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gagyeogeun johgineun hajiman maseun geunyang geurae.

가격은 좋기는 하지만 맛은 그냥 그래.gagyeogeun johgineun hajiman maseun geunyang geurae.
The price is good, but the taste is just so-so.
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Questions & Answers about gagyeogeun johgineun hajiman maseun geunyang geurae.

What does the pattern -기는 하지만 add compared to a simple -지만?
  • -기는 하지만 means “it’s true that …, but …,” acknowledging the first point before downplaying it. It has a mild, concessive tone: “I’ll give you that it’s good, but…”
  • -지만 is more bare and direct: “it’s good, but …”
  • Spoken contractions are common: 좋기는 하지만 → 좋긴 하지만 / 좋긴 한데. The -한데 version is especially natural in speech.
Why use 은 on both 가격은 and 맛은? Could I use 이/가 instead? And what’s the difference between 맛은 and 맛이?
  • 은/는 marks topics and is perfect for contrast: 가격은 …, (하지만) 맛은 … = “as for the price…, but as for the taste…”
  • 이/가 marks the grammatical subject and tends to present neutral/new information.
  • You could say 가격이 좋기는 하지만 맛이 그냥 그래, and it’s grammatical, but using 은 on both sides makes the contrast sharper and more natural here.
  • 맛은 = “as for the taste (specifically), …” (contrastive/topical). 맛이 = “the taste (as the subject) …” (more neutral).
Is anything omitted here? What is the subject?
Yes. Korean often drops obvious subjects. The understood subject is the item being evaluated (e.g., a dish, a restaurant, a product). So it means “As for the price (of this thing) … as for the taste (of this thing) …”
What level of politeness is this, and how can I make it polite or formal?
  • The sentence ends in the plain style (그래), so it’s casual.
  • Polite: 가격은 좋기는 하지만 맛은 그냥 그래요.
  • Formal: 가격은 좋기는 하지만 맛은 그냥 그렇습니다.
What exactly does 그냥 그래 mean? Is it negative? Any alternatives?
  • 그냥 그래 = “just okay / so-so / meh.” It’s not strongly negative—more like lukewarm.
  • Polite: 그냥 그래요.
  • Alternatives:
    • Neutral/so-so: 그저 그래(요), 그럭저럭이에요.
    • More negative: 맛이 별로예요 (literally “not particularly (good)”—note 별로 normally pairs with a negative idea).
Does 가격이 좋다 mean “it’s cheap”? Is it natural?
  • 가격이 좋다 is natural and usually means “the price is good/attractive/reasonable,” often implying “good deal” or “affordable.”
  • Other common ways:
    • 싸다 = cheap (plain and direct).
    • 저렴하다 = inexpensive (politer).
    • 합리적이다 = reasonable.
    • 가성비가 좋다 = good value for money.
Why is there no 이다 (“to be”) after 가격 or 맛?
Because Korean descriptive words like 좋다 and 그렇다 function as verbs (descriptive verbs). You don’t add 이다. For example: 가격은 좋아요, 맛은 그래요.
Is 하지만 redundant if we already have -기는? Can I drop one?
  • -기는 by itself marks concession but doesn’t supply the “but.” You need a connector: -기는 하지만 or -긴 한데.
  • Natural options:
    • 가격은 좋기는 하지만 …
    • 가격은 좋긴 한데 …
  • Avoid forms like 가격은 좋기는 맛은 … (ungrammatical).
Can I say 가격은 좋지만 맛은 그냥 그래? What’s the nuance difference?
Yes. -지만 is perfectly fine and a bit more straightforward. -기는 하지만 sounds more “acknowledging” or softening, like “it is good, I admit, but…”
Do I have to repeat 맛은? Could I say … 하지만 그냥 그래?
You can drop 맛은 if context is crystal clear: 가격은 좋기는 하지만 그냥 그래. Repeating 맛은 makes the contrast explicit and balanced, which is stylistically neat and often preferred.