haru Korean › Grammar › Level 5A › A/V-았/었던
A/V-았/었던 — the … I once … — looking back on a career and on moments that are over (Lesson 3B-5, now for life stories)
The … I once … — looking back on a career and on moments that are over (Lesson 3B-5, now for life stories). Korean grammar for advanced learners — Level 5A, lesson 3: 만나고 싶은 사람 (Someone I'd like to meet — an interview with a webtoon artist, a career in one sentence, AI-drawn pictures, and the first ten proverbs).
What it means
A/V-았/었던 N looks back at something that is over. You learned it in Lesson 3B-5 (어렸을 때 살았던 동네). Today it tells a career and a life: 보조 작가로 일했던 5년 'the five years I worked as an assistant', 처음 상을 받았던 날 'the day I first won a prize', 작았던 작업실 'the studio that used to be small'. With a noun use 이었던/였던: 보조 작가였던 지민 씨 'Jimin, who used to be an assistant'. In interviews -았/었던 것 같아요 looks back modestly: 그때가 제일 힘들었던 것 같아요 'I think that was the hardest time'.
Forms
| Pattern | When | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -았던 | ㅏ · ㅗ | 받다 → 받았던 |
| -었던 | 그 밖의 모음 · 하다 → 했던 | 그리다 → 그렸던 |
| N이었던/였던 | 명사 (받침 O 이었던 · X 였던) | 학생 → 학생이었던 |
Key points
- A/V-았/었던 N = the … that I once … (Lesson 3B-5): 일하다 → 일했던 · 받다 → 받았던 · 작다 → 작았던 · N이었던/였던 (보조 작가였던).
- Today: a life story — a role that has ended, a moment you remember, a state that changed. In interviews: -았/었던 것 같아요 (a modest look back). -던 = a habit or unfinished; -았/었던 = done and over.
Examples
- 지나간 일을 다시 생각하면서 말할 때 써요. 3B 5과에서 배운 문법이에요: 어렸을 때 살았던 동네.
- 오늘은 일과 삶의 이야기에 써요: 보조 작가로 일했던 5년 · 처음 상을 받았던 날 · 작았던 작업실.
- 명사는 이었던/였던: 보조 작가였던 지민 씨 · 학생이었던 그때.
- 인터뷰에서는 「-았/었던 것 같아요」를 많이 써요: 그때가 제일 힘들었던 것 같아요.
Where university textbooks teach it
This point also appears in: Seoul National University Korean 3B, lesson 14; Sogang University Korean 3B, lesson 7; Hongik University Korean 3A, lesson 3; Hanyang University Korean 4-1, lesson 6; Yonsei University Korean 2-2, lesson 15; Ewha Womans University Korean 2-2, lesson 15.
Also in this lesson
- V-(으)ㄴ 바 있다 — has (once) done … — citing a past record in formal writing and speech
- N을/를 시작으로 N을/를 거쳐 — starting with …, then through … — a career or a route in one sentence
- V-ㄴ/는다는 것이 — I meant to …, but (by mistake) … — when what you did is not what you meant