Key Facts
- Hangul: 날씬하다 (nalssinhada)
- Meaning: slim
- Level: B1
- Part of speech: adjective
- Stem: 날씬하
- Conjugation class: 하다 type
- Grammar: Descriptive word; the person takes 이/가 or 은/는 (친구가 날씬해요).
- Usage: Positive and used as a compliment, mostly about body shape. Be careful: commenting on someone's body can be rude.
What Does 날씬하다 Mean?
날씬하다 means slim. 날씬한 몸매 is a slim figure, and 친구가 날씬해요 says a friend is slim. It is a positive word, often used as a compliment. The person takes 이/가 or 은/는.
How Do You Pronounce 날씬하다?
날씬하다 is read as written. 하 and 여 contract to 해, retaining ㅎ, so you get 날씬해요 and 날씬했어요, the second spoken [날씬해써요]. In the formal style the ㅂ of 합 turns into ㅁ before ㄴ: 날씬합니다 is [날씬함니다]. The formal past 날씬했습니다 is [날씬핻씀니다].
How Do You Use 날씬하다 in a Sentence?
제 친구는 정말 날씬해요.
My friend is really slim.
정말 means really, and 제 친구는 is the topic.
날씬한 사람이 되고 싶어요.
I want to become a slim person.
날씬한 is the present modifier and goes before 사람이, and 되고 싶어요 says the speaker wants to become one.
어릴 때는 날씬했어요.
I was slim when I was little.
어릴 때는 means when I was little, and 날씬했어요 is the past.
They show the polite present 날씬해요, the modifier 날씬한 and the past 날씬했어요.
How Does Nalssinhada Conjugation Work?
날씬하다 is a 하다 adjective, so 하 + 여 contracts to 해: 날씬해요, 날씬했어요, 날씬해서. The present modifier is 날씬한, and the if-form is 날씬하면. The long negative is 날씬하지 않아요. The rule behind this class is in the lesson on how 하다 becomes 해요.
날씬하다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 날씬해요 | ||
| Polite past | 날씬했어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 날씬할 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 날씬하겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 날씬합니다 | ||
| Formal past | 날씬했습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 날씬할 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 날씬해 | ||
| Casual past | 날씬했어 | ||
| Casual future | 날씬할 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 날씬하세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 날씬해서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 날씬하면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 날씬한 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 날씬했던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 날씬할 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 날씬해요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 날씬하지 않아요 |
No want-to row: -고 싶다 suits verbs.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 날씬했어요 | [날씬해써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 날씬할 거예요 | [날씬할꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 날씬하겠어요 | [날씬하게써요] |
| Formal present | 날씬합니다 | [날씬함니다] |
| Formal past | 날씬했습니다 | [날씬핻씀니다] |
| Formal future | 날씬할 것입니다 | [날씬할꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 날씬했어 | [날씬해써] |
| Casual future | 날씬할 거야 | [날씬할꺼야] |
| Past modifier | 날씬했던 | [날씬핻떤] |
| Long negative | 날씬하지 않아요 | [날씬하지 아나요] |
Common Mistake with 날씬하다
This is a meaning trap rather than a grammar error: both forms below are correct Korean, but they say different things.
Says "I was slim": 날씬했어요
Says "I became slim": ✓ 날씬해졌어요
Why: 날씬했어요 only describes a past state. A change of state needs -아/어지다, so to tell someone you have slimmed down, say 날씬해졌어요.
Compliments and Caution
날씬하다 is positive and is used as a compliment, mostly about body shape. Be careful, though: commenting on someone's body can be rude, even when the word is a kind one. Compare it with 마르다, which can sound unhealthy, and with 뚱뚱하다, which is blunt.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 날씬하다?
| Word | How to tell it from 날씬하다 |
|---|---|
| 마르다 | 마르다 means thin or skinny and can sound unhealthy; 날씬하다 means slim in a good way. |
| 뚱뚱하다 | The opposite: 뚱뚱하다 means fat. |
마르다 is thin or skinny and can sound unhealthy. 날씬하다 is slim in a good way.
Looking through an Old Photo Album
Mina starts a conversation about her own appearance in an old photo. Jisu follows her lead and asks about that time.
Mina
이 사진에서는 제가 정말 날씬해요.
I sajineseoneun jega jeongmal nalssinhaeyo.
I look really slim in this photo.
Jisu
예전에도 날씬했어요?
Yejeonedo nalssinhaesseoyo?
Were you slim before too?
Mina
네, 날씬한 몸매였어요.
