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Grammar / Level 3 / Lesson 63

다 보면, 다 보니까, 아/어 보니까: keep at it and see

By Daniel Buckley · 10 minute read · TOPIK 3

Vocabulary

  1. 계속 - continuously, on and on
  2. 연습하다 - to practise
  3. 늘다 - to improve, to increase
  4. 익숙하다 - to be used to
  5. 지나다 - to pass (of time)
  6. 친해지다 - to become close
  7. 실수하다 - to make a mistake
  8. 직접 - yourself, in person
  9. 혼자 - alone
  10. 연락 - contact, getting in touch

Complain that your Korean isn't getting anywhere, and you may well hear 계속하다 보면 늘 거예요: keep at it, and it'll come. Nobody is promising anything there. You're being told to carry on and see where it takes you.

The 다 is ~다가 with its 가 dropped, and 보다 is the "and see" verb from 아/어 보다. Together they say stay with this, and see what you find. The forms below differ mainly in where you're standing: before the result, after a long run at it, or after a single try.

~다 보면: keep going and you'll find

You met ~다가 as the ending that breaks an action off. Here nothing breaks off. The action runs on, and (으)면 says what turns up if it does, which is why 계속 and 매일 feel at home here and why English needs "keep" or "long enough".

Making ~다 보면

  • Verbs: drop 다, add 다 보면.가다 → 가다 보면먹다 → 먹다 보면살다 → 살다 보면

Pick a verb

가다가가다 보면

  1. 계속 연습하다 보면 늘 거예요.

    Keep practising and you'll improve.

  2. 매일 듣다 보면 조금씩 들릴 거예요.

    If you keep listening every day, you'll start to catch bits of it.

  3. 자주 만나다 보면 친해질 거예요.

    If you keep seeing each other, you'll get close.

  4. 한국에 살다 보면 한국 음식에 익숙해져요.

    Live in Korea long enough and you get used to Korean food.

  5. 한국 드라마를 보다 보면 한국에 가고 싶어져요.

    Keep watching Korean dramas and you start wanting to go to Korea.

  6. 일을 하다 보면 실수할 때도 있어요.

    Do any job for long enough and there'll be times you slip up.

  7. 살다 보면 그럴 수도 있어요.

    That's life: these things happen.

The second half says what you expect, or what's generally true. Since (으)면 looks ahead, it usually doesn't report a past event, and it's common to see ㄹ/을 거예요 or ㄹ/을 수 있다 there. Example 7 is close to a set phrase, the Korean way of saying life does that to people.

~다 보니까: how it turned out

Swap (으)면 for (으)니까 and you're looking back. Think of the "and found" use of (으)니까 from Three becauses, where you stay with something, then look up and see where it's got you. The result often wasn't the plan. 까 often drops, leaving 다 보니.

Making ~다 보니까

  • Verbs and adjectives: drop 다, add 다 보니까.일하다 → 일하다 보니까바쁘다 → 바쁘다 보니까
  • Nouns: add 이다 보니까, or 다 보니까 after a vowel.외국인 → 외국인이다 보니까친구 → 친구다 보니까

  1. 친구하고 이야기하다 보니까 세 시간이 지났어요.

    I was talking with a friend, and before I knew it three hours had gone by.

  2. 맛있어서 먹다 보니까 다 먹었어요.

    It was so good that I kept eating, and it was all gone.

  3. 일을 하다 보니까 점심시간이 지났어요.

    I got caught up in work, and lunchtime went past.

  4. 같이 일하다 보니까 친해졌어요.

    We worked together for a while, and we became close.

  5. 혼자 살다 보니까 요리를 잘하게 됐어요.

    After living on my own for a while, I got good at cooking.

With adjectives and nouns, there's no action to keep at, so it sits close to a reason. It adds a shade of "that's just how things are", which makes it a soft way to explain yourself.

  1. 요즘 바쁘다 보니까 연락을 못 했어요.

    Things have been so busy lately that I haven't been in touch.

  2. 외국인이다 보니까 한국 문화를 잘 몰라요.

    Being a foreigner, I don't know much about Korean culture.

  3. 회사가 멀다 보니까 아침에 일찍 나가요.

    With work so far away, I leave early in the morning.

※ 다 보면 doesn't take 았/었 in front. Textbooks say the same of 다 보니까, and that's the habit to build: even when the whole story is in the past, leave the tense to the end of the sentence, as with 아/어서. You'll see Koreans write 일이 많았다 보니, mostly with adjectives, so it isn't a hard rule like the one for 서.

~아/어 보니까: I tried it and found

This one has no 다 in it, and it needs no long run. It's plain 아/어 보다 with (으)니까 on the end: you tried the thing, and now you know. The second half is what you found, and it's often not what you'd assumed.

