TOPIK II · LEVEL 6
-건대
-건대 attaches to verbs like 'see', 'hear', 'think' or 'wish' and introduces the speaker's own viewpoint before a statement: 'as I see it…', 'as I hear…'.
격식 표현Formal & written phrasesHan: When 하 is shortened after a stem ending in ㄱ, ㄷ or ㅂ (생각), it drops completely, giving 생각건대; the aspirated 컨대 appears only after vowels or ㄴ, ㄹ, ㅁ, ㅇ, as in 단언컨대.
Examples
듣건대 그 회사는 내년에 해외 시장에 진출할 계획이라고 합니다.From what I hear, that company plans to enter overseas markets next year.
돌이켜 보건대 그 시절이 제 인생에서 가장 행복했던 때였습니다.Looking back, that period was the happiest time of my life.
단언컨대 이보다 더 좋은 기회는 다시 오지 않을 것이다.I can say with certainty that a better opportunity than this will not come again.
바라건대 내년에는 모든 분이 건강하고 행복하시기를.It is my hope that next year everyone will be healthy and happy.
Don’t mix up
-건대vs-기로는 (듣기로는, 알기로는)Same idea of 'as far as I hear/know', but -기로는 is neutral and common in speech, while -건대 is formal and written: 제가 듣기로는 그 가게가 문을 닫았대요.
-건대vs-아/어 보니-아/어 보니 reports something discovered after actually doing an action (any verb); -건대 frames the speaker's judgment with a fixed set of verbs: 직접 먹어 보니 생각보다 맛있었어요.
How to build it
V (보다, 듣다, 생각하다, 짐작하다, 바라다, 단언하다 …)+건대
생각하다 → 생각하건대 / 생각건대; 단언하다 → 단언컨대
- It is used with a small set of verbs of perceiving, thinking, wishing or asserting (보다, 듣다, 생각하다, 짐작하다, 바라다, 단언하다, 돌이켜 보다); it does not combine with ordinary action verbs like 먹다 or 가다.
- The one who sees/thinks is the speaker; the subject is usually omitted or 제가/내가. To report someone else's view, use -에 따르면 or 그의 말로는 instead.
- No tense marker goes before -건대 (not 봤건대); past time is shown in the main clause or with 돌이켜 보건대.
- It is formal and bookish (speeches, essays, editorials); in everyday conversation 제가 보기에는 or 듣기로는 sounds more natural.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 생각컨대 이 방법이 가장 효율적입니다.
Right: 생각건대 이 방법이 가장 효율적입니다.
When 하 is shortened after a stem ending in ㄱ, ㄷ or ㅂ (생각), it drops completely, giving 생각건대; the aspirated 컨대 appears only after vowels or ㄴ, ㄹ, ㅁ, ㅇ, as in 단언컨대.
Practise -건대 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -에 있어서Marks the area or aspect in which a statement holds true, like 'when it comes to N / in N / for N'; it is used mainly in formal writing and speeches.
- -에 힘입어Names a supporting force, such as encouragement or a favorable trend, that helped bring about a good result: 'buoyed by / thanks to N'.
- -을/를 막론하고N을/를 막론하고 means that something holds true no matter which case of N you take, so no exception is made.
- -을/를 무릅쓰고N을/를 무릅쓰고 means you knowingly face a danger, hardship or opposition and still deliberately go ahead with an action.
- -을/를 불문하고N을/를 불문하고 means "no matter what N is": the statement applies equally to every kind or degree of N, and it is used mainly in formal or written Korean.
- -(으)매-(으)매 is a bookish, literary way to say 'because' or 'as', linking a cause to its natural result in formal writing.
- -(으)나 -(으)나Two paired or opposite verbs/adjectives, each with -(으)나, mean 'whichever of these is the case, the following stays the same', which often amounts to 'regardless' or 'all the time'.
- -(으)락 -(으)락Joins two opposite actions or states to show that they keep switching back and forth.
- -(으)랴 -(으)랴Lists two (or more) tasks a person is juggling at the same time to stress that they are extremely busy or worn out.