-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다 means "almost," "nearly," or "was about to." It expresses that something almost happened but didn't, usually referring to a negative or undesirable event that was narrowly avoided.
Structure
Verb stem + -(으)ᄅ 뻔하다
Breakdown:
- -(으)ᄅ: Future/modifier ending
- 뻔하다: Nearly, almost (to be obvious/clear)
- Combined meaning: "Almost [verb]ed" or "Nearly [verb]ed"
Literal meaning: "It was obvious/clear that [verb] would happen"
Formation Rules
No Final Consonant: -ᄅ 뻔하다
Stems ending in vowel:
- 죽다 → 죽을 뻔하다 (almost died)
- 넘어지다 → 넘어질 뻔하다 (almost fell)
- 지다 → 질 뻔하다 (almost lost)
- 다치다 → 다칠 뻔하다 (almost got hurt)
With Final Consonant: -을 뻔하다
Stems ending in consonant:
- 먹다 → 먹을 뻔하다 (almost ate)
- 잊다 → 잊을 뻔하다 (almost forgot)
- 놓치다 → 놓칠 뻔하다 (almost missed)
- 깜짝 놀라다 → 깜짝 놀랄 뻔하다 (almost got startled)
ᄅ Irregular
Stems ending in ᄅ drop the ᄅ:
- 살다 → 살 뻔하다 (almost lived)
- 만들다 → 만들 뻔하다 (almost made)
Core Meaning: Near Miss
Almost Happened (But Didn't)
Narrowly avoided negative outcome:
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died)
- 넘어질 뻔했어요 (I almost fell)
- 사고 날 뻔했어요 (There was almost an accident)
- 늦을 뻔했어요 (I was almost late)
Close Call
Nearly experienced something:
- 잊을 뻔했어요 (I almost forgot)
- 놓칠 뻔했어요 (I almost missed it)
- 깜빡할 뻔했어요 (I almost forgot momentarily)
- 지각할 뻔했어요 (I was almost late)
Relief Expression
Expressing relief at avoidance:
- 큰일 날 뻔했어요 (Something big almost happened)
- 실수할 뻔했어요 (I almost made a mistake)
- 잃어버릴 뻔했어요 (I almost lost it)
Common Usage Patterns
Dangerous Situations
Near accidents or danger:
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died)
- 다칠 뻔했어요 (I almost got hurt)
- 사고 날 뻔했어요 (There was almost an accident)
- 부딪힐 뻔했어요 (I almost crashed/bumped)
Mistakes Avoided
Nearly made an error:
- 실수할 뻔했어요 (I almost made a mistake)
- 잊을 뻔했어요 (I almost forgot)
- 놓칠 뻔했어요 (I almost missed it)
- 틀릴 뻔했어요 (I almost got it wrong)
Missing Opportunities
Almost lost a chance:
- 늦을 뻔했어요 (I was almost late)
- 못 볼 뻔했어요 (I almost couldn't see it)
- 못 만날 뻔했어요 (I almost couldn't meet)
- 지나칠 뻔했어요 (I almost passed by)
Conjugation
Past Tense (Most Common)
뻔했다:
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died - polite)
- 죽을 뻔했습니다 (I almost died - formal)
- 죽을 뻔했어 (I almost died - casual)
Present Tense (Rare)
뻔하다:
- 죽을 뻔해요 (almost die)
- Less commonly used
Future (Not Used)
뻔하다 doesn't work well with future tense
Politeness Levels
Formal (합니다체)
- 죽을 뻔했습니다 (I almost died)
- 넘어질 뻔했습니다 (I almost fell)
Polite (해요체)
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died)
- 넘어질 뻔했어요 (I almost fell)
Casual (반말)
- 죽을 뻔했어 (I almost died)
- 넘어질 뻔했어 (I almost fell)
Emphasizing Relief
With Intensifiers
Adding emphasis to near miss:
- 하마터면 죽을 뻔했어요 (I very nearly died)
- 정말 죽을 뻔했어요 (I really almost died)
- 거의 죽을 뻔했어요 (I nearly died)
하마터면... -(으)ᄅ 뻔하다
Common pattern for "very nearly":
- 하마터면 늦을 뻔했어요 (I very nearly was late)
- 하마터면 잊을 뻔했어요 (I very nearly forgot)
Common Expressions
Dangerous Near Misses
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died)
- 큰일 날 뻔했어요 (Something terrible almost happened)
- 다칠 뻔했어요 (I almost got hurt)
- 사고 날 뻔했어요 (There was almost an accident)
Everyday Close Calls
