TOPIK II · LEVEL 5
-는 법이다
States that something naturally happens, or is supposed to be done, as a general rule of life or common sense.
추측·판단Guessing & judgingHan: 쓰다 'to be bitter' is an adjective, so it takes -(으)ㄴ 법이다, not -는 법이다.
Examples
남의 집에 갈 때는 미리 연락하는 법이에요.When you visit someone's home, you're supposed to let them know in advance.
좋은 약은 입에 쓴 법이다.Good medicine tastes bitter.
시간이 지나면 힘든 기억도 잊히는 법이죠.As time passes, even painful memories fade.
누구나 처음에는 실수하는 법이에요.Everyone makes mistakes at first; that's only natural.
Don’t mix up
-는 법이다vs-기 마련이다Both state natural results, but only -는 법이다 can also express a social norm ('that's how it should be done'): 사람은 누구나 늙기 마련이다 (natural result) vs 어른께는 먼저 인사하는 법이다 (norm).-는 법이다vs-는 법이 없다The negative form meaning 'it is never the case that...'. It can state a general truth (세상에 공짜가 있는 법이 없다, there is no such thing as a free lunch) or describe what a specific person never does (그는 약속에 늦는 법이 없다, he is never late).
-는 법이다vs-(으)ㄹ 수밖에 없다Means there was no other choice in a specific situation, and it can describe a past event: 비가 와서 경기를 취소할 수밖에 없었다.How to build it
V+는 법이다
A+(으)ㄴ 법이다 (있다/없다 and words ending in them → 있는/없는 법이다)
실수하다 → 실수하는 법이다; 쓰다(쓴맛) → 쓴 법이다
- Use the present form before 법이다: it states a timeless truth, so past forms like 실수했는 법이다 are wrong. To talk about the past, put 법이다 itself in the past: 실수하는 법이었다.
- Action verbs take -는. Adjectives take -(으)ㄴ, not -는: 쓴 법이다, 힘든 법이다. 있다/없다 and words ending in them (맛있다, 재미없다) take -는: 맛있는 집은 사람이 많은 법이다.
- It describes what is generally true for people or things, not one specific event: 어제 민수가 늦게 온 법이다 is wrong.
- It is used in statements (법이다, 법이에요, 법이죠), not in commands or suggestions; said to a senior it can sound preachy.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 좋은 약은 입에 쓰는 법이다.
Right: 좋은 약은 입에 쓴 법이다.
쓰다 'to be bitter' is an adjective, so it takes -(으)ㄴ 법이다, not -는 법이다.
Practise -는 법이다 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -(으)ㄹ 게 뻔하다Use -(으)ㄹ 게 뻔하다 when the situation makes it plain to you that something, usually something bad, will happen or has happened.
- -(으)ㄹ 턱이 없다Use -(으)ㄹ 턱이 없다 to say firmly that, given what you know, something simply cannot be true or happen: "there's no way that ~".
- -(으)ㄹ 우려가 있다States formally that there is a real risk that something bad or undesirable could happen.
- -(으)ㄴ/는 경향이 있다Says that people or things generally lean toward a certain behavior or state; it describes a tendency, not a fixed rule.
- -(으)ㄹ까 싶다-(으)ㄹ까 싶다 voices a half-formed thought in the speaker's mind: either "I'm thinking I might do ~" or "I suspect, worry or hope that ~ might happen."
- -(으)려나 보다Guesses from a visible sign that something is about to happen or that someone means to do something: 'it looks like … is going to …'. -(으)려나 is short for -(으)려고 하나; conversational.
- -(으)려고(요)? (의심)A rhetorical question voicing doubt that something could be true: 'Surely … wouldn't …?' The speaker expects the answer no. Spoken and a little old-fashioned; the polite form is -(으)려고요?
- -나 싶다 / -(으)ㄴ가 싶다It expresses a tentative thought or doubt in your own mind, like 'I wonder if…' or 'maybe…', often with a touch of worry.
- -는 수가 있다-는 수가 있다 says that something, usually unwanted, can occasionally happen under certain conditions, and it is often used as a warning.