3 · Sentence endings that add a stance
Almost: -(으)ㄹ 뻔하다
the near miss
Something nearly happened and then did not — usually something bad you narrowly escaped.
The pattern is the future noun-modifier -을 followed by 뻔하다, with a space between them. After a consonant it is -을 뻔하다 (잊을 뻔했어요), after a vowel an l on the last syllable (넘어질 뻔했어요), and a stem in rieul adds nothing (울 뻔했어요).
It describes a near miss: the thing was about to happen, and it did not. 넘어질 뻔했어요 is “I almost fell” — and I did not. Because a near miss is always over, 뻔하다 is practically always in the past: 뻔했어요, 뻔했습니다, 뻔했다.
It is often introduced by 하마터면, “very nearly, within a hair”, which appears almost only in this kind of sentence. It is also the pattern of exaggeration: 배고파서 죽을 뻔했어요, “I was starving to death”, and 웃겨서 죽을 뻔했어요, “I nearly died laughing”.
English “almost” covers two different ideas, and Korean splits them. 거의 says how much happened: 거의 다 먹었어요, “I've eaten almost all of it” — most of it did happen. -을 뻔했다 says it did not happen at all. Koreans sometimes put the two together for emphasis: 거의 넘어질 뻔했어요.
The form
| after a vowel | 넘어지다 → 넘어질 뻔했어요 |
| after a consonant | 잊다 → 잊을 뻔했어요 |
| a stem in rieul | 울다 → 울 뻔했어요 |
| with “very nearly” | 하마터면 잊을 뻔했어요 |
| formal | 다칠 뻔했습니다 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
The modifier -을 comes before 뻔하다, with a space.
계단에서 넘어질 뻔했어요.I almost fell on the stairs.
It is practically always in the past: the thing nearly happened and then did not.
하마터면 비행기를 못 탈 뻔했어요.I very nearly missed my flight.
It also exaggerates: “I nearly died of …”.
배고파서 죽을 뻔했어요.I was starving to death.
Unlike 거의, it says the thing did not happen at all.
시험에 떨어질 뻔했어요.I nearly failed the exam.
A closer look
Relief and regret
Most near misses are bad things escaped, and the sentence carries relief: 다칠 뻔했어요, “I nearly got hurt”. With something good, the same pattern carries regret: 일등을 할 뻔했어요, “I nearly came first” — but did not.
After a condition in the past, -았/었으면, it says what would almost have happened: 조금만 늦게 왔으면 큰일 날 뻔했어요, “if we had come a little later, it would have been a disaster”.
How to spot it
- -을 뻔했어요
- 하마터면
- 죽을 뻔했어요
Example sentences
하마터면 차에 치일 뻔했어요.I very nearly got hit by a car.
늦잠을 자서 지각할 뻔했어요.I overslept and was almost late.
친구 생일을 잊을 뻔했어요.I almost forgot my friend's birthday.
영화가 너무 슬퍼서 울 뻔했어요.The film was so sad I almost cried.
길이 미끄러워서 넘어질 뻔했어요.The road was slippery and I almost fell.
너무 웃겨서 죽을 뻔했어요.It was so funny I nearly died laughing.
8 more example sentences
지갑을 택시에 두고 내릴 뻔했어요.I almost left my wallet in the taxi.
깜빡하고 약을 안 먹을 뻔했어요.I almost forgot to take my medicine.
버스를 잘못 탈 뻔했어요.I almost got on the wrong bus.
요리하다가 손을 다칠 뻔했어요.I nearly hurt my hand while cooking.
물이 너무 뜨거워서 델 뻔했어요.The water was so hot I almost burnt myself.
하마터면 비밀을 말할 뻔했어요.I very nearly let the secret slip.
전화 소리에 놀라서 컵을 떨어뜨릴 뻔했어요.The phone startled me and I nearly dropped the cup.
마지막 기차를 못 탈 뻔했어요.I nearly missed the last train.
Worth knowing (2)
-
If …, it would have …
With a condition in the past, the pattern says what would almost have happened, which is how Koreans say “it's a good thing that …”.
우산을 안 가져왔으면 다 젖을 뻔했어요.If I hadn't brought an umbrella, I'd have got soaked.
-
Not the adjective 뻔하다
The adjective 뻔하다, “obvious, predictable”, is a different word: 뻔한 이야기 is a story whose ending you can guess. In the near-miss pattern, 뻔하다 only ever follows a verb in -을, or in a bare l after a vowel: 잊을 뻔했어요, 울 뻔했어요.
그 드라마는 결말이 너무 뻔해요.The ending of that drama is far too predictable.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
A near miss is something that did not happen, and by the time you can say so it is over. 뻔하다 therefore goes into the past, even when the event was only this morning.
Almost, but it did not happen: -(eu)l ppeonhaesseoyo, always in the past.
Your turn
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