3 · 40 words
How the body feels
Sleepy, dizzy, itchy, stiff, out of breath: saying how your body feels.
How the body feels, in the words Koreans use at the doctor’s and with friends. Many are a noun and a verb, and the body part is the subject: 목이 아프다, “the throat hurts”; 땀이 나다, “sweat comes out”. Korean rarely says “I have”: it says what the body is doing. Several adjectives change their stem before a vowel: 가렵다, 가려워요; 어지럽다, 어지러워요.
The words
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Verb (4)
졸리다to be sleepy, feel sleepyVerb3
어젯밤에 늦게 자서 너무 졸려요.I went to bed late last night, so I am really sleepy.
떨리다to shake, tremble; to be nervousVerb3
면접 전에 손이 떨렸어요.My hands were shaking before the interview.
Also simply “to be nervous”: 너무 떨려요.
지치다to be exhausted, worn outVerb3
하루 종일 걸어서 완전히 지쳤어요.I walked all day and I am completely worn out.
쑤시다to ache, throbVerb3
비가 오려고 하면 온몸이 쑤셔요.My whole body aches whenever it is about to rain.
This list belongs to The body and health — seven lists and 281 words that can also be practised as a whole.
Practise this list
Multiple choice and gaps, drawn from exactly these 40 words. Whatever you get wrong comes back tomorrow.