Ne, nalssinhan mommaeyeosseoyo.
Yes, I had a slim figure.
Jisu
이 사진은 언제 찍었어요?
I sajineun eonje jjigeosseoyo?
When did you take this photo?
사진에서는 limits the description to the photo. 날씬했어요 asks about a past state, while 날씬한 modifies 몸매, “figure” or “body shape”. The conversation does not claim that being slim means being healthy, and the past form alone says nothing about how the change happened.
Body Shape, Appearance and a Change over Time
날씬한 몸매 is a common pairing meaning “a slim figure”. 몸매 concerns the body's overall shape, rather than a number on a scale. 날씬하다 by itself does not give someone's weight, height or medical condition. If you need one of those facts, the adjective cannot replace it.
날씬한 사람 uses the adjective before a person noun. At the end of a sentence, the same description becomes 날씬해요. The 한 in 날씬한 is a present description here, not a past tense marker. Compare the past-looking 날씬했던 when recalling how someone looked at an earlier time.
The existing example 어릴 때는 날씬했어요 sets the time with “when I was little”. The contrast marker 는 may suggest that the present is different, but the sentence does not directly describe the speaker's current body. Translating it as “I became slim” would add a change the Korean has not stated.
날씬해졌어요 specifically reports becoming slim or slimmer. The extra change-of-state expression matters because 날씬했어요 only places the description in the past. A photo comparison can support either sentence, depending on whether you are describing an old appearance or a change between two times.
Where Will You See 날씬하다?
Fashion descriptions and shopping conversations often use 날씬한 몸매. You may also meet 날씬해 보이다, “to look slim”, when discussing how a garment makes someone appear. 보이다 shifts the claim to appearance. It does not say the clothing changed the wearer's actual body.
In a conversation about a photograph, “looks slim” can be a natural English translation even when the Korean uses a direct description. Pay attention to phrases such as 이 사진에서는, “in this photo”, because they limit the claim to a particular image or situation.
날씬해요 is grammatically polite, and 날씬하세요 adds respect for the person described. Neither ending tells you whether a body comment is welcome. If someone begins by discussing their own appearance, you have clearer context than when you introduce the subject without an invitation.
Related Descriptions: Choose the Information You Mean
| Korean | Meaning | What it describes |
|---|---|---|
| 몸매 | figure; body shape | The overall outline and proportions of the body. |
| 체중 | body weight | A measurable quantity rather than an appearance. |
| 키 | height | How tall someone is, not how slim they are. |
| 건강하다 | to be healthy | Health rather than a particular body shape. |
The personality and appearance vocabulary lesson gives more language for describing people. Use the table to separate shape, size and health before choosing an adjective.
The 하다 Pattern without an Action Verb
날씬하다 ends in 하다, but it describes a state. 날씬한 몸매 follows the adjective pattern; it does not describe someone performing an action called “slim”. For a wish, the existing example uses 날씬한 사람이 되고 싶어요: the action verb 되다, “become”, carries the wish expression.
Write 날씬해요 as one word. In the long negative, write 날씬하지 않아요 with a space before 않아요. The spelling still starts with 날씬하 even though the polite present uses the contracted 해.
Mini Drill: State or Change?
- Say “was slim” in the polite style.
- Say “became slim” using the change-of-state expression.
- Complete “a slim figure”: ____ 몸매.
- Make the long negative of 날씬하다.
Show drill answers
- 날씬했어요.
- 날씬해졌어요.
- 날씬한 몸매.
- 날씬하지 않아요.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 날씬하다 tell you someone's exact weight?
- Does 날씬했어요 itself say that someone became slim?
- Which related word describes health rather than body shape?
Show answers
- No. It describes shape.
- No. It describes a past state.
- 건강하다.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do You Say 'My Friend Is Really Slim'?
제 친구는 정말 날씬해요.
How Do You Say 'I Became Slim'?
날씬해졌어요. The -아/어지다 ending shows a change of state.
Is 날씬하다 a Compliment?
Yes, but commenting on someone's body can still be rude.
What Is the Difference between 날씬하다 and 마르다?
날씬하다 means slim in a good way; 마르다 means thin and can sound unhealthy.
What Is the Opposite of 날씬하다?
The opposite is 뚱뚱하다, which means fat.
Which Words Are Related to 날씬하다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Learn 마르다 for thin and 뚱뚱하다 for the opposite end, and 건강하다 for healthy. Once you know how to say "slim", put another word through the Korean verb conjugator to compare the pattern, or browse more entries in the Korean verb dictionary.