TeacherJoy

I’m going to share some expressions we use every single day. 

First, you need to know a specific prefix “제-“. If you’re studying Korean, you might think, “Wait, doesn’t that mean ‘my’ or ‘mine’?” Strictly speaking, not quite!

A long time ago, the word 저 (that over there) met the possessive marker 의, and they merged into 제-. Over a very long time, this 제- attached itself to various words, creating entirely new expressions that imply “its own” or “proper.”

The first one is 제대로. 대로 is a word that adds the meaning “as the way it is.” So 제대로 literally means “as the way it (properly) is.”

• 감기에 심하게 걸려서 목소리가 제대로 안 나와요. – I have a bad cold, so my voice isn’t coming out properly.

Here, 제 refers to your voice. It means your voice isn’t coming out the way it properly should.

• 어젯밤에 잠을 제대로 못 잤어요. -I didn’t sleep very well last night.

In this case, 제대로 means you didn’t sleep with enough quality or duration—not “well.”

Next is 제때. 때 is a native Korean word for “time.” Since 제때 refers to “that (proper) time,” it means “the right time” or “on schedule.” By the way, 제시간 means the same thing!

• 제때 먹고 제때 자는 게 건강에 좋아. – Eating and sleeping on schedule is good for your health.
• 내일 제시간에 올 수 있지? – You can make it on time tomorrow, right?

Third, we have 제정신. 정신 means consciousness. So 제정신 refers to your original consciousness, or a sane mind.

• 나 지금 제정신이 아닌 것 같아. – I think I’m not in my right mind.

Lastly, 제맛. 맛 means taste. 제맛 refers to the original, authentic taste of something.

• 주말에는 치맥이 제맛이지! – Chicken and beer are best enjoyed on the weekend!
• 역시 김치는 한국이 제맛이야! – As expected, Kimchi tastes best in Korea!