3 · Linking clauses, further
As soon as: -자마자
immediate sequence
-자마자 joins two events with no gap between them: the moment one happens, the other follows.
The ending goes on the bare stem and never changes its shape: 오자마자, 먹자마자, 끝나자마자, 도착하자마자. Stems ending in l keep it: 열자마자, 만들자마자.
It says that the second event follows the first immediately. The second clause can be in any tense and can even be a request: 집에 오자마자 잤어요, “I went to bed as soon as I got home”; 도착하자마자 전화하세요, “call as soon as you arrive”. The two clauses may have different subjects: 제가 들어가자마자 영화가 시작됐어요, “the film started the moment I walked in”.
Next to -고 나서 and -(으)ㄴ 후에, which only say “after”, -자마자 adds that nothing came in between. That is why it suits things that surprise, things done in a hurry and habits that leave no room: “the first thing I do when …”.
The mistake English speakers make is to copy the past tense of “as soon as I arrived” into the first clause: 도착했자마자 does not exist. The first clause stays bare, and the end of the sentence says when it all happened. Translating “as soon as” with -(으)면, “if, when”, loses the urgency.
The form
| after a vowel | 오자마자, 보자마자 |
| after a consonant | 먹자마자, 읽자마자 |
| 하다 verbs | 도착하자마자 |
| no tense before it | 집에 오자마자 잤어요. |
| with a request | 끝나자마자 연락하세요. |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
-자마자 goes on the bare stem and never changes its shape.
집에 오자마자 샤워를 했어요.As soon as I got home, I had a shower.
The first clause never takes a past tense; the end of the sentence sets the time.
수업이 끝나자마자 나갔어요.I left as soon as the class finished.
The second clause may be a request or a suggestion.
도착하자마자 문자 보내 주세요.Please send me a text as soon as you arrive.
The two clauses may have different subjects.
제가 밖에 나가자마자 비가 오기 시작했어요.The moment I went outside, it started to rain.
A closer look
As soon as, and as soon as I can
Korean has a second “as soon as”, -는 대로, and the two divide the work. -는 대로 is for something planned: 도착하는 대로 전화할게요, “I will call as soon as I arrive”, promises an action the speaker controls. It cannot tell a story about something that simply happened in the past.
-자마자 does both. It can promise (도착하자마자 전화할게요) and it can tell a story in which the second event simply happened: 문을 열자마자 고양이가 들어왔어요. When in doubt, -자마자 is the safe choice.
How to spot it
- -자마자
- 바로
Example sentences
아침에 일어나자마자 물을 한 잔 마셔요.As soon as I get up in the morning, I drink a glass of water.
그 사람을 보자마자 웃음이 났어요.The moment I saw him, I burst out laughing.
월급을 받자마자 다 써 버렸어요.I spent all my pay as soon as I got it.
영화가 시작되자마자 잠이 들었어요.I fell asleep as soon as the film started.
비행기가 도착하자마자 휴대폰을 켰어요.As soon as the plane landed, I switched my phone on.
시험이 끝나자마자 여행을 갈 거예요.As soon as the exams are over, I am going on a trip.
7 more example sentences
베개에 머리를 대자마자 잠들어요.I fall asleep as soon as my head touches the pillow.
졸업하자마자 취직했어요.I found a job as soon as I graduated.
불이 꺼지자마자 아이가 울기 시작했어요.As soon as the light went out, the child started crying.
이 책은 나오자마자 다 팔렸어요.This book sold out as soon as it came out.
밥을 먹자마자 누우면 안 좋아요.Lying down straight after a meal is not good for you.
집에 들어가자마자 손부터 씻어요.The first thing I do when I get home is wash my hands.
회의가 끝나자마자 연락드릴게요.I will contact you as soon as the meeting is over.
Worth knowing (1)
-
The shorter -자 of stories
In stories and in writing, -자 alone does a similar job: one event, and at once the next. It often introduces something the speaker noticed or did not expect.
문을 열자 고양이가 들어왔어요.When I opened the door, a cat came in.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
English puts both halves in the past: “as soon as I arrived, I slept”. Korean marks the past once, at the end, and leaves the stem before -자마자 bare. The same is true of almost every linking ending in this area.
Jamaja sits on the bare stem: no gap between the events, and no past tense before it.
Your turn
9 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.