TOPIK II · LEVEL 6
-(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다
A formal way to say someone is so shocked, moved or embarrassed that they are at a complete loss about what to do.
정도·비교Degree & comparisonHan: Not having a skill like driving is expressed with -(으)ㄹ 줄 모르다; -(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다 describes being at a loss from strong emotion.
Examples
그는 너무 기쁜 나머지 어찌할 바를 모르고 눈물만 흘렸다.He was so overjoyed that he didn't know what to do and just cried.
과분한 칭찬을 해 주셔서 몸 둘 바를 모르겠습니다.Your praise is more than I deserve; I don't know where to put myself.
갑작스러운 사고 소식에 가족들은 어찌할 바를 몰랐다.At the sudden news of the accident, the family didn't know what to do.
Don’t mix up
-(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다vs-(으)ㄹ 줄 모르다-(으)ㄹ 줄 모르다 means lacking the skill or method; -(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다 means being at a loss emotionally: 수영할 줄 몰라요 vs 어찌할 바를 몰랐다.
-(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다vs어쩔 줄 모르다Same feeling, but 어쩔 줄 모르다 is everyday spoken style, while 어찌할 바를 모르다 is formal/written: 기뻐서 어쩔 줄 몰라요.
-(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다vs-(으)ㄹ지 모르다-(으)ㄹ지 모르다 is a neutral indirect question usable with any verb, without the sense of being overwhelmed: 무엇을 사야 할지 모르겠어요.How to build it
V+(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다
어찌하다 → 어찌할 바를 모르다; 두다 → (몸) 둘 바를 모르다
- It expresses being at a loss, not lacking a skill; for 'not know how to (do something)' as an ability, use -(으)ㄹ 줄 모르다.
- It usually appears in fixed combinations such as 어찌할 바를 모르다 and 몸 둘 바를 모르다; with other verbs, -(으)ㄹ지 모르다 usually sounds more natural.
- The cause of the emotion usually comes before it with -에 or -아/어서 (소식에, 당황해서), and the register is written or formal speech.
- 몸 둘 바를 모르겠습니다 is a humble reply to praise or kindness, usually said by the speaker about themselves in the present.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 저는 운전할 바를 몰라요.
Right: 저는 운전할 줄 몰라요.
Not having a skill like driving is expressed with -(으)ㄹ 줄 모르다; -(으)ㄹ 바를 모르다 describes being at a loss from strong emotion.
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All TOPIK grammar- -(으)ㄹ 대로 -아/어서A state has gone as far as it can go, to its very limit, and this extreme state causes what follows.
- -(으)ㄹ 판이다-(으)ㄹ 판이다 says that things have reached a point where something bad or extreme is about to happen.
- -(으)ㄹ 나위가 없다 (더할 나위 없다)There is no room left to do more of something, so a thing is already perfect (더할 나위 없다) or too obvious to need saying (말할 나위도 없다).
- -디 (강조)Joins an adjective stem to a repeat of the same adjective to intensify it: 차디찬 'ice-cold', 희디흰 'pure white'. Literary and expressive: descriptions, poems, novels.
- -다 못해-다 못해 means that something has gone past its limit: with verbs, you can no longer bear or keep doing it and finally act; with adjectives, a state becomes so extreme that it turns into something stronger.
- -기 이를 데 없다Says that a quality or feeling is so extreme that words cannot fully describe it: 'indescribably ~, ~ beyond words'.
- -기 짝이 없다-기 짝이 없다 says a quality is so extreme that nothing can match it, usually in a strong negative judgment: 'utterly, beyond compare'.
- -기 그지없다Says in a formal, literary way that a feeling or quality is so strong it has no limit: 'extremely, beyond words'.
- -아/어 빠지다Added to a word with a negative sense, it says a person or thing is in that bad state to an extreme degree, and it carries the speaker's contempt or annoyance.