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Grammar Advanced TOPIK II · Level 5–6 Advanced Korean 1 · expression

-는 법이다

-는 법이다: It Is Natural That… — How Things Go

Pattern 법 「009」 in -은/는 법이다: the named action/state is only natural / the way it is.

Before this, make sure you know: -게 마련이다 , -아요 / -어요

How to form it

When Form Example
Verb + -는 법이다 -는 법이다 고생하는 법이다 / 실수하는 법이다
Adjective + -(으)ㄴ 법이다 -(으)ㄴ 법이다 어려운 법이다 / 바쁜 법이다

-는 법이다 means it is natural that… / that’s how it goes — a general rule of how things go.

Why this is hard

It neighbours -게 마련이다. Learners treat both as identical always-rules. 법 leans to ‘the way/law of things’; 마련 to ‘bound to be.’ Overlap is real — learn from examples, not from one English gloss.

What it does

You mark a general tendency as the normal order of things.

사람은 실수하는 법이에요.
기다리면 기회가 오는 법이에요.
노력하면 느는 법이에요.
바쁘면 실수하는 법이에요.

Forms

Adnominal -는 + 법이다.

When not to use it

Do not use it for a one-off freak event. Do not confuse it with legal 법 ‘law’ readings only. Do not swap it blindly with every -게 마련이다 without checking tone.

Neighbours — and why they differ

FormWhy it is not this slot
-게 마련이다Bound to be — near twin.
-기가 쉽다Prone to — risk tendency.
-는 이상Given that — condition, not natural law.

Advice and consolation use this frame: of course that happens. Keep it general, not personal blame only.

Classroom examples should keep the meaning concrete: one clear scene beats three vague glosses. If a neighbour form already says the same thing more lightly, prefer the lighter tool unless register demands this one.

Ask: am I stating how things naturally go? If yes, -는 법이다. If you landed in a mess, see -게 생겼다.

Do not confuse it with

-게 마련이다

bound to be — naturally so (-기/게 마련이다)

-기가 쉽다

easy to… / prone to — a tendency that comes naturally

-을 법하다

likely to… — a reasonable prediction

Taught alongside this

On the jabi learning path, this appears in 표현 (expression) — Advanced Korean 1, Unit 4, on the theme of expression. These come with it:

-는다니1 what are they telling me to…? — asking what the order was -었던 that had been… — past modifier with a lingering sense 에 관하여 regarding, about — the written 에 관하여 / 관한 -자기에 because one decides to… — contracted -자고 하기에 (청유 인용 + 이유), pair of -는다기에 -게 마련이다 bound to be — naturally so (-기/게 마련이다) -게 생겼다 have ended up (badly)… — negative predicament with -게 생기다 -기 나름이다 depends on how you… — the outcome varies with the method -기가 바쁘게 as soon as — barely finishing one thing before the next -기가 쉽다 easy to… / prone to — a tendency that comes naturally -기만 하다 only does… — limiting the action to just that -기에 따라 depending on… — outcomes that change with the condition -기에 앞서(서) before doing… — prior to the step you name -은 나머지 as a result of… — the outcome that follows from that act -는 데다가 and on top of that — stacking one fact onto another -는 동시에 at the same time as — two things in the same moment -는 듯하다 seems to… — a soft guess from appearance -는 이상 now that / given that — already being in that state -은 채로 while still… — leaving it in the state it already has -는 척하다 pretend to… — acting as if -는 가운데 in the midst of — while that situation continues 는 말할 것도 없고 not to mention — A goes without saying, and B too (는/은 말할 것도 없고) -을 만하다 worth doing / decent enough — worth the effort or acceptable -을 법하다 likely to… — a reasonable prediction -을 테다 will (for sure) — a strong expectation about what follows -을 테면 if you are going to… — setting a condition for a plan -을 테지만 will, but… — expecting one thing and contrasting another -으려나 보다 I guess they mean to… — reading someone's likely intention 를 가지고 with, using — taking that as the means or topic -으면 몰라도 only if… — the following holds only under that (unreal / opposite) condition 에도 불구하고 despite — in spite of that noun situation -는데도 even though — contrast after a clause, softer than 지만 -어 내다 manage to… — pushing through until it is done -는다기에 because they say… — the reported claim is the reason -는다는 것이 meant to…, but — intention (-는다고 하는 것이) whose result diverged -는데도 불구하고 even so — despite the whole preceding clause

Words used above

Tap the speaker to hear it read aloud by your browser.

-는 법이다-neun beopidait is natural that…
법beoplaw / way / principle
고생gosaenghardship
실수silsumistake
사람saramperson

Quick check

No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.

1. A friend is crushed after one slip at work. You want the soft general-rule comfort — people just do this — not a prediction and not a risk label.

2. You want this page’s adjective seat for 어렵다 — first weeks are hard, and that is only natural.

3. You want the bound-to coat from -기 마련이다, not this page’s ‘that’s the way it is’ colour.

Common questions

Dictionary?

우리말샘 법 「009」: in -은/는 법이다 — marks that the named action or state is natural. Related teaching seats 「006」「007」「008」 (method/duty/habit) after -는.

Vs -기 마련이다?

Same truth family. 법이다 ≈ ‘that’s how it goes’; 마련이다 ≈ ‘bound to be’.

Vs -을 법하다?

-을 법하다 is a prediction (‘likely’). -는 법이다 is a general rule.

Comfort line?

Yes — 처음엔 어려운 법이야.

Seen in the wild

Lessons where this pattern showed up in real Korean — news, slang, drama lines.

Culture Notes Advanced

Korean Fiction and Essays: -더라, -는 법이다, -은 나머지