yaksogi geuphaeseo jigeum baro nagalge.

subject particle

Breakdown of yaksogi geuphaeseo jigeum baro nagalge.

• 지금: now
• 약속: appointment
• 바로: right away

Questions & Answers about yaksogi geuphaeseo jigeum baro nagalge.

Does 약속 mean “promise” or “appointment” here?

In this sentence, 약속 means “appointment/plan” (plans with someone). It can also mean “promise” in other contexts, but with leaving right now, it naturally reads as “I have an urgent appointment.”

Why is it 약속이 and not 약속은 or 약속을?

약속이 marks 약속 as the subject of the descriptive verb 급하다 (“to be urgent”). 약속은 would add a contrastive/topic nuance (“as for the appointment, it’s urgent…”), which isn’t needed. 약속을 would be an object marker, but 급하다 doesn’t take an object.

Do I need to say “my appointment” (내 약속)?

No. Korean often omits possessive pronouns when the possessor is obvious from context. 약속이 급해서 is naturally understood as “my appointment is urgent.”

Is 약속이 급해서 natural? Are there more common alternatives?

It’s fine and understandable. Very natural alternatives you’ll hear a lot:

• 급한 약속이 있어서 지금 바로 나갈게.
• 급한 약속이 생겨서 지금 바로 나갈게. Many people also say 급한 일이 있어서… (“urgent matter”) in place of 약속.

What exactly is 급해서 grammatically? Is -서 the location particle?