soni geonjohal ttaeneun rosyeoneul jogeum bareumyeon johayo.

subject particle

Breakdown of soni geonjohal ttaeneun rosyeoneul jogeum bareumyeon johayo.

• ~을: object particle
• ~는: topic particle
• 좋다: good

Questions & Answers about soni geonjohal ttaeneun rosyeoneul jogeum bareumyeon johayo.

Why is it 손이 and not 손은?

손이 uses the subject marker 이, because 손 is the thing being described as dry.

• 손이 건조하다 = the hands are dry
• Here, 건조하다 describes the condition of the hands, so 손 is the grammatical subject.

If you said 손은, it would sound more like you were setting up hands as a topic, possibly with contrast, such as As for the hands, they’re dry.

In this sentence, 손이 is the most natural choice.

What does 건조할 때는 mean, and why is there 는 after 때?

건조할 때 means when [the hands] are dry.

Then 는 is added to 때:

• 건조할 때 = when they are dry
• 건조할 때는 = when they are dry, as for that situation / in that case

This 는 gives a slight sense of topic or contrast. It often appears in advice sentences like this:

• 아플 때는 쉬세요. = When you’re sick, rest.
• 추울 때는 따뜻하게 입으세요. = When it’s cold, dress warmly.

So here, 때는 helps frame the sentence as general advice for that situation.

Why is it 건조할 before 때? Why not 건조한 때?