TOPIK II · LEVEL 6
-는 족족
-는 족족 means that each time something happens, something else follows right away, often so that the thing is quickly used up or gone.
시간·순서Time & sequenceHan: The pattern is fixed as 는 족족; past time is shown only by the final verb (써 버렸다), not by changing 는 to past ㄴ/은.
Examples
이 빵집은 빵을 굽는 족족 팔려 나가서 오후에는 살 수가 없어요.At this bakery, the bread sells out as soon as each batch is baked, so you can't buy any in the afternoon.
그는 월급을 받는 족족 술값으로 다 써 버린다.Every time he gets his salary, he spends all of it on drinking.
단어를 외우는 족족 잊어버려서 걱정이에요.I'm worried because I forget words as soon as I memorize them.
민원이 들어오는 족족 바로 처리하고 있습니다.We handle each complaint right away as soon as it comes in.
Don’t mix up
-는 족족vs-자마자-자마자 is for a single 'right after' event; -는 족족 is for every repeated instance: 집에 도착하자마자 잠들었다.-는 족족vs-(으)ㄹ 때마다-(으)ㄹ 때마다 just means 'whenever' with no sense of immediacy and can also be used with adjectives; -는 족족 stresses instant follow-up: 월급을 받을 때마다 저축해요 (I save whenever I get paid) vs 월급을 받는 족족 다 써요 (I spend it all the moment I get it).
-는 족족vs-는 대로-는 대로 is used for a future single action, often in requests; -는 족족 describes repeated facts: 도착하는 대로 연락 주세요.
How to build it
V+는 족족
벌다 → 버는 족족 (ㄹ drops): 돈을 버는 족족 다 써 버린다.
- Attach only to verbs, and keep the present form 는 even for past events; tense goes on the final verb (받는 족족 썼다, not 받은 족족).
- It describes a repeated pattern (each instance), not a single one-time event; for one event use -자마자.
- Mostly used in statements about habits or repeated facts, often with 다, 바로 or 모두; it is rare in requests or suggestions.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 작년에는 돈을 번 족족 다 써 버렸다.
Right: 작년에는 돈을 버는 족족 다 써 버렸다.
The pattern is fixed as 는 족족; past time is shown only by the final verb (써 버렸다), not by changing 는 to past ㄴ/은.
Practise -는 족족 on real TOPIK questions
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All TOPIK grammar- -(으)려니-(으)려니 either shows how hard or emotional it feels when you set about doing something, or, followed by 하다/생각하다, states what you assumed would happen.
- -에 즈음하여N에 즈음하여 is a formal way to say that something is done to mark a significant occasion such as an anniversary, holiday or milestone.
- -기(가) 바쁘게-기(가) 바쁘게 shows that the next action follows the first one immediately, often in a hurry, as if there were no time to wait.
- -자니-자니 means 'if I go ahead and do X, a problem comes up' and is used when you are weighing a choice and hesitating.
- -기가 무섭게-기가 무섭게 means that the second event happens the very instant the first one occurs, almost too fast to believe.
- -노라니-노라니 means 'as I kept doing A, I came to feel or notice B', linking an ongoing action of the speaker to what it led them to realize; it is a literary, written-style ending.
- -(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.