KOREAN LEVEL UP › Korean phrases › Dining out & ordering › 간이 딱 맞아서 자꾸 손이 가요

“The seasoning is just right, so…” in Korean

간이 딱 맞아서 자꾸 손이 가요

gani ttak majaseo jakku soni gayo

Situation: Dining out & orderingLevel: Advanced (TOPIK 5–6)

Meaning

The seasoning is just right, so I keep reaching for more.

간 refers to saltiness or seasoning. 손이 가다 (“the hand goes”) is an idiom for being unable to stop eating because the food is so good.

Romanization follows the Revised Romanization system and is a guide to pronunciation.

Syllables: 12 · Words: 6

In natural speech, sounds link and shift across words. The table below reads each word separately, as it sounds when said on its own.

Syllable	Letters (consonant + vowel + final)	Romanization
간이
간	ㄱ+ㅏ+ㄴ	[가] ga
이	ㅇ+ㅣ	[니] ni
딱	ㄸ+ㅏ+ㄱ	ttak
맞아서
맞	ㅁ+ㅏ+ㅈ	[마] ma
아	ㅇ+ㅏ	[자] ja
서	ㅅ+ㅓ	seo
자꾸
자	ㅈ+ㅏ	ja
꾸	ㄲ+ㅜ	kku
손이
손	ㅅ+ㅗ+ㄴ	[소] so
이	ㅇ+ㅣ	[니] ni
가요
가	ㄱ+ㅏ	ga
요	ㅇ+ㅛ	yo

A ㅇ at the start of a syllable is silent; at the end of a syllable it sounds like “ng”.

Linking: when a syllable ending in a consonant (patchim) is followed by a syllable that starts with a vowel, the consonant moves over to the next syllable. 간이 → [가니]

Style: Polite (해요체)Sentence type: Statement or set phrase

Ends in -요. The everyday polite style, and a safe choice with shop staff, colleagues, strangers and anyone older than you.

These words from the TOPIK vocabulary lists appear in the phrase (shown in dictionary form).

Korean	Part of speech	Meaning	Level
자꾸	adverb	repeatedly	TOPIK level 4

Test yourself before you move on. Tap an answer.

Question 1 What does “간이 딱 맞아서 자꾸 손이 가요” mean?

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Answer: The seasoning is just right, so I keep reaching for more

Question 2 How do you say “The seasoning is just right, so I keep reaching for more” in Korean?

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Answer: 간이 딱 맞아서 자꾸 손이 가요 gani ttak majaseo jakku soni gayo

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