TOPIK II · LEVEL 6
-(으)련만
-(으)련만 says 'it would be so (if only…), but it isn't': a hoped-for or expected result set against a disappointing reality, often with regret.
대조·양보Contrast & concessionHan: Studying hard actually happened, so it is a fact, not a supposition; for a real fact with a disappointing result use -건만, not -(으)련만.
Examples
비가 좀 오면 좋으련만 벌써 한 달째 비 소식이 없다.It would be nice if it rained a little, but there has been no rain for a month already.
네가 조금만 더 일찍 말했더라면 도와주었으련만.If you had told me a little earlier, I would have helped you (but you didn't).
아이가 부모 마음을 조금이라도 알아주면 좋으련만.If only the child understood his parents' feelings even a little…
시간만 있으면 고향에 자주 가련만 일이 너무 많아서 그러지 못한다.If only I had time, I would go home often, but I have too much work to do so.
Don’t mix up
-(으)련만vs-(으)ㄹ 텐데Same idea of supposition + contrast, but -(으)ㄹ 텐데 is the normal spoken form, while -(으)련만 sounds literary: 시간이 있으면 갈 텐데 바빠요.-(으)련만vs-건만-건만 attaches to a real fact that failed to bring the expected result; -(으)련만 attaches to a supposition: 열심히 공부했건만 떨어졌다.How to build it
V/A+(으)련만 (final consonant → 으련만; vowel or ㄹ → 련만)
past/counterfactual: V/A+았/었으련만
가다 → 가련만, 좋다 → 좋으련만, 알다 → 알련만, 돕다 → 도우련만 / 도왔으련만
- It is a literary, rather formal ending; in everyday conversation Koreans usually say -(으)ㄹ 텐데 instead.
- The first part is a supposition, not a real fact; it often comes with a condition (-(으)면, -았/었더라면, -만 있으면).
- The following clause usually states the actual (contrary) situation; it is not used for commands or suggestions.
- It can end a sentence (…좋으련만.), leaving the 'but' unsaid and expressing a sigh of regret; for past counterfactuals use -았/었으련만.
Classic mistake
Wrong: 열심히 공부하련만 시험에 떨어졌어요.
Right: 열심히 공부했건만 시험에 떨어졌어요.
Studying hard actually happened, so it is a fact, not a supposition; for a real fact with a disappointing result use -건만, not -(으)련만.
Practise -(으)련만 on real TOPIK questions
Hannim plans each day up to your exam date: questions on this pattern, reviews, full mock papers and graded writing. 7 days free, no card.
Start 7-day free trialMore level 6 grammar
All TOPIK grammar- -(으)려도Short for -(으)려고 하여도: 'even if/though one tries (intends) to V'. The second clause usually says the attempt fails or that something else is needed first.
- -(으)ㄹ지라도-(으)ㄹ지라도 means "even if / even though A": it concedes A, real or imagined, and insists that B still holds.
- -다손 치더라도Even if we accept that something is (or was) true, the conclusion that follows still does not change.
- -기로서니-기로서니 grants that something is true but argues it still does not justify someone's excessive reaction or behaviour, usually as a reproach.
- -(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.
- -(이)건 -(이)건N(이)건 N(이)건 lists two or more options and says that whichever one it is, the outcome stays the same.
