Breakdown of gireul geonneogi jeone sinhodeungeul hwaginhaeyo.
Questions & Answers about gireul geonneogi jeone sinhodeungeul hwaginhaeyo.
-기 전에 means before doing (something).
To use it, you take a verb stem + -기 (a noun-forming ending) and then add 전에 (before).
- 건너다 (to cross) → stem 건너-
- 건너- + 기 → 건너기 = crossing (the act of crossing)
- 건너기 전에 = before crossing
So 길을 건너기 전에 literally means before (the act of) crossing the road.
-을/를 marks the direct object of the verb. Here, the thing being crossed is 길 (road), so it becomes:
- 길 + 을 → 길을 = the road (as the object)
It tells you that 길 is what you cross in 길을 건너다.
Yes. Korean can have more than one -을/를 phrase, especially when there are two different verbs/verb phrases or a structure like X before doing Y.
In this sentence:
- 길을 is the object of 건너다 (to cross)
- 신호등을 is the object of 확인하다 (to check/confirm)
So each object matches its own verb:
- 길을 건너기 전에 (before crossing the road)
- 신호등을 확인해요 (check the traffic light)
The dictionary form is 확인하다 (to check / to confirm).
Conjugation:
- 확인하다 → drop 다 → 확인하-
- In the 해요 style, 하다 verbs become 해요
- So 확인하 + 여요 contracts to 확인해요
Meaning-wise, 확인해요 here is usually advice/instruction: (You) check…
Grammatically, -해요 is a polite informal ending and can function as:
- a statement: (I/We) check…
- or (very commonly in context) a polite instruction/advice: (You) check…
In safety instructions, -해요 is often used like “Please do X,” especially in friendly, public-facing text.
If you want a clearer “please do” command, you might see:
- 확인하세요 (more explicitly “Please check.”)
- 확인하셔요/확인하세요 (with honorific nuance)
Korean often omits the subject when it’s obvious from context. In instructions like this, the implied subject is usually you (the listener/reader).
If you wanted to add it explicitly, you could say:
- 길을 건너기 전에 (당신은) 신호등을 확인해요.
But 당신 is often avoided in everyday Korean, so it’s usually left out.
Both are common.
- -기 전에 = before doing (a very standard pattern)
- -기 전 = a shortened/compact version, also meaning before doing
So these are both natural:
- 길을 건너기 전에 신호등을 확인해요.
- 길을 건너기 전 신호등을 확인해요.
Using 전에 can feel slightly more explicit/complete, but both are correct.
They’re related but not the same pattern.
- 건너기 전에 uses -기 (noun form) + 전에 → very common and natural.
- 건너지 전에 tries to use -지
- 전에, which is not the standard way to say “before doing.”
-지 usually appears in different grammar patterns (negation, questions, contrasts), not for “before.”
So prefer:
- 건너기 전에 (correct)
건너다 means to cross (something)—it focuses on crossing from one side to the other.
건너가다 adds 가다 (to go), making it feel more like go across (to the other side), emphasizing movement away from the speaker’s side.
Both can work depending on nuance:
- 길을 건너기 전에… (Before crossing the road…)
- 길을 건너가기 전에… (Before going across the road…)
For a general safety instruction, 건너다 is the simplest and most common.
Korean commonly places time/condition clauses before the main action.
Structure:
1) 길을 건너기 전에 = time/condition (before crossing the road)
2) 신호등을 확인해요 = main action (check the traffic light)
So it’s basically: Before X, do Y.
This is extremely typical Korean sentence flow.
Yes, 신호등 means traffic light (literally something like “signal lamp”).
Common related words:
- 신호 = signal
- 등 = lamp/light
- 신호등 = traffic light
In context, it implies checking whether it’s safe to cross (e.g., the pedestrian signal).
Common formal options:
길을 건너기 전에 신호등을 확인합니다.
Polite formal statement/instruction (often used in announcements/manuals)길을 건너기 전에 신호등을 확인하세요.
Polite request/command (very common for instructions)길을 건너기 전에 신호등을 확인하십시오.
Very formal / official command style
A few common ones:
- 길을 is often pronounced closer to [기를] because ㄹ + ㅇ across syllables flows smoothly.
- 신호등을: the ㅇ is silent at the start of a syllable; the word is 시-호-등-을.
- 확인해요: often sounds like 화기내요/화긴해요 in fast speech due to natural sound blending, but the standard careful pronunciation is 확인해요.
(Exact pronunciation varies by speaker speed, but these are the patterns learners often notice.)