3 · Further patterns
About: 에 대해(서) and 에 대한
the subject of talking, thinking and knowing
에 대해(서) says what you talk, think or know about; before a noun it becomes 에 대한.
To say what a conversation, a thought or a piece of knowledge is about, Korean puts the particle 에 on the noun and adds 대해 or 대해서 as a separate word: 한국 역사에 대해 공부해요, “I am studying Korean history” — more exactly, “I am studying about Korean history”. The form does not change after a vowel or a consonant, because 에 has only one form.
대해 is a frozen form of the verb 대하다, “to face”, so the phrase is literally “facing Korean history”. Because it is still a verb form, it cannot stand directly before a noun. There the modifier form 대한 takes over: 한국 역사에 대한 책, “a book about Korean history”. 에 대해 leads to a verb, 에 대한 leads to a noun — that is the whole rule, and it is the one English speakers break most often, because English uses “about” in both places.
에 대해 and 에 대해서 mean the same; 대해서 is simply the fuller form, and both are common in speech and writing. In writing you will also meet 에 대하여, and the near-synonym 에 관해(서) / 에 관한, which sounds more formal and suits reports, lectures and headlines. Another particle may follow: 그 문제에 대해서는 (as for that question), 그 문제에 대해서도 (about that question too).
Not every English “about” is 에 대해. With verbs that already take an object, Korean often prefers the object: 시험을 걱정해요, “I am worried about the exam”. And “about” in the sense of “roughly” is a different word altogether: 한 시간쯤, 약 한 시간.
The form
| before a verb | 역사에 대해 이야기해요. |
| the fuller form | 역사에 대해서 이야기해요. |
| before a noun | 역사에 대한 책 |
| with a further particle | 역사에 대해서는 잘 몰라요. |
| formal synonym | 역사에 관해 / 역사에 관한 책 |
| written form | 역사에 대하여 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
Before a verb use 에 대해 or 에 대해서; the two mean the same.
그 문제에 대해서 어떻게 생각하세요?What do you think about that problem?
Before a noun use 에 대한, the modifier form.
환경에 대한 책을 읽었어요.I read a book about the environment.
에 is written together with the noun, and 대해 stands after a space.
회의에서 새 계획에 대해 이야기했어요.We talked about the new plan at the meeting.
Another particle can follow: 에 대해서는, 에 대해서도.
그 소문에 대해서는 아무것도 몰라요.I know nothing about that rumour.
에 관해(서) and 에 관한 mean the same and sound more formal.
경제에 관한 기사를 매일 읽어요.I read articles about the economy every day.
A closer look
The verb inside the particle
대하다 is still an ordinary verb: 손님을 친절하게 대해요, “I treat the guests kindly”. In 에 대해 it has frozen into a grammatical word, but it keeps the behaviour of a verb, and that explains every form: 대해 and 대해서 are its linking forms, 대한 is its modifier form, and 대하여 is the older, uncontracted linking form that written Korean keeps.
The same shape returns in 에 관해 (from 관하다, “to concern”), 에 따라 (from 따르다, “to follow”) and 에 의해 (from 의하다, “to be based on”). Once you know that a verb form becomes a modifier before a noun, all four pairs follow the same pattern: 대해/대한, 관해/관한, 따라/따른, 의해/의한.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
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“about” means “roughly, approximately”
it is not 에 대해 but 쯤 after the number or 약 before it.
회의는 한 시간쯤 걸려요.The meeting takes about an hour.
에 대해 names a subject of thought or talk; it has nothing to do with quantity. English uses one word for both ideas, Korean two quite unrelated ones.
How to spot it
- 에 대해
- 에 대해서
- 에 대한
- 에 대하여
- 에 관해
- 에 관한
Example sentences
한국 역사에 대해 공부하고 있어요.I am studying Korean history.
저는 그 사람에 대해 잘 몰라요.I don't know much about that person.
이 영화에 대한 사람들의 반응이 좋아요.People's reaction to this film is good.
선생님께서 한국 음식 문화에 대해 설명해 주셨어요.The teacher explained Korean food culture to us.
여행에 대해 좀 물어봐도 돼요?May I ask you a few things about the trip?
건강에 대한 관심이 많아졌어요.I have become much more interested in health.
8 more example sentences
발표 주제에 대해서 아직 결정을 못 했어요.I haven't decided on the topic of my presentation yet.
부모님에 대한 고마움을 편지에 썼어요.I wrote about my gratitude to my parents in a letter.
이 일에 대해 누구한테 물어봐야 돼요?Whom should I ask about this matter?
그 책은 바다에 대한 이야기예요.That book is a story about the sea.
친구가 자기 고향에 대해 자주 이야기해요.My friend often talks about her home town.
그 일에 대해서도 나중에 이야기해요.Let's talk about that later too.
이 수업은 한국 문학에 관해 배우는 수업이에요.This class is one where you learn about Korean literature.
교통 문제에 대한 의견을 말해 주세요.Please tell us your opinion on the traffic problem.
Worth knowing (1)
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In titles and headings
Titles of books, talks and articles often end in a noun with 에 대한 or 에 관한 in front of it, because a title is a noun phrase, not a sentence: 한국 음식에 대한 이야기, “Stories about Korean food”.
오늘 강의 제목은 "도시의 소리에 관한 연구"예요.Today's lecture is called “A study of the sounds of the city”.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English says “about” before a noun and before a verb alike. Korean does not: 대해 is a verb form that leads on to a verb, so before a noun such as 책 it has to become the modifier 대한 — “a book that faces Korea”.
E daehae before a verb, e daehan before a noun.
Your turn
8 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.