# -답니다



## idialegre

Hi, everybody!

I am wondering about the ending -답니다, as in, for example, 내가 건강하답니다.

I know that it results from the contraction of 하다고 합니다, which is indirect/reported speech, and I also understand that it can mean, "They say...." But apparently there are other nuances it can convey that are not really directly related to reported speech. I would be very grateful for any examples of situations in which -답니다 is used, and that might help me gain a better of understanding of its "flavor."

고맙습니다!


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## terredepomme

Oh boy...

First of all, you're right, while this can imply a hearsay, in another usage it means something completely different.
How to explain that sense? Well it is difficult to explain. I would explain it by the terms "*a gentle remark.*"
For example:
걱정 마세요. 저는 건강하답니다. Don't worry. I'm healthy, you know.
저희 어머니는 정말로 예쁘답니다. My mother is really beautiful.
In this case, the function of the sentence is more emphasized as "telling somebody something" rather than, say, a monologue. You would say these phrases in a personal letter, when adressing others directly, or in children's books.
With -(이)다 it becomes -(이)랍니다.
수지는 여자다. Suji is a woman.(An objective statement)
수지는 여자랍니다. Suji is a woman, you know that?

The 반말 form is '단다.'
아들아, 정말로 사랑한단다. Son, I really love you, [I want you to know that.]

In Korean, there are many, many ways of saying what would be essentially the same thing in other languages. It is a highly nuanced language. The only way to learn it is to listen/read a lot of Korean.


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## idialegre

terredepomme said:


> In Korean, there are many, many ways of saying what would be essentially the same thing in other languages. It is a highly nuanced language. The only way to learn it is to listen/read a lot of Korean.



Ouch.


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## oloekis

Haha I like the way you say it, "flavor". 

If it helps, sometimes, and most of time I assume, ~답니다 gives a bubbly and bouncy personality in to a sentence. Unless someone intentionally gives this ~답니다 with sarcastic way or something. And of course unless it's said in a serious context. 

Cheers!


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## alice313

I think there's another way of say that word when it is in a sarcastic way. ~ 답디다 or ~ 합디다
And this has a sole meaning 'They say...', used when you report something you heard from others.
Actually it's not a sarcastic wayt of talk, but it used in that way a lot.


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