haru Korean › Grammar › Level 4A › A/V-(으)며
A/V-(으)며 — and · while — the written way to join sentences
And · while — the written way to join sentences. Korean grammar for upper intermediate learners — Level 4A, lesson 9: 웃는 듯한 얼굴 (A face that seems to smile — looks, impressions and careful judgements).
What it means
-(으)며 joins two facts the way -고 does, but it belongs to writing and formal speech: 저는 밝은 성격이며 사람들과 이야기하는 것을 좋아합니다 'I have a cheerful personality and enjoy talking with people'. After a 받침 add -으며 (많으며, 웃으며, 밝으며); after a vowel or ㄹ add -며 (좋아하며, 살며 — the ㄹ stays); with a noun use 이다: 성격이며, 회사원이며. For something already done, put -았/었- in front — 활동했으며, 졸업했으며 — and then it is always -으며; in very formal writing even -겠- can go in (노력하겠으며 …). Like -(으)면서 (Lesson 1B-7), -(으)며 can also mean that two things happen at the same time: 웃으며 인사했습니다 'she greeted us with a smile', 거울을 보며 연습했습니다 'I practised looking in the mirror'. You hear -(으)며 in the news, in speeches and at ceremonies, and you write it in a 자기소개서, a report or an article, where -고 again and again would sound flat. In conversation with friends, -고 and -(으)면서 are still the natural choice: -(으)며 in a chat sounds bookish — sometimes funny.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -으며 | 받침 O (ㄹ 빼고) · 과거 -았/었- 뒤 | 많다 + 으며 → 많으며 |
| -며 | 받침 X · ㄹ 받침 · N이다 | 좋아하다 + 며 → 좋아하며 |
Key points
- -(으)며 = -고 (and) in writing: 받침 O → -으며 (많으며 · 웃으며) · 받침 X and ㄹ → -며 (좋아하며 · 살며) · N이다 → N이며 (성격이며 · 회사원이며). Already done → -았/었으며 (졸업했으며 · 활동했으며).
- It can also mean -(으)면서 (while): 웃으며 인사했습니다. You hear it in the news, in speeches and introductions, and you write it in a 자기소개서; with friends, -고 and -(으)면서 are still the natural choice.
Examples
- 글이나 발표에서 두 가지를 이어 말할 때 써요: 저는 밝은 성격이며 사람들과 이야기하는 것을 좋아합니다.
- 받침 O → -으며(많으며 · 웃으며), 받침 X · ㄹ → -며(좋아하며 · 살며), 명사 → N이며(성격이며 · 회사원이며).
- 지난 일은 -았/었으며: 대학에서 사진 동아리 회장으로 활동했으며 여러 행사를 준비했습니다.
- -(으)면서처럼 두 가지를 같이 할 때도 써요: 늘 웃으며 일하는 사원이 되겠습니다.
- 말할 때는 보통 -고 · -(으)면서, 자기소개서 · 기사 · 발표에서는 -(으)며를 많이 써요.
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 4A, lesson 8; Sogang University Korean 5A, lesson 2; Ewha Womans University Korean 4, lesson 2.
Also in this lesson
- A-(으)ㄴ 듯하다 · V-는 듯하다 · -(으)ㄹ 듯하다 — it seems … · as if … — the most careful way to judge from what you see
- A/V-듯(이) — as if … · like … — comparing one action with another, and painting a strong picture
- N(이)나마 — even if only … · it's not much, but … — offering the little you can