TOPIK II · LEVEL 4
-에 비해(서)/-에 비하면
Compares something with N as the standard: 'compared to N, relative to N'. 에 비하면 adds an evaluation, often 'X is nothing compared to N'.
정도·비교Degree & comparisonHan: Price and taste are not the same kind of thing, so 보다 cannot compare them; judge the food relative to the price with 에 비해.
Examples
이 식당은 가격에 비해 양이 많아서 학생들에게 인기가 많아요.This restaurant gives big portions for the price, so it's popular with students.
처음 한국에 왔을 때에 비하면 지금은 한국어로 말하는 게 훨씬 편해요.Compared to when I first came to Korea, speaking Korean is much easier now.
올해 수출액은 지난해에 비해 약 8% 증가한 것으로 나타났다.This year's exports turned out to be about 8% higher than last year's.
Don’t mix up
-에 비해(서)/-에 비하면vs-보다보다 compares two things of the same kind directly; 에 비해 also judges something relative to a standard of another kind: 형보다 키가 커요 vs 가격에 비해 품질이 좋아요.-에 비해(서)/-에 비하면vs-(으)ㄴ/는 데 비해N에 비해 attaches to a noun; -(으)ㄴ/는 데 비해 to a clause: 나이에 비해 젊어 보여요 vs 나이가 많은 데 비해 젊어 보여요.How to build it
N+에 비해(서) / 에 비하여 (formal writing) / 에 비하면
작년 → 작년에 비해; 가격 → 가격에 비해; 나이 → 나이에 비하면
- N is the yardstick and the main clause gives the evaluated difference: 작년에 비해 10% 늘었다. It suits measurable changes, prices and quality.
- 에 비하여 is the formal written form (reports, news); 에 비해 is the general form and 에 비해서 is a little more spoken.
- 에 비하면 means 'if you compare it with N' and carries the speaker's judgement: 네 고생에 비하면 이건 아무것도 아니야.
- To compare with a whole clause rather than a noun, use -(으)ㄴ/는 데 비해: 비싼 데 비해 맛이 없다.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 이 식당은 가격보다 음식이 맛있어요.
Right: 이 식당은 가격에 비해 음식이 맛있어요.
Price and taste are not the same kind of thing, so 보다 cannot compare them; judge the food relative to the price with 에 비해.
Practise -에 비해(서)/-에 비하면 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -(으)ㄹ 뿐이다-(으)ㄹ 뿐이다 says that something is just this and nothing more, and is often used to downplay a fact or to sound modest.
- -(으)ㄹ 따름이다Says that something is simply this and nothing more; it is a formal, often humble way to say 'I merely…' or 'I can only feel…'.
- -(으)ㄹ 지경이다Says that a situation has become so bad that it has almost reached an extreme state, often as an exaggeration, like 'I'm about to die / go crazy'.
- -게 생겼다-게 생겼다 says you are about to end up in a bad (sometimes good) situation: 'I'm going to end up …'.
- -듯이Links two clauses by likeness: 'just as A, so B'. It also forms fixed similes such as 물 쓰듯이 ('like water') and 밥 먹듯이 ('as often as eating').
- -(으)나-(으)나 is a formal written 'but / however', linking two contrasting clauses.
- -(으)되-(으)되 states or allows a first action and then adds a condition or limit to it, in a formal or written style.
- -(이)면 (조사)Attaches to a noun to mean 'if it is N / whenever it is N'; repeated as N(이)면 N, it means 'in every field, whatever you name'.
- -(으)ㄹ 게 아니라Use it to say that doing X is not the right move, so you should do Y instead: "rather than doing X, do Y."
