Want to actually learn this — with audio, spaced repetition and progress tracking?
Study in the app →Korean · TOPIK Band 1 · Chapter 23
옷과 색 Clothes and Colours
Clothes, colours, sizes. Words: 옷, 티셔츠, 바지, 신발, 치마, 모자, 사이즈, 색, 빨간색, 파란색. Key grammar: to ask a colour, say "무슨 색이에요?" (무슨 is the "what/which" used before a noun — not 뭐). The answer is "빨간색이에요". To describe clothing, put the colour before the noun: 빨간 티셔츠, 파란 바지. English speakers often use "뭐" before a noun too — "뭐 색이에요?" ✗ → "무슨 색이에요?" ✓. Culture corner: markets vs marts, and "깎아 주세요".
Dialogue
뭐 색? 무슨 색?
- Jieun 마이클 씨, 무슨 옷을 사고 싶어요? Michael, what clothes do you want to buy?
- Michael 티셔츠요. 이 티셔츠는 뭐 색이에요? A T-shirt. What colour is this T-shirt? (slip: before a noun use 무슨, not 뭐 → 무슨 색이에요)
- Jieun "무슨 색이에요?"예요. "무슨"은 명사 앞에 써요. It is "무슨 색이에요?". "무슨" goes before a noun.
- Michael 아, 이 티셔츠는 무슨 색이에요? 빨간색이에요? Ah, what colour is this T-shirt? Is it red?
Dialogue
파란 티셔츠 있어요? — Do You Have a Blue T-shirt?
- Michael 안녕하세요. 파란 티셔츠 있어요? Hello. Do you have a blue T-shirt?
- 점원 네, 있어요. 무슨 사이즈예요? Yes, we do. What size?
- Michael 이 사이즈요. 이거 주세요. 그리고 빨간 모자도 사고 싶어요. This size. This one, please. And I want to buy a red hat too.
- 점원 네, 빨간 모자 여기 있어요. 감사합니다. Yes, here is a red hat. Thank you.
Vocabulary
| 汉字 | Pinyin | POS | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 옷 | ot | n. | clothes |
| 티셔츠 | tisyeocheu | n. | T-shirt |
| 바지 | baji | n. | trousers, pants |
| 신발 | sinbal | n. | shoes |
| 치마 | chima | n. | skirt |
| 모자 | moja | n. | hat, cap |
| 사이즈 | saijeu | n. | size |
| 색 | saek | n. | colour |
| 빨간색 | ppalgansaek | n./adj. | red (빨간 before a noun) |
| 파란색 | paransaek | n./adj. | blue (파란 before a noun) |
Grammar
"무슨 색이에요?"와 색 + 명사 "무슨 색이에요?" and colour + noun
색을 물을 때는 "무슨 색이에요?" (What colour is it?)라고 해요. "무슨"은 명사 앞에서 "어떤/무슨"의 뜻이에요 — 17과의 "무슨 요일이에요?"와 똑같아요. "뭐"는 명사 없이 홀로 쓰는 "무엇"이라 색 앞에는 맞지 않아요. 대답: "빨간색이에요", "파란색이에요". 옷을 색으로 꾸밀 때는 색을 명사 앞에 놓아요 — 이때 "-색"을 빼고 짧은 꼴을 써요: 빨간 티셔츠 (a red T-shirt), 파란 바지 (blue trousers). 한국어는 꾸미는 말이 언제나 명사 앞에 와요. 영어권 학습자는 명사 앞에서도 "뭐"를 쓰는 실수를 자주 해요 — "뭐 색이에요?" ✗ → "무슨 색이에요?" ✓.
To ask a colour, say "무슨 색이에요?" (What colour is it?). "무슨" means "what kind of / which" before a noun — exactly like "무슨 요일이에요?" from Chapter 17. "뭐" is "what" standing alone with no noun, so it does not fit before 색. Answers: "빨간색이에요", "파란색이에요". To describe clothing by colour, put the colour before the noun — here you drop "-색" and use the short form: 빨간 티셔츠 (a red T-shirt), 파란 바지 (blue trousers). In Korean a modifier always comes before the noun. English speakers often use "뭐" before a noun too — "뭐 색이에요?" ✗ → "무슨 색이에요?" ✓.
- 이 티셔츠는 무슨 색이에요? I tisyeocheu-neun museun saek-ieyo? What colour is this T-shirt?
- 빨간색이에요. Ppalgansaek-ieyo. It's red.
- 저는 파란 바지를 사고 싶어요. Jeoneun paran baji-reul sago sipeoyo. I want to buy blue trousers.
- 이 신발은 무슨 사이즈예요? I sinbar-eun museun saijeu-yeyo? What size are these shoes?
Culture
시장과 마트, 그리고 "깎아 주세요" Markets vs marts, and "깎아 주세요"
In Korea there are broadly two kinds of place to buy things. One is the traditional market, full of warmth (정); the other is the mart and convenience store, where prices are fixed. Depending on where you shop, you can either haggle over the price or just pay it.
The traditional market
Traditional markets like Namdaemun or Gwangjang Market pile up fruit, vegetables, clothes and dishware in mountains. Prices are usually cheaper than the mart, and the goods are fresh. A shop 아주머니 (auntie) may say "this is tasty, try one" and toss in an extra for free. This little bit extra — 덤 — and the warmth that passes back and forth are the charm of the traditional market.
Marts and convenience stores
At big marts like E-Mart or Lotte Mart, and the convenience stores (GS25, CU, etc.) on every corner, prices are fixed. Here you do not haggle — you pay the tagged price as is. Convenience stores are open 24 hours and are very handy for quick items like triangle gimbap, instant noodles or coffee. You can pay easily by card, cash, or these days even by phone.
"Please knock it down"
At a traditional market you can knock the price down a little. "깎아 주세요" means "please bring the price down a bit". But not by much — no one turns a 10,000-won item into 5,000. Usually if you buy several or become a regular, they throw in a 덤 or shave a little off. At marts or convenience stores there is no haggling, so remember that "깎아 주세요" is only for the market.
In short: for haggling, freebies (덤) and shared warmth, go to the traditional market; for quick and easy shopping, go to the mart or convenience store. Once you can enjoy both, shopping in Korea becomes much more fun. Happy shopping!
hangul
Want to actually learn this — with audio, spaced repetition and progress tracking?
Study in the app →