TOPIK I · LEVEL 2
-았/었으면 좋겠다
-았/었으면 좋겠다 expresses a wish or hope: 'I wish …', 'I hope …'.
감정·희망Feelings, hopes & regretsHan: The fixed pattern is -았/었으면 좋겠다; 좋다 stays in the -겠- form.
Examples
방이 조금 더 넓었으면 좋겠어요.I wish the room were a bit bigger.
이번 토픽 시험에 꼭 합격했으면 좋겠어요.I really hope I pass the TOPIK this time.
내일 날씨가 좋았으면 좋겠어요.I hope the weather is nice tomorrow.
Don’t mix up
-았/었으면 좋겠다vs-고 싶다-고 싶다 = I want to do it myself; -았/었으면 좋겠다 = I wish something would happen, often outside my control.How to build it
V/A+았/었으면 좋겠다
오다 → 왔으면 좋겠어요, 크다 → 컸으면 좋겠어요
- The past-tense form 았/었 here doesn't mean past; it softens the wish.
- -(으)면 좋겠다 (without 았/었) is also used with nearly the same meaning.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 주말에 비가 안 오면 좋았어요.
Right: 주말에 비가 안 왔으면 좋겠어요.
The fixed pattern is -았/었으면 좋겠다; 좋다 stays in the -겠- form.
Practise -았/었으면 좋겠다 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -아/어하다-아/어하다 turns a feeling adjective (기쁘다, 무섭다…) into a verb that describes how someone else feels or behaves.
- -(으)면-(으)면 attaches to a verb or adjective to set a condition: "if X happens or is true, then Y," and it can also mean "whenever X" for things that regularly happen.
- -(으)ㄴ 지Shows how much time has passed since an action happened.
- -(으)ㄹ 것Ends a written instruction or rule with a noun-like command: 'do X; X is to be done'. Impersonal and firm; used in notices, exam instructions, memos and rule lists.
- -(으)ㄹ 때Attaches to a verb or adjective to say at what time or in what situation something happens: 'when …'.
- -(으)면 안 되다States that an action is not allowed or not acceptable: 'you must not… / it's not okay to…'.
- -(으)ㄹ 수 있다/없다Attach it to a verb to say that someone can or cannot do something, either because of their ability or because the situation allows or prevents it.
- -(으)ㄹ 줄 알다/모르다Use it to say whether someone knows how to do something, meaning a skill or method they have learned.
- -(으)ㄴ 후에Shows that the second action happens after the first action is finished.
