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

-는 동시에

-는 동시에: At The Same Time As — Two Things Together

Connective with 동시: while / at the same time as the named action or state.

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

How to form it

When	Form	Example
Verb + -는 동시에	-는 동시에	말하는 동시에 / 들어가는 동시에
Adjective / past + -(으)ㄴ 동시에	-(으)ㄴ 동시에	바쁜 동시에 / 끝난 동시에

-는 동시에 means at the same time as — two things in the same moment.

Why this is hard

English at the same time is broad. Korean -는 동시에 often feels planned or formal next to soft spoken overlap. Learners also confuse it with rush-after -기가 바쁘게, which is succession, not simultaneity.

What it does

You mark two actions or states overlapping in time.

웃는 동시에 울었어요.
설명하는 동시에 예를 보여 줘요.
일하는 동시에 공부해요.
문을 여는 동시에 불이 켜졌어요.

Forms

Adnominal -는 + 동시에.

When not to use it

Do not use it for ‘and then immediately after’ rush. Do not drop the adnominal. Do not force it into every casual ‘while’.

Neighbours — and why they differ

Form	Why it is not this slot
-기가 바쁘게	As soon as / rush after — succession.
-으면서	While doing — spoken overlap, lighter.
-는 가운데	In the midst of — situation frame.

Reports and careful narration like this frame. Everyday ‘while’ often stays with -으면서.

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: are two things truly overlapping in one moment? If yes, -는 동시에. If B follows A in a rush, use -기가 바쁘게.

Do not confuse it with

-으면서

doing two things at once — and its hidden contrastive use

-고

and — listing and plain sequence, with no causal claim

-는 가운데

in the midst of — while that situation continues

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 듯하다 seems to… — a soft guess from appearance -는 법이다 it is natural that… — a general rule of how things go -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

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-는 동시에-neun dongsieat the same time as…

동시dongsisame time

말하다malhadato speak

웃다utdato smile / laugh

들어가다deureogadato enter

Quick check

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

1. The light came on at the exact instant the door opened — not after, not before. Which line marks that?

2. Busy and joyful at the same time — formal register. Which line uses 동시에?

3. Two tasks are truly simultaneous — formal, planned register. Which line fits over the lighter alternative?

Common questions

Dictionary?

우리말샘 동시 「002」: same time/period. 「003」: mainly 동시에 — also holding another fact.

Vs -으면서?

Both overlap in time. 동시에 leans formal; 으면서 is everyday.

Two subjects?

Often same scene — one or two actors in one moment.

Vs -는 가운데?

-는 가운데 is ‘in the midst of an ongoing situation’. 동시에 zooms to the same instant.