TOPIK II · LEVEL 3
-(으)냐고 하다
You use it to pass on a question someone asked: "X asked whether / what / where …".
인용·전달Quoting & reportingHan: The friend asked a question, so it must be reported with -냐고; -다고 is for reporting statements.
Examples
어떤 분이 약국이 어디에 있냐고 해서 알려 드렸어요.Someone asked where the pharmacy was, so I told them.
친구가 저한테 주말에 시간 있냐고 물어봤어요.My friend asked me if I had time on the weekend.
엄마가 전화해서 밥 먹었냐고 하셨어요.Mom called and asked whether I had eaten.
선생님이 이게 누구 가방이냐고 물으셨어요.The teacher asked whose bag this was.
Don’t mix up
-(으)냐고 하다vs-다고 하다-다고 reports a statement, -냐고 reports a question: 비가 온다고 했어요 (said it's raining) vs 비가 오냐고 했어요 (asked if it's raining).
-(으)냐고 하다vs-자고 하다-자고 reports a suggestion "let's", -냐고 a question: 같이 가자고 했어요 (suggested going together) vs 같이 가냐고 했어요 (asked if we're going together).How to build it
V/A+(으)냐고 하다 (V: 냐고; A with final consonant: 으냐고 or 냐고)
N+(이)냐고 하다
past: 았/었냐고
가다 → 가냐고 해요, 먹다 → 먹냐고 했어요, 작다 → 작으냐고/작냐고 했어요, 학생 → 학생이냐고 했어요, 의사 → 의사냐고 했어요
- Tense of the original question goes before 냐고 (갔냐고, 갈 거냐고); the tense of the reporting verb 하다/묻다 shows when the question was asked.
- It is for questions only; statements use -다고 하다, suggestions -자고 하다, commands -(으)라고 하다.
- With verbs, speech usually uses 냐고 (먹냐고); formal writing often uses 느냐고 (먹느냐고). Don't attach 냐고 to a polite ending: not 가요냐고.
- In everyday speech 묻다/물어보다 is often used instead of 하다, and 냐고 하다 is often shortened to 냬요 (= 냐고 해요).
Classic mistake
Wrong: 친구가 저한테 어제 뭐 했다고 물어봤어요.
Right: 친구가 저한테 어제 뭐 했냐고 물어봤어요.
The friend asked a question, so it must be reported with -냐고; -다고 is for reporting statements.
Practise -(으)냐고 하다 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -(이)라고 (직접 인용)A particle placed right after words quoted exactly as they were said or written, followed by a verb such as 하다, 말하다, 묻다 or 쓰다.
- -(으)라고 하다Use -(으)라고 하다 to report what someone told another person to do, turning a command or request into indirect speech.
- -(느)ㄴ대요-(느)ㄴ대요 is the short spoken form of '-(느)ㄴ다고 해요': 'they say / I heard that …'.
- -(느)ㄴ다고 하다Use it to retell a statement someone made in your own words, like English 'he said that…'.
- -자고 하다Use -자고 하다 to report that someone suggested "let's do ~", that is, an action the speaker and the listener would do together.
- -(으)ㅁ-(으)ㅁ turns a verb or adjective into a noun; it is used in notes, notices, memos and written records.
- -(으)며-(으)며 is a formal, written 'and' (listing) or 'while' (two actions at once).
- -(이)야-(이)야 emphasizes a topic as obvious or as the only one meant: 'as for N, of course …'.
- -(으)ㄹ 겸-(으)ㄹ 겸 gives one of two or more purposes for a single action: 'partly to …, and also to …'.
