Learn Hardcore Korean: oneul jeomsimi maseobseosseoyo.

Breakdown of oneul jeomsimi maseobseosseoyo.

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What does the subject marker 이 do here? Could I use 은/는 instead?

이 is the subject marker used after a noun ending in a consonant (here, 점심). It simply marks lunch as the grammatical subject: “(Today’s) lunch was not tasty.”
You can use 은/는 to make 오늘 점심은 맛없었어요, which adds a topic/contrast nuance: “As for today’s lunch, it wasn’t tasty (implying contrast with other meals or other days).”
You can also say 오늘은 점심이 맛없었어요 to make “as for today, (specifically) lunch was not tasty.”

Why can 오늘 appear without a particle? Should it be 오늘에 or 오늘의?

Time words like 오늘 commonly function as adverbials without any particle, so 오늘 점심이… is perfectly natural.
오늘에 is usually wrong here (it sounds like “at today”).
오늘의 점심 is grammatical but sounds written/formal; in everyday speech, 오늘 점심 is preferred.

Is 맛없었어요 past tense? Why is it -었- and not -았-?

Yes. 맛없었어요 is past polite: stem 맛없-
- past -었-
  - polite -어요.
The rule of thumb: stems with ㅏ or ㅗ take -았-; all others take -었-. The stem here contains ㅓ (from 없다), so it takes -었-.

Is 맛없다 an adjective or a verb?

In Korean grammar it’s a “descriptive verb” (형용사), which behaves like a verb in conjugation but corresponds to an adjective in English.
So you conjugate it like a verb: 맛없다 → 맛없어요 → 맛없었어요.

Is the spacing in 맛없었어요 correct? Can I write 맛 없었어요?

Write it as one word: 맛없었어요.
맛없다/맛있다 are lexicalized single words. Adding spaces (맛 없었어요) is considered a spacing error.

What’s the difference between 맛없었어요 and 맛이 없었어요?

Both are correct and mean essentially the same thing.
맛없었어요 is the single-word adjective “was tasteless/bad.”
맛이 없었어요 literally means “there was no taste,” and tends to sound a touch more neutral or matter-of-fact. Some feel 맛없었어요 can sound a bit stronger/blunter.

How is 맛없었어요 different from 맛있지 않았어요?

맛없었어요 = “It tasted bad.” Stronger, negative evaluation.
맛있지 않았어요 = “It wasn’t delicious.” Softer; it could mean just “not particularly good,” without insisting it was bad.

How do you pronounce the whole sentence naturally?

Careful reading: (RR) oneul jeomsimi mateopseosseoyo.
Natural pronunciation (rough): [오늘 점시미 마덥써요].
- 오늘 → [오늘]
- 점심이 → [점시미] (ㅅ before ㅣ sounds like [sh]-ish)
- 맛없었어요 → [마덥써요] (consonant assimilation/tensification around 없)
Don’t worry if you hear slight regional/individual variations; the key is that 없 often sounds like [업], and 없어/없었- often produce a tense [ss] sound.

Why can’t I say 점심을 맛없었어요?

맛없다 is a descriptive predicate and does not take an object marked by 을/를. The food being described is the subject or topic: 점심이/점심은 맛없었어요.

Can I drop the subject marker and just say 오늘 점심 맛없었어요?

Yes. Particles like 이/가 are often omitted in casual speech if the meaning is clear.
Variants you’ll hear:
- 오늘 점심이 맛없었어요.
- 오늘 점심은 맛없었어요.
- 오늘 점심 맛없었어요.
- 점심 맛없었어요. (if “today” is obvious from context)

How do I make this into a question?

How do I change the politeness level?

Informal: 맛없었어.
Polite (current): 맛없었어요.
Formal: 맛없었습니다.
Don’t use the honorific -시- here (맛없으셨어요), because you don’t honorify inanimate subjects like lunch.

If I’m still eating right now, should I use past or present?

How can I soften or intensify the statement?

Softer:
- 오늘 점심이 별로였어요. (It was so-so/not great.)
- 오늘 점심이 맛있지 않았어요. (It wasn’t delicious.)
Stronger:
- 오늘 점심이 정말/너무/진짜 맛없었어요.
- 오늘 점심이 최악이었어요. (Super strong: “It was the worst.”)

Are there other natural word orders?

Most natural: 오늘 점심이 맛없었어요.
Contrast/topic variations:
- 오늘 점심은 맛없었어요.
- 오늘은 점심이 맛없었어요.
Putting 오늘 after 점심이 is possible but less common: 점심이 오늘 맛없었어요 (marked/odd unless you’re emphasizing “today”).