balpyo jeone soni tteollyeoyo.

My hands shake before a presentation.

Breakdown of balpyo jeone soni tteollyeoyo.

• ~이: subject particle
• 전에: before
• 손: hand
• 발표: presentation

Questions & Answers about balpyo jeone soni tteollyeoyo.

What does the ending -전에 do here? Could I say 발표 전 or 발표하기 전에 instead?

• -전에 means “before (time).” It follows a noun to make an adverbial time phrase: 발표 전에 = “before the presentation.”
• 발표 전 is a noun phrase (“pre-presentation”), typically used to modify another noun, e.g., 발표 전 준비 (“pre-presentation prep”). By itself, it doesn’t function as an adverb unless you add a particle: 발표 전에는.
• 발표하기 전에 (“before presenting”) uses the verb nominalizer -기. Both 발표 전에 and 발표하기 전에 are natural; the former treats “presentation” as an event, the latter highlights the act of presenting. The difference is subtle in everyday speech.

Why is it 손이, not 손은?

• 이/가 marks the grammatical subject and often introduces or focuses new information: “(It’s) the hands (that) are trembling.”
• 은/는 is the topic marker and adds a contrast or generalization: 손은 떨려요 can imply “As for (my) hands, they tremble (perhaps unlike something else).”
• Here, 손이 is the default and most neutral.

Do I need to say 제 손이 to mean “my hands”?

No. Korean usually omits possessives for body parts when the owner is obvious from context. 손이 떨려요 is naturally understood as “my hands are trembling.” You can add 제 for clarity or contrast: 제 손이 떨려요 (“my hands (in particular) are trembling”).

Does 손 mean one hand or both hands? Why no 들?