Korean word

건

Pronunciation

Romanizationkeon

Meaning

  • pronounthat

Example

그건 너무 비싸.keu geon neo mu pi ssa

That is too expensive.

Illustration for 건 (that)

More examples

그건 제 얘기가 아니에요.keu geon che yae gi ga a ni e yo

That is not about me.

Core concept

A spoken pointer that puts an already known subject in the foreground or sets it against something else.

Common phrases

  • 그건 누구 거예요?keu geon nu gu keo ye yo

    ownership of that

  • 그건 어쩔 수 없어요keu geon eo jjeol ssu eop sseo yo

    unavoidable situation

  • 그건 잘 모르겠어요keu geon chal mo reu ge sseo yo

    uncertainty about that

Similar words

그거keugeo: A casual word for something recognized from the shared situation or earlier talk.
그keu: A demonstrative form for identifying a known person or thing from the context.
것keot: A regular noun for a thing or matter, including an action or state treated as a topic.

Definition in Korean

구어에서 '것'이 축약되어 생긴 말로, '이건' '그건' '저건'처럼 사용되어 말의 주제를 표시하거나 대비를 만들 때 쓰인다.ku eo e seo keot i chu gyak ttoe eo saeng gin mal lo i geon keu geon cheo geon cheo reom sa yong doe eo ma rui chu je reul pyo si ha geo na tae bi reul man deul ttae sseu in da

Word origin

건 (geon, "that/it") is a native Korean colloquial contraction rather than a borrowed word, formed to make reference to a thing shorter in speech.

Usage tips

  • This form is common in conversation, where Korean often leaves the exact noun unstated because the surrounding situation supplies it.

Other meanings

  • thingnoun
  • matternoun
  • casenoun

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word