-고 보면

Says that once you actually do something completely (get to know it, hear it out, think it through, let time pass), you see a truth that differs from your first impression.

시간·순서Time & sequence

Han: This is a one-time discovery that already happened, so -고 보니 is needed; -고 보면 is for general truths or predictions.

Examples

그 사람은 무뚝뚝해 보여도 알고 보면 정이 많은 사람이에요.He may look blunt, but once you get to know him, he's a really warm-hearted person.

끝까지 듣고 보면 그 사람 말도 틀린 건 아니에요.If you hear him out to the end, what he says isn't wrong either.

따지고 보면 이번 일은 우리 모두의 책임이에요.When you really think it through, this is all of our responsibility.

지나고 보면 힘들었던 시간도 다 좋은 추억이 될 거예요.Looking back later, even the hard times will all become good memories.

Don’t mix up

-고 보면vs-다(가) 보면-다 보면 = a repeated or continued action gradually leads to a result; -고 보면 = after one action is completed, a new view appears. 매일 연습하다 보면 실력이 늘 거예요.

-고 보면vs-고 보니(까)-고 보니 reports a specific discovery that actually happened in the past; -고 보면 states a general truth or prediction. 얘기를 듣고 보니 그 사람 마음이 이해됐어요.

How to build it

V+고 보면

알다 → 알고 보면, 따지다 → 따지고 보면

No tense marker before -고: say 알고 보면, not 알았고 보면; tense goes in the final clause.
It usually states a general truth or a prediction; for a one-time discovery in the past, use -고 보니(까) instead.
The second clause usually gives a fact, judgment or realization; commands and suggestions after it sound unnatural.
It is used mainly with a small set of verbs (알다, 듣다, 따지다, 생각하다, 지나다, 겪다), and 알고 보면 and 따지고 보면 work almost as set phrases.

Classic mistake

Wrong: ~~알고 보면 그 사람이 우리 사장님이었어요.~~

Right: 알고 보니 그 사람이 우리 사장님이었어요.

This is a one-time discovery that already happened, so -고 보니 is needed; -고 보면 is for general truths or predictions.

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