicates a question in spoken Korean.
- In writing, the question mark “?” also shows it’s a question.
- Without rising intonation, it could sound like a statement or rhetorical question.