5 Korean phrases every K drama fan should know ./
5 k drama
phrases which add drama in a Korean drama.
Korean dramas or K-dramas are filled with sweet predictable clichés
, scenes that are repeated in almost every other drama, because they never
seize to bring on the drama feels. Are you a k drama fan? Have you noticed how
some scenes and some phrases get repeated in so many dramas? Here are a few of
my favourite Hangul phrases which help heighten the drama in a Kdrama.
Orae-man-iyo / Orae- mani- dae
This phrase means ; it’s been a long time. The first version
Orae mani iyo is the more formal way of saying it.it is one of my favourite
phrases, a fabulous drama building phrase, it could be used when two arch
enemies meet after a long time , one grew up to be a sleazy lawyer, the other
an upstanding prosecutor. Or two high school sweethearts with a heartbreaking
breakup meet in their adult life. It is a phrase filled with emotions; be it a
veiled threat , a sense of longing or loss, and for the audience – a promise of
things to come. Whatever be the case, one can always expect sparks to fly when
we hear these words.
Gwen-chana ?
This phrase means ,”are you alright?”. This phrase is almost
always used in those heart fluttering scenes, with everythingis moving in slow motion; the girl trips, the guy
reaches out, grabs her by the wrist, spins her around, hands now at the waist,
and then they both gaze into each other’s eyes- cue in the background music,
everything moving to a standstill. Girl looks unblinkingly at guy, falling head
over heels in love with her knight in shining armour. And that’s when the guy
asks tenderly, - Gwenchana ? are you Ok? . The girl of course is rendered
speechless and nods a shy affirmative. Viewers, this is your moment to sigh in
romantic bliss. Almost every swoon worthy scene will have a ‘gwenchana phrase
moment.’
Naega wae ?!
Naega Wae literally translates to ,” why me?!” this again is
a multi-faceted phrase and is mostly used by an exasperated protagonist. As in why do I have to suffer this, why me ?!
For example :Why do I have to enter a contract marriage with this very rich,
very good looking man with a terrible personality ,when I hate him so much ! Or
why do I have to serve undercover as a fake bride/bodyguard/ secretary to this
person who I do not like… or why do I have to team up with/ share a house with
this person who I totally detest now, but will start developing feelings for
after about three more episodes. Or, if it’s a thriller/legal drama, why do I
have to be framed for killing my family ,or why does my ex lover have to be my
lawyer… Neaga wae, is the protagonists
plea to understand his or her destiny during plot twists , written by the
writers/directors of the K drama. PS : kdrama writers can be a sadistic bunch,
they love putting the protagonist into ‘ naega wae moments’.
Aniyo aniyo cholte aniyo !
This phrase translates to ,” no no, absolutely never .”. In
answer to ‘Are you both a couple?’ ‘ Are you both seeing each other?’ ‘ do you
have feelings for her?’ ‘ are you both secretly sharing an apartment because of
unforeseen complicated reasons?’, And that’s when the lead couple will
vehemently oppose the rumours ( all of it true mind you…) for emphasis, they
will cross their arms in front to make the sign of ‘X’, to emphasise- nope,
absolutely not, NOT At ALL! Aniyo aniyo cholte aniyo… but we as viewers know
better, when in kdram land, never say
never.
Mee-an-hay
This word literally means – sorry. In the real world, you
would use the word when you accidentally bump into someone on the road, but
Sorry takes all sorts of meanings in a K drama. “ Sorry , I realised I loved
you for the past 15 years, but realised it too late, and now you are with
someone else…” , from thrillers to romances, from medical dramas to science
fiction drams , there is a lot to be sorry for in a kdrama, and these scenes
are almost always tear jerkers. The
reasons are never simple, the decpetions are always multi layered and involve
complicated reasons , with multiple lives involved, and so Being Sorry , hardly
ever makes up for the chaos. But when the dust settles on the dramatic events,
you can be sure that someone is feeling pretty sorry.
I hope these phrases got you reminiscing about your
favourite K dramas, and all those dramatic moments when they were used.
Have you ever felt like using these dramatic phrases in real
life ? I wouldn’t mind a Gwenchana moment with a Kdrama Oppa !
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