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Breakdown of achimmada keopireul masineun geosi seupgwanieyo.
~이~i
subject particle
마시다masida
to drink
~를~reul
object particle
이다ida
to be
것geos
thing
커피keopi
coffee
아침마다achimmada
every morning
습관seupgwan
habit
Questions & Answers about achimmada keopireul masineun geosi seupgwanieyo.
What does 마다 mean in 아침마다, and is it the same as 매일 아침?
마다 is a particle meaning “every,” attaching directly to a noun.
- 아침마다 = “every morning.”
You can also say 매일 아침, literally “daily morning.” In most contexts they’re interchangeable, but: - 아침마다 emphasizes each individual morning as a repeated event.
- 매일 아침 highlights the overall frequency (every day).
Why is the verb 마시다 written as 마시는 before 것이, and what's the role of 것 here?
Korean uses 것 to nominalize (turn into a noun) an action.
- 마시다 (“to drink”) becomes 마시는 것 (“the act of drinking”) by:
- 마시
- -는 (present attributive suffix) → 마시는
- Attach 것 → 마시는 것
This noun phrase can then serve as the subject of 습관이다.
- 마시
Why do we use 이 in 것이 instead of 가?
Korean has two subject markers: 이 (after a consonant) and 가 (after a vowel).
- 것 ends in the consonant ㅅ, so it takes 이 → 것이.
This marks 마시는 것 as the subject for the copula 이다.
What does 습관이에요 mean, and why is the polite ending -이에요 used here?
- 습관 = habit
- 이다 = the copula “to be” → 습관이다 = “to be a habit”
- -이에요 is the polite, informal style (존댓말).
You can adjust formality:
• Formal: 습관입니다
• Casual/familiar: 습관이야
Could we say 아침마다 커피를 마시는 게 습관이에요 or 아침마다 커피를 마시는 습관이 있어요? How do these compare?
1) 아침마다 커피를 마시는 게 습관이에요
- 게 is a colloquial contraction of 것이.
- Meaning is identical, just a bit more casual.
2) 아침마다 커피를 마시는 습관이 있어요 - Uses 습관이 있다 (“to have a habit of…”) instead of 습관이다.
- Translates as “I have a habit of drinking coffee every morning.”
Both are natural:- ~습관이에요 states the action itself is a habit.
- ~습관이 있어요 says you possess that habit.
More from this lesson
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“How do speech levels work in Korean?”
Korean has multiple speech levels that indicate formality and politeness. The most common are the formal polite (‑습니다/‑ㅂ니다), informal polite (‑아요/‑어요), and casual (‑아/‑어) forms. Which level you use depends on who you're speaking to and the social context.
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