Making ~아/어 보니까

  • Verbs: take the 해요 form, drop 요, add 보니까.먹어요 → 먹어 보니까가요 → 가 보니까해요 → 해 보니까

Pick a verb

먹다먹어요먹어 보니까

  1. 김치를 먹어 보니까 생각보다 안 매워요.

    Now that I've tried kimchi, it's not as spicy as I thought.

  2. 직접 해 보니까 어렵지 않아요.

    Now that I've tried it myself, it isn't hard.

  3. 한국에 와 보니까 사람들이 정말 친절해요.

    Now that I've come to Korea, I can see people really are kind.

  4. 이 바지를 입어 보니까 너무 작았어요.

    I tried on these trousers, and they were too small.

  5. 그 식당에 가 보니까 문이 닫혀 있었어요.

    I went to that restaurant and found it closed.

Put 았/었 on 보다 and the "found" meaning goes. What's left is an ordinary reason: 가 봤으니까 알아요, I've been there, so I know.

Which one?

Here's one verb in all three, so you can see what changes.

  1. 한국어를 배워 보니까 재미있어요.

    Now that I've tried learning Korean, I find it's fun.

  2. 한국어를 배우다 보니까 한국 문화도 좋아하게 됐어요.

    As I kept learning Korean, I came to like Korean culture too.

  3. 한국어를 배우다 보면 한국 문화도 좋아하게 될 거예요.

    If you keep learning Korean, you'll come to like Korean culture too.

아/어 보니까 only needs one try. 다 보니까 needs time, and the result creeps up on you. 다 보면 is still ahead of you, and it's the one people use to encourage someone.

  1. 이 신발을 ___ 좀 작아요.

    I've tried these shoes on, and they're a bit small.

  2. 매일 ___ 잘하게 될 거예요.

    If you keep practising every day, you'll get good at it.

  3. 친구하고 ___ 벌써 열두 시가 됐어요.

    I was chatting with a friend, and suddenly it was twelve o'clock.

Listen and type

1 / 3

Play it as often as you like.

In a conversation

A

한국어가 너무 어려워요.

Korean is too difficult.

B

처음에는 다 그래요. 계속 하다 보면 쉬워질 거예요.

At first everyone is so. If (you) keep doing, (it) will get easier.

A

어떻게 그렇게 잘하게 됐어요?

How did (you) come to do so well?

B

드라마를 많이 보다 보니까 말이 들리기 시작했어요.

Kept watching dramas a lot, and speech started to be heard.

A

저도 들어 보니까 너무 빨라요.

I too tried listening and found too fast.

B

괜찮아요. 매일 듣다 보면 익숙해질 거예요.

It's OK. If (you) keep listening every day, (you) will get used to (it).

Common mistakes

  1. 연습했다 보면 늘 거예요.

    연습하다 보면 늘 거예요.

    No 았/었 in front of 다 보면. It goes on the bare stem.

  2. 매일 듣다 보면 잘 들리게 됐어요.

    매일 듣다 보니까 잘 들리게 됐어요.

    (으)면 looks ahead, so it can't lead into a single event that has already happened. To look back, use 다 보니까.

  3. 처음으로 떡볶이를 먹다 보니까 맛있었어요.

    처음으로 떡볶이를 먹어 보니까 맛있었어요.

    A first try is 아/어 보니까. 다 보니까 needs you to have kept at it.

Check yourself

Quick check

1 / 6

계속 ___ 늘 거예요. (연습하다, with 다 보면) If you keep practising, you'll improve.

It hasn't happened yet.

Summary

~다 보면 forms
DictionaryStem~다 보면
먹다먹먹다 보면
가다가가다 보면
살다살살다 보면
듣다듣듣다 보면
연습하다연습하연습하다 보면
~아/어 보니까 forms
Dictionary해요~아/어 보니까
먹다먹어요먹어 보니까
가다가요가 보니까
입다입어요입어 보니까
듣다들어요들어 보니까
하다해요해 보니까

The family

  • ~다 보면: keep at it and this will come.계속하다 보면 늘 거예요
  • ~다 보니까: I kept at it, and this is what came of it.같이 일하다 보니까 친해졌어요
  • ~아/어 보니까: I tried it once, and this is what I found.먹어 보니까 안 매워요

Now you can say

  1. 계속 하다 보면 늘 거예요.

    Keep at it and you'll improve.

  2. 요즘 바쁘다 보니까 연락을 못 했어요.

    Things have been so busy lately that I haven't been in touch.

  3. 직접 해 보니까 어렵지 않아요.

    Now that I've tried it myself, it isn't hard.

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