잊어버리다 vs 깜빡하다 vs 까먹다 | "Forget" in Korean

안녕하세요 리더님! Koreanstudyjunkie입니다! Today, I'll be discussing the difference between 3 commonly used phrases that are translated as "to forget".

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They all mean the same thing: "to forget".

"잊어버리다" can also be interpreted as "to lose" and it is commonly used when a person forgets something for good or for a relatively longer period of time. It can be used in speaking or in writing and is the most common way to say "forget".

잊다 is actually the root of this expression and is directly translated as "to forget". The subtle difference in nuance is almost negligible, "- 버리다" conotates a certain action "ended up happening". It can be used to imply inevitability, helplessness, unwanted-ness of a certain action, and that an action was done fully or to completion.

깜빡하다 comes from an onomatopoeia, 깜빡, which means "blink!" Just like a blink, the verb is used when someone forget about something for a relatively short period of time. This expression is used a lot in speaking, but may come off awkward if used in writing.

까먹다 is a very colloquial expression. It's usually used when talking about forgetting a fact or an action (what to do). It also means to "lose (something)".

Examples:

나는 그녀를 댜한 모든 것을 잊었다.

= I've forgotten about all about her.

나는 아픈 기억을 잊어버리고 싶다.

= I just want to forget all the bad memories.

아픔을 잊어버려.

= Forget all the pain!

아 숫가락 깜빡했다.

= Crap, I forgot to bring a spoon.

아 숙제하는거 깜빡했다.

= Oops I forgot to do my homework.

열쇠 까먹었다.

= I forgot (to bring) my key.

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That's all for this post!

Check out my other posts about words that have the same meaning, but are different.

끝나다 vs 끝내다

생각하다 vs 것 같다

하루 vs 일 vs 날