V/A/N-다기보단 =Rather than X, It's Y | Upper Intermediate Grammar Lesson

안녕하세요 여러분! Koreanstudyjunkie입니당~

In this lesson, I'm going to go over "다기보단”.

Introduction

To introduce this concept, let's look at a short dialogue:

Jin:"이 음식은 맛있다기보단 그냥 먹을 수 있어."

(This food isn’t really delicious, it’s just edible.)

Soo:"진짜? 나는 맛있다기보단, 그냥 보통인 것 같아."

(Really? For me, it's not really delicious, but just kind of average.)

Jin:"응, 너무 매운 것 같아서 맛있다기보단 힘들었어."

(Yeah, I think it’s too spicy, so rather than being delicious, it was hard to eat.)

Soo:"그래도 나쁘다기보단 괜찮았어."

(Still, it wasn’t bad, it was okay.)

---

What is "-다기보단"?

“-다기보단” is a shortened, natural spoken form of-다고 하기보다는.

It means:

• "Rather than saying that..."

• "Instead of saying that..."

• "It's not exactly that..., it's more like..."

In conversation, people use it to correct or clarify something softly without sounding harsh or argumentative.

It’s made from:

• -다고 하다 (to say / indirect quote)

• 기보다는 (rather than doing)

When you glue these together, you get: -다기보단 — a very natural way to say, "Rather than saying it's [this], it's [that]."

You attach -다기보단 directly to the dictionary form of descriptive verbs (like 예쁘다, 크다, 좋다).

For action verbs like 먹다, 배우다, 하다, in very careful Korean you sometimes modify the verb slightly (like 먹는다기보단), but in daily conversation, most people just use -다기보단 directly.

In short:Just take the basic form of the verb or adjective and add -다기보단 to it.

Examples:

맛있다기보단 특이해. Rather than saying it’s delicious, it’s unique.

화난다기보단 속상해. Rather than saying I’m angry, I’m upset.

재미있다기보단 신기해. Rather than fun, it’s more fascinating.

공부한다기보단 그냥 읽어봤어. Rather than studying, I just read it casually.

비싸다기보단 값어치가 있어. Rather than expensive, it’s worth the money.

Notice how each one softens the first idea and smoothly leads to a clearer or more accurate description.

When and Why to Use "-다기보단"

• To politely correct someone's assumption.

• To describe something more accurately without sounding rude.

• To adjust or reframe what was said.

• To sound more natural and soft in conversation.

For example, instead of bluntly saying "No, it's not delicious," you can say, "맛있다기보단 특이해," which sounds much friendlier.

---

CONJUGATION:

Nouns:

For nouns, you simply attach "-다기보단" to the noun (no need to change the form of the noun itself). Sometimes people may use "(이)라기보단” as well, but it's up to you!

Example:

• 학생 (student) → 학생이다기보단 (rather than being a student)

  • 학생이다기보단, 선생님이 더 적합해요.(Rather than being a student, you’re more suited to be a teacher.)

• 책 (book) → 책이다기보단 (rather than being a book)

  • 책이다기보단, 잡지 같아요.(Rather than being a book, it looks more like a magazine.)

With Adjectives:

For descriptive adjectives (words that describe things, like "pretty," "fun," "delicious"), you add "-다기보단" to the basic dictionary form of the adjective.

Example:

• 예쁘다 (to be pretty) → 예쁘다기보단 (rather than being pretty)

  • 예쁘다기보단, 특이한 스타일이에요.(Rather than being pretty, it has a unique style.)

• 행복하다 (to be happy) → 행복하다기보단 (rather than being happy)

  • 행복하다기보단, 편안해요.(Rather than being happy, I feel comfortable.)

With Verbs:

For action verbs (words that show actions, like "eat," "run," "study"), you add "-다기보단" to the verb stem in its dictionary form.

Dictionary Form Conjugation:

Verbs ending with final batchim - 는다기보단

Verbs ending with a vowel - ㄴ다기보단

Example:

• 먹다 (to eat) → 먹는다기보단 (rather than eating)

  • 먹는다기보단, 그냥 조금 맛봤어요.(Rather than eating it, I just tasted a little.)

• 운동하다 (to exercise) → 운동한다기보단 (rather than exercising)

  • 운동한다기보단, 스트레칭을 했어요.(Rather than exercising, I did some stretching.)

---

YOUR TURN:

Formation -

[First idea]다기보단 [real idea].

Think of it as:

• "It's not really [first idea], it's actually [real idea]."

This rhythm will help you sound very natural in Korean.

PRACTICE SECTION:

Translate each sentence

Answers at the very end!

1). Rather than being interesting, this book is a bit difficult.

2). Rather than being delicious, this food is so spicy that it’s hard to eat.

3). Rather than being fun, that trip was very tiring.

4). Rather than being pretty, that outfit is too flashy and a bit overwhelming.

화려하다 - flashy

부담스럽다 - overwhelming;

5). Rather than being comfortable, this café has a bit of a noisy atmosphere.

분위기 - atmosphere

시끄럽다 - noisy, loud

---

CONTEXTUAL DIALOGUE:

Jina:"산이 너무 예쁘다기보단, 정말 대자연 그 자체였어."(The mountain wasn’t really pretty — it was more like pure nature itself.)

Minho:"그래, 예쁘다는 느낌보단, 그냥 숨이 멎을 정도로 멋있었어. 사진으로 담을 수 없는 그런 느낌."(Yeah, rather than pretty, it was breathtaking. The kind of beauty you can’t capture in photos.)

Jina:"맞아! 사실 나는 그곳에서 편안하다기보단, 마음이 막 떨리는 느낌이었어."(You’re right! Actually, I didn’t feel comfortable there, I felt like my heart was trembling.)

Minho:"그럼, 너는 그 산을 좋은 여행지라기보단 도전적인 경험으로 느꼈던 거야?"(So, for you, did you feel like the mountain wasn’t a great place to travel, but more of a challenging experience?)

Jina:"그렇다고 할 수 있겠네. 자연을 느낀다는 것보다 나 자신과의 싸움 같았어."(I’d say so. It felt more like a battle with myself than just feeling nature.)

---

PRACTICE ANSWER KEY:

1). 이 책은 재미있다기보단, 약간 어려운 책이다.

2).이 음식은 맛있다기보단, 너무 매워서 먹기 힘들다.

3). 그 여행은 즐겁다기보단, 많이 피곤했다.

4). 그 옷은 예쁘다기보단, 너무 화려해서 좀 부담스럽다.

5). 이 카페는 편안하다기보단, 분위기가 조금 시끄럽다

---

Thanks for reading through this lesson! Leave a like or comment to let me know to make more like this~

Below are 3 lessons I think you might like, if you're interested in keeping the learning going!