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Grammar / Level 3 / Lesson 76

ㄹ/을수록: the more, the more

By Daniel Buckley · 7 minute read · TOPIK 3

Vocabulary

  1. 연습하다 - to practise
  2. 늘다 - to improve, to increase
  3. 나이 - age
  4. 위 - top, up
  5. 올라가다 - to go up
  6. 솔직하다 - to be honest
  7. 급하다 - to be in a hurry
  8. 화가 나다 - to get angry

English needs two halves to say "the more you practise, the better you get". Korean only marks the first one, as in 연습할수록 잘하게 돼요. The second half simply says what changes.

ㄹ/을수록 ties two things together so that as one goes up, the other moves with it. It's easy to build. The two things to watch are the spacing and the doubled version that speakers use for emphasis.

Building the form

It goes in the same slot as ㄹ/을 때, and it works on verbs and adjectives alike. After a noun, use 일수록, from 이다.

Making ㄹ/을수록

  • Stem ends in a vowel: add ㄹ수록.보다 → 볼수록배우다 → 배울수록
  • Stem ends in a consonant: add 을수록.먹다 → 먹을수록많다 → 많을수록
  • Stem ends in ㄹ: add 수록.살다 → 살수록길다 → 길수록
  • Nouns: add 일수록.친구 → 친구일수록학생 → 학생일수록

Pick a verb

보다보볼수록

Write it with no space. Unlike ㄹ/을 수 있다, this 수록 is part of the ending, so 갈수록 is one word.

The more this, the more that

The second half says what moves along with the first. It often has a word of change in it: 아/어지다, 게 되다, or 더.

  1. 이 노래는 들을수록 좋아요.

    This song gets better the more you listen to it.

  2. 한국어는 배울수록 재미있어요.

    The more I learn Korean, the more fun it is.

  3. 돈은 많을수록 좋아요.

    The more money, the better.

  4. 위로 올라갈수록 추워져요.

    The higher you go, the colder it gets.

  5. 연습할수록 잘하게 돼요.

    The more you practise, the better you get.

  6. 좋은 친구일수록 솔직하게 말해야 해요.

    The better the friend, the more honest you should be.

  7. 바쁠수록 천천히 하세요.

    The busier you are, the slower you should go.

Example 7 shows the second half can be a command. Tense normally goes at the end of the sentence and not before 수록, so "the more I saw it, the more I liked it" is 볼수록 좋아졌어요. 았/었을수록 does exist, but stick with ㄹ/을수록 for now.

Saying it twice: (으)면 ... ㄹ/을수록

Say the same word twice, first with (으)면 and then with ㄹ/을수록. The meaning doesn't change, but it has more weight, and you'll hear it a lot in speech.

The doubled form

  • The same stem both times.보다 → 보면 볼수록많다 → 많으면 많을수록듣다 → 들으면 들을수록

  1. 그 사람은 보면 볼수록 좋아요.

    The more I see of him, the more I like him.

  2. 사람은 많으면 많을수록 좋아요.

    The more people, the better.

  3. 생각하면 생각할수록 화가 나요.

    The more I think about it, the angrier I get.

  4. 빠르면 빠를수록 좋아요.

    The sooner, the better.

갈수록: as time goes on

갈수록 on its own has settled into a set phrase. It doesn't say who's going or where. It means "as time goes on" or "more and more", and 날이 갈수록 is "by the day".

  1. 날씨가 갈수록 추워져요.

    It's getting colder and colder.

  2. 일이 갈수록 많아져요.

    There's more and more work.

  3. 날이 갈수록 한국어가 늘어요.

    My Korean is improving by the day.

  4. 나이가 들수록 시간이 빨리 가요.

    The older you get, the faster time goes.

※ Two sayings use this form. 갈수록 태산 means "the further you go, the bigger the mountain": things keep getting harder. 급할수록 돌아가라 means "the more of a hurry you're in, the more you should take the long way round".

  1. 이 책은 ___ 재미있어요.

    The more I read this book, the more interesting it gets.

  2. 위로 ___ 추워져요.

    The higher you go, the colder it gets.

  3. ___ 좋아요.

    The sooner, the better.

  4. 날씨가 ___ 추워져요.

    It's getting colder and colder.

Listen and type

1 / 3

Play it as often as you like.

In a conversation

A

한국어 공부는 어때요?

Korean study how is?

B

하면 할수록 어려워요. 그래도 배울수록 재미있어요.

If do, the more do difficult. Still the more learn fun.

A

매일 연습해요?

Every day practise?

B

네. 연습은 많을수록 좋으니까요.

Yes. Practice the more it is good, so.

A

말하기는 좀 늘었어요?

Speaking a bit improved?

B

네, 갈수록 조금씩 늘고 있어요.

Yes, as it goes on little by little improving.

Common mistakes

  1. 볼 수록 좋아요.

    볼수록 좋아요.

    No space. This isn't the 수 of ㄹ/을 수 있다.

  2. 많으면 많수록 좋아요.

    많으면 많을수록 좋아요.

    The second word still needs 을.

One sentence in each group is wrong. Tap it.

Check yourself

Quick check

1 / 6

이 노래는 ___ 좋아요. (듣다, one word) This song gets better the more you listen to it.

듣다 is a ㄷ irregular.

Summary

ㄹ/을수록 forms
DictionaryStemㄹ/을수록
보다보볼수록
먹다먹먹을수록
살다살살수록
듣다듣들을수록
춥다춥추울수록
하다하할수록

Three ways to use it

  • ㄹ/을수록: as this goes up, that changes with it.
  • (으)면 ... ㄹ/을수록: the same, with more weight.
  • 갈수록: as time goes on.

Now you can say

  1. 연습할수록 잘하게 돼요.

    The more you practise, the better you get.

  2. 빠르면 빠를수록 좋아요.

    The sooner, the better.

  3. 날씨가 갈수록 추워져요.

    It's getting colder and colder.

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