jabi-은 지
-은 지: How Long Since…
Since [event] — marks the stretch of time from a past event until now (often with 되다).
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb stem ends in a consonant (not ㄹ) | -은 지 | 먹다 → 먹은 지 / 끝나다 → 끝난 지 |
| Verb stem ends in a vowel or ㄹ | -ㄴ 지 | 가다 → 간 지 / 살다 → 산 지 / 태어나다 → 태어난 지 |
| Duration result | -은 지 N이/가 되다 | 만난 지 1년이 됐어요 |
-은 지 measures how long it has been since something happened.
딸이 태어난 지 벌써 1년이 됐어요? — has it already been a year since she was born?
Forms
| Stem | Form |
|---|---|
| Consonant (not ㄹ) | -은 지 |
| Vowel or ㄹ | -ㄴ 지 |
Typical close: -은 지 + duration + 되다
한국에 온 지 2년 됐어요. It’s been two years since I came to Korea.
만난 지 오래됐어요. It’s been a long time since we met.
운동을 시작한 지 한 달 됐어요. It’s been a month since I started working out.Not plain past
-았-/-었- 태어났어요 states the birth. -은 지 … 됐어요 states the elapsed time since that birth.
Not -은 후에
| Form | Job |
|---|---|
| -은 후에 -은 후에 | after doing X, (then) Y |
| -은 지 | since X, how long until now |
*먹은 후에 = after eating. 먹은 지 두 시간 됐어요 = it’s been two hours since I ate.
No double past
*왔은 지 is wrong. Use 온 지. The modifier carries the “already happened” meaning; (시간)에-style clock times are separate (세 시에).
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
In the Sejong course this appears in 대한 씨 딸이 태어난 지 벌써 1년이 됐어요? — Sejong Korean 2, Unit 18, on the theme of 모임. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. What does -은 지 measure?
2. Unit line: 태어난 지 벌써 1년이 됐어요?
3. Which is wrong?
Common questions
Is -은 지 one dictionary word?
It is taught as a chunk: past modifier -(으)ㄴ + bound noun 지. Dictionaries list 지 separately with that 'since then' sense.
How is this different from -은 후에?
[[g:eun-hue]] means after doing X (then Y). -은 지 measures the elapsed time since X.
Do I need 되다?
Very often yes: N이/가 됐어요 / 지났어요. The unit title uses 됐어요.
Past -었- inside?
No. The modifier already places the event before now: 만난 지, not 만났은 지. [[g:past-eot]] is not stacked here.