haru Korean › Grammar › Level 2A › V-아/어 버리다
V-아/어 버리다 — it's all over — 'went and …' (too bad, or what a relief)
It's all over — 'went and …' (too bad, or what a relief). Korean grammar for upper beginner learners — Level 2A, lesson 8: 정말 속상하겠어요 (You must be so upset — feelings and empathy).
What it means
-아/어 버리다 after a verb says that an action is completely over — it is gone, and there is no taking it back. There is usually a feeling behind it. Most often it is 'too bad': 버스가 떠나 버렸어요 'the bus went and left (without me)', 동생이 케이크를 다 먹어 버렸어요 'my brother went and ate the whole cake'. Sometimes it is 'what a relief' — something that weighed on you is out of the way: 숙제를 다 해 버렸어요! Make it from the -아요/어요 form: ㅏ or ㅗ → -아 버렸어요 (가 버렸어요, 닫아 버렸어요), other vowels → -어 버렸어요 (먹어 버렸어요, 울어 버렸어요), 하다 → 해 버렸어요. It is mostly used in the past, and the tense always goes on 버리다: 먹어 버렸어요, not 먹었어 버렸어요. You already know two words made this way, written as one word: 잊어버리다 'to forget' and 잃어버리다 'to lose'.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -아 버렸어요 | ㅏ · ㅗ | 가다 + 아 버렸어요 → 가 버렸어요 |
| -어 버렸어요 | 그 외 모음 | 먹다 + 어 버렸어요 → 먹어 버렸어요 |
| 해 버렸어요 | 하다 | 숙제하다 → 숙제해 버렸어요 |
Key points
- V-아/어 버렸어요 — it's all over: 떠나 버렸어요 · 먹어 버렸어요 · 해 버렸어요
- Usually 'too bad', sometimes 'what a relief': 숙제를 다 해 버렸어요!
Examples
- 버스가 떠났어요. → 버스가 떠나 버렸어요.
- ㅏ · ㅗ → -아 버렸어요: 가 버렸어요 · 닫아 버렸어요
- 그 외 → -어 버렸어요: 먹어 버렸어요 · 울어 버렸어요 · 지워 버렸어요
- 하다 → 해 버렸어요: 숙제를 다 해 버렸어요!
- 잊어버렸어요 · 잃어버렸어요 (붙여 써요)
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 2A, lesson 8; Ewha Womans University Korean 3-1, lesson 7; Hongik University Korean 3B, lesson 12; Hanyang University Korean 3-2, lesson 11; Yonsei University Korean 3-2, lesson 20.
Also in this lesson
- A/V-겠- (짐작 · 1B 복습·확장) — guessing from what you see or hear — 'must be …'
- A/V-(으)ㄹ 때 — when … — the time or the mood something happens in
- N 때문에 — because of … — giving the reason with a noun