-다가는
-다가는: If You Keep On — Warning of a Bad Result
Connective: if the prior process continues, a (often bad) result follows; also marks sharper shift than -다가.
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb / adjective / 이다 | -다가는 | 가다가는 / 이러다가는 / 늦다가는 |
| After -었- / -겠- | -었다가는 / -겠다가는 | 갔다가는 / 하겠다가는 |
-다가는 warns that if you keep on like this, a bad result follows.
Classroom gloss: continuing the first action leads somewhere you do not want. It is a warning connective, not a neutral “and then.”
Why this is hard
It shares letters with -다가 (while doing / and then). Learners hear -다가 stories and then paste -다가는 into soft sequence lines. The 는 is not decoration: this frame leans into if you continue… with a threat or regret colour.
English if you keep… / at this rate… is closer than plain and.
What it does
You name the ongoing behaviour, then the bad outcome.
이렇게 놀다가는 시험에 떨어져요.
돈을 쓰다가는 나중에 후회해요.
늦게 자다가는 아침에 못 일어나요.
거짓말하다가는 신뢰를 잃어요.Tone: warning, advice, self-scolding — not a cheerful plan.
Forms
Action stem + -다가는 + result clause (often undesirable).
When not to use it
Do not use it for neutral “I was doing A and then B happened” stories — that is often -다가 without the warning -는.
Do not attach it to praise of continuing a good habit (이렇게 공부다가는 성공해요 as a cheer) unless you accept the odd warning flavour; other conditionals are clearer for positive forecasts.
Do not confuse it with topic -는 alone. The taught chunk is -다가는 as a warning unit.
Neighbours — and why they differ
| Form | Why it is not this slot |
|---|---|
| -다가 | While / and then interruption or shift — not specifically a keep-on warning. |
| -으면 | General if; can be neutral or positive. |
| -도록 | Aim / extent; not “if you keep doing this badly.” |
Ask: am I warning that continuing leads somewhere bad? If yes, -다가는. If you only narrate a mid-action shift, use -다가.
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
On the jabi learning path, this appears in 연결어미 (conjunctive ending) — Advanced Korean 1, Unit 2, on the theme of conjunctive ending. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. Your friend keeps checking their phone instead of leaving. Which warning says that continuing this way will make them late?
2. Which sentence is a neutral interruption story and therefore calls for -다가 rather than warning -다가는?
3. You want to encourage a good habit with a neutral positive forecast. Which line avoids the odd warning colour of -다가는?
Common questions
Dictionary?
「001」: interruption/shift with focus on the change (vs -다가). 「002」: the process becomes cause/grounds; often implies continuing leads to a bad result.
Curriculum focus?
Gloss highlights the warning reading — if you keep on, trouble follows.
Vs -으면?
-으면 is general condition. -다가는 carries process-continuing + caution colour.
이러다가는?
Very common fixed feel: ‘if things keep going like this…’