How to Say "The bird is tired, but keeps walking" in Korean | -지만 Grammar

Quick Answer: "The bird is tired, but keeps walking" in Korean is "새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요." (saeneun pigonhajiman, kkeutkkaji geoleoyo.). It uses the -지만 grammar pattern (But/However (-지만)). Level: A2.

Learn how to say "The bird is tired, but keeps walking" in Korean: "새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요.". This sentence uses the -지만 grammar pattern (But/However (-지만)), a key building block for Korean learners at the A2 level.

What does "The bird is tired, but keeps walking" mean in Korean?

The Korean sentence "새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요." translates to "The bird is tired, but keeps walking." in English. "새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요." is a simple A1–A2 sentence that paints a clear scene. It ends with "-요" so it feels polite and warm. It is perfect for fairy-tale style narration.

Pronunciation guide: saeneun pigonhajiman, kkeutkkaji geoleoyo.

Grammar Point: But/However (-지만)

The connective -지만 joins two contrasting clauses, similar to 'but' or 'however' in English. It attaches directly to the verb/adjective stem. This sentence also uses -아/어요.

Verb stem + 지만. For example: 작지만 (small but…), 춥지만 (cold but…).

Korean Sentence Structure Breakdown

Korean follows a Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) word order, which is different from English (SVO). In "새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요.", the verb comes at the end of the sentence. Here is the word-by-word breakdown: • 새는 (saeneun) • 피곤하지만, (pigonhajiman,) • 끝까지 (kkeutkkaji) • 걸어요 (geoleoyo)

Korean sentences always end with the verb. Get comfortable with putting the action word last.

Why This Korean Expression Sounds Natural

In English, we often say "The bird is tired, but keeps walking" directly. Korean keeps the same idea but adds softness through the ending, so the line feels caring rather than flat.

Cultural Insight

한국어는 감정을 드러낼 때도 부드러운 말투로 마음의 온기를 전해요.

Examples

새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요. — saeneun pigonhajiman, kkeutkkaji geoleoyo. — The bird is tired, but keeps walking.

지금 새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요. — jigeum saeneun pigonhajiman, kkeutkkaji geoleoyo. — Right now, the bird is tired, but keeps walking

정말 새는 피곤하지만, 끝까지 걸어요. — jeongmal saeneun pigonhajiman, kkeutkkaji geoleoyo. — Really, the bird is tired, but keeps walking

Common Mistakes

Incorrect: 작은지만 → Correct: 작지만. Do not add the modifier ending -은/-는 before -지만. Attach -지만 directly to the stem.

Incorrect: 먹아요 → Correct: 먹어요. The stem 먹- ends in a dark vowel (ㅓ), so it takes -어요 not -아요. Match the vowel harmony.