haru Korean › Grammar › Level 3B › A/V-(으)ㄹ까 봐(서) —실수할까 봐 매일 연습하고 있어요
A/V-(으)ㄹ까 봐(서) —실수할까 봐 매일 연습하고 있어요 — in case … · worried that … — now also about the past and with nouns
In case … · worried that … — now also about the past and with nouns. Korean grammar for intermediate learners — Level 3B, lesson 4: 입고 있는 양복이 잘 어울려요 (That suit looks good on you — gatherings and dress).
What it means
You met -(으)ㄹ까 봐 in Lesson 2B-11: the first half is a worry — something you do not want — and the second half is what you do or did because of it: 실수할까 봐 매일 연습해요 'I practise every day in case I make a mistake'. Like -아/어서, it can take 서 with no change in meaning — 늦을까 봐서 택시를 탔어요 — and to answer a 왜요? question you can stop right there: 왜 일찍 왔어요? — 늦을까 봐서요. Today we widen it in two ways. When you are afraid something has already happened, put -았/었- in front: 벌써 끝났을까 봐 뛰어갔어요 'I ran there in case it had already finished', 친구가 화가 났을까 봐 걱정이에요 'I'm worried my friend may be upset'. With a noun, use N일까 봐 (from N이다): 비싼 식당일까 봐 돈을 더 가져갔어요. The worry is always the speaker's own, so the second half cannot be a request or a suggestion: not 늦을까 봐 일찍 오세요 but 늦지 않도록 일찍 오세요 (Lesson 3A-7) or 늦을 테니까 일찍 오세요 (Lesson 2B-6). The tense of what you did goes at the very end: 늦을까 봐 택시를 탔어요.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -(으)ㄹ까 봐(서) | 앞으로 일어날까 걱정 — 받침 O 을까 · 받침 X · ㄹ ㄹ까 · 명사 일까 | 늦다 + 을까 봐서 → 늦을까 봐서 |
| -았/었을까 봐(서) | 벌써 일어났을까 걱정 — 앞에 「벌써」가 자주 와요 | 끝나다 + 았을까 봐서 → 끝났을까 봐서 |
Key points
- -(으)ㄹ까 봐(서) = in case … (Lesson 2B-11): the worry first, then what you did about it — 늦을까 봐서 택시를 탔어요. 서 can be added, as with -아/어서; to answer 왜요?, just say …(으)ㄹ까 봐서요.
- Afraid it has already happened → -았/었을까 봐(서): 끝났을까 봐 · 화가 났을까 봐. With a noun → N일까 봐: 비싼 식당일까 봐. Never a request after it (-(으)세요 ✗) — use -도록 or -(으)ㄹ 테니까.
Examples
- 걱정 때문에 미리 무엇을 할 때 써요: 실수할까 봐서 매일 연습해요. (2B 11과 -(으)ㄹ까 봐)
- 서를 붙여도 돼요: 늦을까 봐 = 늦을까 봐서. 「왜요?」에는 짧게: 늦을까 봐서요.
- 벌써 일어났을까 봐 걱정할 때는 -았/었을까 봐(서): 벌써 끝났을까 봐 뛰어갔어요.
- 명사는 N일까 봐: 정장 모임일까 봐 양복을 입고 갔어요.
- 뒤에 -(으)세요 · -(으)ㅂ시다는 ✗ → 늦지 않도록 일찍 오세요. (3A 7과 -도록)
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 3B, lesson 13; Yonsei University Korean 3-1, lesson 10; Sogang University Korean 4A, lesson 4; Ewha Womans University Korean 3-1, lesson 1; Hongik University Korean 3A, lesson 4; Hanyang University Korean 4-1, lesson 2.
Also in this lesson
- V-고 있다 (착용) —검은 정장을 입고 있는 사람이 민수 씨예요 — wearing · carrying — what someone has on right now
- A/V-았어야/었어야 했는데 —정장을 입고 왔어야 했는데 — I should have … — regrets and apologies
- N보고 —유나 씨가 저보고 사회를 보라고 했어요 — (said) to me · told me to … — passing on what someone said to you