- 늦을 뻔했어요 (I was almost late)
- 잊을 뻔했어요 (I almost forgot)
- 놓칠 뻔했어요 (I almost missed it)
- 떨어뜨릴 뻔했어요 (I almost dropped it)
Mistakes Avoided
- 실수할 뻔했어요 (I almost made a mistake)
- 깜빡할 뻔했어요 (I almost forgot momentarily)
- 틀릴 뻔했어요 (I almost got it wrong)
- 잘못 보낼 뻔했어요 (I almost sent it to the wrong person)
Comparison with Similar Patterns
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다 vs -겠다
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다: Almost happened (didn't happen)
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died [but didn't])
- Near miss, relief
-겠다: Will/would, intention
- 죽겠어요 (I'm going to die / I feel like dying)
- Exaggeration or intention
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다 vs -았/었을 뻔하다
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다: Standard form
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died)
-았/었을 뻔하다: Less common variation
- 죽었을 뻔했어요 (I almost died - emphasizes completion)
- Adds extra emphasis
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다 vs 거의
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다: Almost happened (with verb)
- 죽을 뻔했어요 (I almost died)
거의: Almost, nearly (adverb)
- 거의 죽었어요 (I nearly died)
- Can be used together: 거의 죽을 뻔했어요
Common Mistakes
❌ Incorrect: 좋을 뻔했어요
Doesn't work well with positive adjectives
✅ Correct: 좋았을 뻔했어요 OR different pattern
Use different expression or -았/었을 뻔하다
❌ Incorrect: 죽뻔했어요
Missing -(으)ᄅ connector
✅ Correct: 죽을 뻔했어요
Include proper modifier
❌ Incorrect: 잘될 뻔했어요
Awkward with positive outcomes
✅ Correct: 잘될 수도 있었어요
Use different pattern for positive near-misses
Summary Table
| Type | Form | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vowel ending | -ᄅ 뻔하다 | 죽을 뻔했어요 | Almost died |
| Consonant | -을 뻔하다 | 잊을 뻔했어요 | Almost forgot |
| With emphasis | 하마터면 V-ᄅ 뻔하다 | 하마터면 늦을 뻔했어요 | Very nearly was late |
| Past | -(으)ᄅ 뻔했다 | 다칠 뻔했어요 | Almost got hurt |
Usage Context Guide
Use -(으)ᄅ 뻔하다 when:
- Describing near misses
- Expressing relief at avoidance
- Narrating close calls
- Usually with negative/undesirable events
- Emphasizing "but didn't happen"
Common contexts:
- Dangerous situations (죽을 뻔했다)
- Mistakes avoided (실수할 뻔했다)
- Being late (늦을 뻔했다)
- Forgetting (잊을 뻔했다)
- Accidents narrowly avoided
Emotional Tone
Relief
Expressing thankfulness:
- 다행이에요! 다칠 뻔했어요 (Thank goodness! I almost got hurt)
Shock
Recounting scary moments:
- 정말 죽을 뻔했어요! (I really almost died!)
Warning
Cautioning others:
- 조심하세요! 넘어질 뻔했어요 (Be careful! You almost fell)
Restrictions
Typically Used With:
✅ Negative events ✅ Undesirable outcomes ✅ Mistakes ✅ Accidents ✅ Forgetting ✅ Being late
Less Natural With:
❌ Positive outcomes (use different patterns) ❌ Intentional good results ❌ Desired achievements
Key Takeaways
- ✅ Almost but didn't: Near miss, avoided
- ✅ Usually negative: Undesirable events avoided
- ✅ Expresses relief: Thankful it didn't happen
- ✅ Past tense common: -뻔했다 most frequent
- ✅ Works with verbs: Action verbs primarily
- ✅ With 하마터면: Emphasizes narrow escape
-(으)ᄅ 뻔하다 is essential for expressing close calls and near misses in Korean, particularly when recounting situations where something bad almost happened but was fortunately avoided.