📘 Grammar 58: How to Use ~더라고요 – Sharing Personal Experiences in Korean

📘 How to Use ~더라고요 – Sharing Personal Experiences in Korean

Want to say “I saw that it was fun,” “He looked tired,” or “The food tasted great!” in Korean?

Then you should learn ~더라고요, one of the most natural ways to express your personal experiences or realizations based on what you saw, felt, or experienced.

This is a highly conversational grammar pattern used in storytelling, sharing observations, or expressing feelings about past events you directly witnessed.

---

📌 What Does ~더라고요 Mean?

~더라고요 is used when you are talking about something you personally saw, heard, felt, or experienced.

It means:

• ✔️ “I noticed that…”
• ✔️ “It seemed that…”
• ✔️ “I experienced that…”

Structure:

• Verb stem + ~더라고요
• Adjective stem + ~더라고요
• Noun + 이더라고요

📘 Example Sentences

• 그 영화 정말 재미있더라고요 – That movie was really fun (I watched it)
  geu yeong-hwa jeong-mal jae-mi-it-deo-ra-go-yo
• 친구가 피곤해 보이더라고요 – My friend looked tired
  chin-gu-ga pi-gon-hae bo-i-deo-ra-go-yo
• 날씨가 꽤 춥더라고요 – It was quite cold (I felt it)
  nal-ssi-ga kkwae chup-deo-ra-go-yo
• 그 사람 선생님이더라고요 – Turns out he was a teacher (I found out)
  geu sa-ram seon-saeng-nim-i-deo-ra-go-yo

📊 Grammar Table – ~더라고요 Forms

Type	Form	Example	Meaning
Action verb	~더라고요	가더라고요	I saw that (he) went
Descriptive verb	~더라고요	예쁘더라고요	I noticed she was pretty
Verb + 보다	보이더라고요	It looked (like)	(he) seemed...
Noun + 이다	이더라고요	선생님이더라고요	Turns out (he) is a teacher

💡 When to Use ~더라고요

• ✔️ When you’re sharing something you personally experienced
• ✔️ When you’re telling someone about something you learned through direct observation
• ✔️ Works best in past-tense storytelling or informal conversations

Compare:

• 재미있어요 – It’s fun (in general)
• 재미있더라고요 – I saw/felt that it was fun (I experienced it)

❗ Common Mistakes

• ❌ 재미있어요더라고요 → ✅ 재미있더라고요
• ❌ 보았더라고요 → This is grammatically strange – use 보이더라고요 for “it looked like...”
• ~더라고요 is used for **your own observation**, not hearsay

🧪 Mini Quiz – Test Yourself!

1. How do you say “It was delicious (I ate it)”?
   a) 맛있었어요
   b) 맛있더라고요
   
   Click to Show Answer

   ✅ b) 맛있더라고요

2. Translate: “I noticed he was tired.”
   a) 피곤했어요
   b) 피곤해 보이더라고요
   
   Click to Show Answer

   ✅ b) 피곤해 보이더라고요

3. Which is correct for “Turns out he is a doctor”?
   a) 의사더라고요
   b) 의사이더라고요
   
   Click to Show Answer

   ✅ b) 의사이더라고요 (contracted: 의사더라고요 also used in speech)

✅ Conclusion

Now you can naturally share your experiences in Korean using ~더라고요!

• Attach it to verbs, adjectives, or 이다 for personal observations
• Use it in storytelling, recommendations, and memories
• It sounds natural, expressive, and authentic

Practice these:

• “The coffee was really good” → 커피가 정말 맛있더라고요
• “I found out that he was a singer” → 가수이더라고요

📘 Coming Up Next

Next lesson: How to Use ~던 – Describing Repeated Past Actions or States
Learn how to describe “the house I used to live in,” “the food I used to eat,” and more!

---

Related Keywords:
learn korean, korean grammar, 더라고요, personal experience grammar, korean storytelling, korean indirect observation, romanized korean