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Easy Korean - Level 6, Unit 20: As you know / Come on... (-잖아요)

In the final unit of Level 6, we will learn an incredibly common ending used in casual and polite conversation: -잖아요.

What does -잖아요 mean?

You use -잖아요 when you are stating a fact that you believe the listener already knows.

Depending on your tone of voice, it can translate to: * "As you know..." * "Don't you remember?" * "Come on, you know that..." * "I told you so!"

How to Conjugate

Just attach -잖아요 directly to the verb or adjective stem. No irregular changes are needed!

  • 가다 -> 가잖아요 (You know I am going)
  • 맛있다 -> 맛있잖아요 (Come on, you know it's delicious)
  • 알다 -> 알잖아요 (You know it! / You already know)

Past Tense: Attach to the past tense stem (-았/었/였) * 먹다 -> 먹었 -> 먹었잖아요 (You know I ate it / I already told you I ate it) * 했다 -> 했잖아요 (I did it, remember?)

Nouns: Add -(이)잖아요 * 학생 -> 학생이잖아요 (You know I'm a student) * 저 -> 저잖아요 (It's me, remember?)

Tone is Everything!

Because -잖아요 assumes the listener knows the fact, using it too strongly can sound annoyed ("I told you already!"). Using it softly sounds like a gentle reminder ("As you know...").

  • A: 왜 안 먹어요? (Why aren't you eating?) B: 저 다이어트 하잖아요. (You know I'm on a diet.)

  • A: 오늘 왜 이렇게 사람이 많아요? (Why are there so many people today?) B: 오늘 금요일이잖아요. (Come on, it's Friday, you know.)

  • A: 그 영화 진짜 슬펐어. (That movie was really sad.) B: 내가 슬플 거라고 했잖아요! (I TOLD you it would be sad!)

Example Sentences

  1. 이 식당은 항상 사람이 많잖아요. (As you know, this restaurant always has a lot of people.)
  2. 우리는 친구잖아요. (Come on, we're friends!)
  3. 어제 제가 말했잖아요. (I told you yesterday, remember?)