TOPIK II · LEVEL 3
-았/었다가
-았/었다가 means 'did A (completely) and then B', often B reverses or follows A: went and came back, put on and took off.
시간·순서Time & sequenceHan: -았/었다가 needs the same subject in both clauses.
Examples
옷을 입었다가 작아서 벗었어요.I put on the clothes, then took them off because they were too small.
창문을 열었다가 추워서 다시 닫았어요.I opened the window, then closed it again because it was cold.
도서관에 갔다가 문이 닫혀서 그냥 왔어요.I went to the library, but it was closed, so I just came back.
Don’t mix up
-았/었다가vs-다가-다가 = A was interrupted by B; -았/었다가 = A was finished, then B: 가다가 돌아왔어요 'turned back on the way' vs 갔다가 돌아왔어요 'went and came back'.How to build it
V+았다가 / 었다가 / 했다가
가다 → 갔다가, 입다 → 입었다가
- A is finished before B starts (unlike -다가, where A is interrupted).
- Same subject in both clauses.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 제가 시장에 갔다가 친구가 왔어요.
Right: 제가 시장에 갔다가 친구를 만났어요.
-았/었다가 needs the same subject in both clauses.
Practise -았/었다가 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -(으)며-(으)며 is a formal, written 'and' (listing) or 'while' (two actions at once).
- -(으)ㄴ 채(로)-(으)ㄴ 채(로) means doing something while a previous state is still kept: 'with … still on / still …ing'.
- -(으)ㄴ 다음에'After doing A, B': the second event follows the first. It means the same as -(으)ㄴ 후에 / -(으)ㄴ 뒤에 but sounds more conversational.
- -(으)ㄴ/는 김에Use it when you take the chance of doing one thing to also do another thing: 'while I'm at it, I'll also…'.
- -(으)ㄴ/는 대로Shows that an action is done exactly the way something was said, done, seen or planned.
- -고 나다Marks that an action has been fully completed before what follows; used in -고 나면 'once A is done', -고 나니(까) 'after A, (I found)…' and -고 난 후/뒤/다음에.
- -고 나서-고 나서 means "after (fully) finishing A, then B" and stresses that the first action is completed before the next begins.
- -는 길에-는 길에 means 'on the way to / while going somewhere': doing B along the way.
- -는 동안-는 동안 marks the whole stretch of time an action lasts, during which something else happens or continues.