Lesson 73: Instead (대신에)

Click here for Korean Short Stories specifically tailored to learners at this level.
Click here for a Workbook to go along with this lesson.

This Lesson is also available in Español

Jump to:

Vocabulary
Introduction

Instead: 대신(에)
차라리
Instead: ~말고

 

Vocabulary

Click on the English word to see information and examples of that word in use. Use these sentences to give yourself a feel for how each word can be used, and maybe even to expose yourself to the grammar that you will be learning shortly.

A PDF file neatly presenting these words and extra information can be found here.

Nouns:
오락실 = arcade

식은땀 = cold sweat

집사람 = wife

상태 = condition/state

머리띠 = hairband

머리핀 = hairpin

친척 = relatives

재능 = talent

부피 = volume, girth, width

주부 = housewife

먼지 = dust

거품 = bubble

증거 = evidence

하절(기) = summer

동절(기) = winter

자정 = midnight

Verbs:
Conjugate 납치하다 = to kidnap

Conjugate 협박하다 = to threaten

Conjugate 쏟다 = to pour, to spill

Conjugate 재다 = to measure, to weigh, to time

Conjugate 쥐다 = to hold with one’s hands

Adjectives:
Conjugate 굉장하다 = to be wonderful, to be marvelous

Adverbs and Other Words:
굉장히 = very

무렵 = around that time

For help memorizing these words, try using our mobile app.

There are 625 vocabulary entries in Unit 3. All entries are linked to an audio file.
You can download all of these files in one package here.

 

Introduction

In this lesson, you will learn how about the word “대신,” which can be used in a few different ways to have the meaning of “instead.” In addition to this, you will learn a few other concepts and words that have the same or similar meaning to 대신. Let’s get started.

 

Instead: 대신(에)

If you look up the word “대신” in the dictionary, you will see “instead” as the English translation. Though there are times when no particle needs to be attached to it (I will get to those later), ~에 is usually attached to 대신 when it is used. The simplest way to use this word is immediately after a noun with no additional grammar. For example:

밥 대신에 = instead of rice
연필 대신에 = instead of a pencil
우유 대신에 = instead of milk
머리핀 대신에 = instead of a hairpin
부피 대신에 = instead of the volume

Each of these can then go into a sentence conveying that meaning. For example:

저는 밥 대신에 빵을 먹었어요 = Instead of eating rice, I ate bread
저는 연필 대신에 펜을 쓸 거예요 = Instead of using a pencil, I will use a pen
애기는 우유 대신에 물만 마시고 싶어요 = Instead of milk, the baby wants to drink only water
머리핀 대신에 머리띠를 주세요 = Give me the hairband instead of the/a hairpin
부피 대신에 가로만 재 보세요 = Instead of the volume, just measure the width

This is pretty simple when you are just talking about nouns, but if you want to express that one does an action instead of another action, there are two ways you can do this. Both ways involve using the ~는 것 principle.

If you want to say “instead of eating rice…” you could do either of the following:

1) 밥을 먹는 것 대신에
2) 밥을 먹는 대신에

In the first example, you are using ~는 것 to change 밥을 먹다 into a clause that describes a noun. “것” then acts as the noun and 대신에 can be used after it. For example:

밥 대신에 = instead of rice
밥을 먹는 것 대신에 = instead of eating rice

In the second example, 대신 replaces 것and acts as the noun.

Regardless of what word acts as the noun, and regardless of the slightly different appearances between the two sentences – they have exactly the same meaning, and Korean people cannot distinguish them.

The only difference between using the ~는 것 principle and not using it would be the same as expressed in English. Notice the slightly difference nuisance between the first sentence and the second and third:

밥 대신에 = instead of rice
밥을 먹는 것 대신에 = instead of eating rice
밥을 먹는 대신에 = instead of eating rice

Any of these grammatical forms could then go into sentences. Below are many examples:

지금 가는 것 대신에 자정 후에 나가자
= Instead of going now, let’s go out after midnight

먼지 때문에 밖에 나가는 것 대신에 집에 있자
= Because of the dust, instead of going outside, let’s stay in the house

안산에서 사는 것 대신에 의정부에서 살고 싶어요
= Instead of living in Ansan, I want to live in Uijeongbu

그냥 앉아 있는 것 대신에 헬스장에 가서 운동하자!
= Instead of just sitting here, let’s go to the gym and exercise!

