When your heart swells with excitement
마음이 한껏 부풀다
To be full of excitement or anticipation.
Real Pattern
This phrase describes a feeling of your heart swelling with happy expectations or excitement. It's like being a balloon filled with joy about something good that's about to happen. You use it when you're looking forward to something so much that you feel giddy.
Pattern Application
여행 갈 생각에 마음이 한껏 부풀었어요. — My heart was swelling with excitement at the thought of the trip.
합격 소식을 듣고 기대감에 마음이 부풀었다. — After hearing I passed, my heart swelled with anticipation.
곧 남자친구를 만날 생각에 그녀는 마음이 부풀어 있었다. — She was giddy with excitement at the thought of seeing her boyfriend soon.
Tip
This is a slightly literary or expressive phrase. In casual chat, you might just say 너무 기대돼요 (I'm so excited) or 너무 설레요 (My heart is fluttering).
마음이 한껏 부풀었지요
Pretending you didn't hear
못 들은 척하다
To pretend not to have heard.
Real Pattern
This is what you do when you intentionally ignore someone or something you clearly heard. It can be used to avoid an awkward question, a request you don't want to fulfill, or simply to show you're not interested. It's a conscious act of feigning ignorance.
Pattern Application
엄마가 방 청소하라고 했는데 못 들은 척했어요. — Mom told me to clean my room, but I pretended I didn't hear her.
길에서 누가 나를 불렀지만 그냥 못 들은 척하고 지나갔다. — Someone called my name on the street, but I just pretended not to hear and walked past.
Tip
The key part is ~ㄴ/은/는 척하다, which means "to pretend to be/do X". You can use it with other verbs too, like 아는 척하다 (to pretend to know) or 자는 척하다 (to pretend to be asleep).
못 들은 척했지만
When you fall for a trick
꾀에 넘어가다
To fall for a trick/scheme.
Real Pattern
This idiom means you've been deceived by someone's clever plan or trickery. 꾀 means 'a trick' or 'cunning plan', and 넘어가다 literally means 'to cross over' or 'to fall over'. Together, it paints a picture of being tripped up by someone's scheme.
Pattern Application
그 사람의 달콤한 말에 속아 꾀에 넘어갔어요. — I was deceived by his sweet words and fell for his trick.
조심해요! 쉽게 다른 사람의 꾀에 넘어가면 안 돼요. — Be careful! You shouldn't fall for other people's tricks so easily.
결국 아이는 엄마의 꾀에 넘어가 야채를 다 먹었다. — In the end, the child fell for the mom's trick and ate all the vegetables.
Tip
This is a very common set phrase. You can also use 속임수에 넘어가다 which has almost the exact same meaning ('to fall for a deception').
여우의 꾀에 넘어갔어요
As if you've been waiting for it
기다렸다는 듯이
As if one had been waiting.
Real Pattern
This adverbial phrase describes an action that happens immediately and perfectly, right after a trigger event. It implies that the person or thing was poised and ready, just waiting for that exact moment to act. It emphasizes the speed and opportunism of the reaction.
Pattern Application
수업이 끝나자마자 학생들이 기다렸다는 듯이 교실 밖으로 뛰어 나갔어요. — As soon as the class ended, the students ran out of the classroom as if they had been waiting for it.
내가 "배고파"라고 말하자마자 엄마가 기다렸다는 듯이 저녁을 차려주셨다. — The moment I said "I'm hungry," my mom served dinner as if she'd been waiting for me to say it.
Tip
This phrase adds a dramatic or vivid flair to your storytelling. It's great for describing a quick, almost predictable reaction to something.
기다렸다는 듯이
Realizing it too late
뒤늦은 후회
Belated regret.
Real Pattern
This phrase captures the feeling of regret that comes long after you could have done something about the situation. 뒤늦은 means 'belated' or 'too late', and 후회 is 'regret'. It's the painful realization that you should have acted differently, but now the chance is gone.
Pattern Application
시험에 떨어진 후에야 뒤늦은 후회를 했다. — Only after failing the exam did I feel a sense of belated regret.
뒤늦은 후회를 해봤자 소용없어요. 이미 일어난 일이에요. — It's no use having belated regrets. What's done is done.
Tip
A common phrase that goes with this is 후회해도 소용없다 (It's no use regretting it). 뒤늦은 후회 emphasizes that the regret came too late.
뒤늦은 후회와 함께