TeacherJoy

Let’s learn about the Sino-Korean word ‘겁’. Sino-Korean words can pack a lot of meaning into one syllable, and ‘겁’ is a perfect example. It’s a noun that means ‘the feeling of being scared’ or ‘fear.’

First, when you combine ‘겁’ with the verb ‘나다’, it means the same as ‘무섭다’.

• 겁 나요. – I’m scared.
• 무서워요. – I’m scared.

The subtle difference? ‘겁이 나다’ sounds like you are describing a psychological phenomenon happening to you, while ‘무섭다’ is more about expressing the raw emotion you feel.

You can also ‘give’ fear. ‘겁’ plus ‘주다’ means to scare someone or threaten them.

• 저한테 그렇게 겁 주지 마세요. – Don’t scare me like that.

But in Korean, we don’t ‘receive’ fear. Instead, we ‘eat’ it! We say ‘겁을 먹다’.

• 너무 겁 먹지 마세요. – Don’t be so scared / Don’t get cold feet.

You can also use ‘겁을 내다’:

• 겁 내지 마세요. 우리 개는 안 물어요. – Don’t be afraid. My dog doesn’t bite.

‘겁을 내다’ and ‘겁을 먹다’ imply that you have some control over your emotion. On the other hand, ‘겁이 나다’ is just about the phenomenon itself, regardless of control.

In Korean, we describe someone’s personality using ‘많다’ or ‘없다’ with ‘겁.’

• 제가 좀 겁이 많아서 롤러코스터 못 타요. – I’m a bit of a coward, so I can’t ride roller coasters.
• 너는 겁도 없다. 안 무서웠어? – You’ve got some nerve! Weren’t you scared?

We don’t really say ‘I have a little fear.’ We focus on the extremes: you either have ‘겁이 많아요’ or ‘겁이 없어요.’