고등학교에서 일하는 대신에 초등학교에서 일하고 싶어요
= Instead of working in a high school, I want to work in an elementary school

몸 상태가 안 좋아서 친척을 보러 가는 것 대신에 집에 있을 거예요
= My body (condition) is not good, so instead of going to see my relatives, I will stay home

그 부모를 협박하기 위해 돈을 가져가는 대신에 아이들을 납치했어요
= In order to threaten the parents, instead of taking money, they kidnapped the kids

와이프를 집사람이라고 부르는 것 대신에 주부라서 아내라고 부를 거예요
= Instead of calling my wife “house person,” I will call her “wife” because she is a housewife

아플 때 식은땀을 흘리면 뜨거운 샤워를 하는 것 대신에 차가운 샤워를 해야 돼요
= When you are sick, if you have “cold sweats,” instead of having a hot shower, you should have a cold shower

Notice that in all examples, the present tense of ~는 것 is always used. Even if you are talking about something in the past or future, you should always use ~는 것 대신에 (or ~는 대신에) and neither of the following:

밥을 먹은 대신에 빵을 먹었어요 = incorrect
연필을 쓸 대신에 펜을 쓸 거예요 = incorrect

 

차라리

The word “차라리” is another one of those words that has very little meaning on its own, but intensifies a feeling within particular sentences. “차라리” is used in sentences when one is talking about doing one action over another. Because of this usage, it is often used in sentences with “대신에.” For example:

학교에 가는 것 대신에 차라리 오락실에 가자! = Instead of going to school, let’s go to the arcade

The beauty of using “차라리” is that you don’t always need to waste your time saying “instead of.” Let’s look at the following example:

Person 1: 학교에 갈래요? = Shall we go to school?
Person 2: 학교에 가는 것 대신에 오락실 가자! = Instead of going to school, let’s go to the arcade!

That second sentence could be shortened to:
Person 1: 학교에 갈래요? = Shall we go to school?
Person 2: 오락실 가자! = Let’s go to the arcade!

But that sentence is missing something when written like that. When written like that, the two sentences don’t have any logical connection between them. However, by using “차라리” a feeling is given to the sentence that the stated action is preferred over some other action. Therefore, by using “차라리” in the response above, the speaker can indicate that he/she “doesn’t “want to go to school” without explicitly stating it. For example:

Person 1: 학교에 갈래요? = Shall we go to school?
Person 2: 차라리 오락실 가자! = Instead of doing that, let’s go to the arcade!

대신 can serve this same purpose as well. In that example, by using대신 (without 에), instead of차라리, you can create the same meaning. For example:

Person 1: 학교에 갈래요? = Shall we go to school?
Person 2: 대신 오락실 가자! = Instead, let’s go to the arcade!

Let’s look at another example. If your friend suggested the following:
밖에 나갈래요? = Shall we go outside?

There are many ways that you could respond. For example:

밖에 나가는 것 대신에 여기서 있자 = Instead of going outside, let’s stay here
밖에 나가는 대신에 여기서 있자 = Instead of going outside, let’s stay here
밖에 나가는 것 대신에 차라리 여기서 있자 = Instead of going outside, let’s stay here
밖에 나가는 대신에 차라리 여기서 있자 = Instead of going outside, let’s stay here
차라리 여기서 있자 = I’d rather stay here
대신 여기서 있자 = I’d rather stay here

Pretty simple once you hear the word 차라리 said in conversation a couple of times. It is actually a very common word, but not one that foreign people learn very early.

There is one more concept that can have a similar meaning to all this that I would like to talk about before I finish.

 

 

Instead: ~말고

In Lesson 40 you learned about the negative imperative mood. At the end of that lesson, you learned that you could make sentences like this:

매일 운동을 하지 말고 많이 쉬세요 = Don’t exercise every day, and get lots of rest
그렇게 하지 말고 내 말을 들어봐 = Don’t do it like that, and listen to what I have to say

I guess you could also translate those sentences using “instead.” For example:

매일 운동을 하지 말고 많이 쉬세요 = Instead of exercising every day, get lots of rest
그렇게 하지 말고 내 말을 들어봐 = Instead of doing it like that, listen to what I have to say

It is also possible to just use “말고” (instead of using ~지 말고 with a verb) to have a similar meaning to just using 대신 with a noun. For example:

밥 말고 빵 먹을래요?

The English translation could use the word “instead,” or it could be expressed using other words in English. For example:

밥 말고 빵 먹을래요?
= Instead of rice, shall we eat bread?
= Shall we eat bread, and not rice?

Below are more examples:

소문 말고 확실한 증거가 필요해요 = We need evidence, not a rumor
지금 말고 자정 무렵에 가는 게 어때요? = Not now, how about going around midnight?
우유 거품 말고 진짜 우유를 많이 주세요 = Please give me real milk, not milk bubbles/foam
이 수영장은 동절기 말고 하절기에만 열어요 = This swimming pool is open only in the summer (season), not the winter (season)

Some accents in Korea (usually older people who grew up in the countryside somewhere) change the pronunciation of “말고” to “말구.” I’ve also noticed that younger people are saying “말구” these days in an attempt to sound cute. Give it a try sometime!

That’s it for this lesson!

There are 1200 example sentences in Unit 3.
All entries are linked to an audio file. You can download all of these files in one package here.

Okay, got it! Take me to the next lesson! Or,

Click here for Korean Short Stories specifically tailored to learners at this level.
Click here for a Workbook to go along with this lesson.