The Seeking Ending: -지요? (Agreement)

🦄

TL;DR 🦄

😋 맛있죠? [ma-sit-jyo?] — "It's delicious, right?"

☀️ 오늘 날씨 좋죠? [o-neul nal-ssi jo-chyo?] — "Nice weather today, right?"

💰 이거 비싸죠? [i-geo bi-ssa-jyo?] — "This is expensive, right?"

✅ 그렇죠! [geu-reo-chyo!] — "That's right! / Exactly!"

🧠 아시죠? [a-si-jyo?] — "You know, right?"

🔊

🎧 Iru Helper Note: Hear every phrase in this lesson spoken aloud and practice your pronunciation with the Iru Helper Widgets.

🌈 The Big Picture

-지요? [ji-yo?], almost always shortened to -죠? [jyo?] in speech, is Korean's version of a tag question — "..., right?" or "..., isn't it?" It's used when you're fairly confident about something but want to confirm or invite agreement.

이거 맛있죠? — "This is delicious, right?"

오늘 좀 춥죠? — "It's a bit cold today, right?"

The expected response is usually agreement: 네, 맞아요 or simply 그렇죠 — "That's right."

🎭 -죠 as a Soft Assertion

Beyond questions, -죠 (without a question mark, said with falling intonation) can also soften a statement — meaning something like "I suppose / I'd say." It's a gentle way to state an opinion while leaving room for the other person to disagree.

이게 더 낫겠죠 — "I suppose this would be better"

시간이 좀 걸리겠죠 — "It'll probably take some time, I'd guess"

And as a standalone reply, 그렇죠! [geu-reo-chyo!] — "That's right! / Exactly!" — is one of the most common ways to affirm what someone just said.

🧳 Essential Phrase Kit

맛있죠? [ma-sit-jyo?] — "It's delicious, right?"

오늘 날씨 좋죠? [o-neul nal-ssi jo-chyo?] — "Nice weather today, right?"

이거 비싸죠? [i-geo bi-ssa-jyo?] — "This is expensive, right?"

그렇죠! [geu-reo-chyo!] — "That's right! / Exactly!"

아시죠? [a-si-jyo?] — "You know, right?"

피곤하시죠? [pi-go-na-si-jyo?] — "You must be tired, right?"

재미있었죠? [jae-mi-i-sseot-jyo?] — "It was fun, right?"

이게 더 낫겠죠 [i-ge deo nat-get-jyo] — "I suppose this would be better"

시간이 좀 걸리겠죠 [si-ga-ni jom geol-li-get-jyo] — "It'll probably take some time, I'd guess"

그쪽도 그렇게 생각하시죠? [geu-jjok-do geu-reo-ke saeng-ga-ka-si-jyo?] — "You think so too, right?"

🛠️ Putting Together

A: 이 김치찌개 진짜 맛있죠?

B: 그렇죠! 여기 김치찌개가 진짜 유명해요.

A: "This kimchi stew is really delicious, right?" B: "That's right! The kimchi stew here is really famous."

🦄 Grammar note: 맛있죠? rises in pitch like a question, inviting agreement — the reply 그렇죠! confirms it enthusiastically.

A: 오늘 날씨 정말 좋죠? 산책하기 딱 좋은 날씨예요.

B: 네, 맞아요. 이런 날은 집에 있기 아깝죠.

A: "The weather's really nice today, right? It's the perfect weather for a walk." B: "Yes, that's right. On a day like this, it'd be a waste to stay home, wouldn't it."

🦄 Grammar note: 아깝죠 — "it'd be a shame/waste, right?" — uses -죠 to invite the other person to agree with a feeling, not just a fact.

A: 이 가방 진짜 예쁜데, 가격 보니까... 이거 비싸죠?

B: 음, 그렇겠죠. 브랜드가 유명하니까요.

A: "This bag is really pretty, but looking at the price... this is expensive, right?" B: "Hmm, I'd guess so. Since the brand is famous."

🦄 Grammar note: 그렇겠죠 combines -겠- (guess) with -죠 (soft assertion) — "I suppose that's probably the case."

🗣️ Speaking Practice: Mini Dialogue

민수: 지은 씨, 어제 콘서트 재미있었죠?

[ji-eun ssi, eo-je kon-seo-teu jae-mi-i-sseot-jyo?]

"Jieun, yesterday's concert was fun, right?"

지은: 그렇죠! 진짜 최고였어요. 노래도 다 좋았고요.

[geu-reo-chyo! jin-jja choe-go-yeo-sseo-yo. no-rae-do da jo-at-go-yo]

"Exactly! It was really the best. The songs were all great too."

민수: 맞아요. 그런데 사람이 정말 많았죠? 입장하는 데 시간이 좀 걸렸어요.

[ma-ja-yo. geu-reon-de sa-ra-mi jeong-mal ma-nat-jyo? ip-jang-ha-neun de si-ga-ni jom geol-lyeo-sseo-yo]

"Right. But there were really a lot of people, weren't there? It took a while to get in."

지은: 그러게요. 다음엔 더 일찍 가야겠죠?

[geu-reo-ge-yo. da-eu-men deo il-jjik ga-ya-get-jyo?]

"Yeah, right. I guess next time we should go earlier, huh?"

민수: 네, 그게 좋을 것 같아요. 아, 그리고 다음 콘서트도 가실 거죠?

[ne, geu-ge jo-eul geot ga-ta-yo. a, geu-ri-go da-eum kon-seo-teu-do ga-sil geo-jyo?]

"Yes, I think that'd be good. Oh, and you're going to the next concert too, right?"

지은: 당연하죠! 벌써 기대돼요.

[dang-yeon-ha-jyo! beol-sseo gi-dae-dwae-yo]

"Of course! I'm already looking forward to it."

🧭 Speaking Tip

-죠/-지요 is a fantastic tool for small talk because it invites the other person into the conversation — it says "I think this, but tell me you agree." Pay attention to intonation: a rising -죠? asks a question ("right?"), while a falling -죠. makes a soft statement ("I suppose"). 그렇죠! as a standalone reply is one of the most natural ways to show enthusiastic agreement — much more common in speech than 맞아요 alone.

⚠️ Pitfalls to Dodge

❌ Mixing up rising vs. falling intonation — -죠? (rising, "right?") asks for agreement, while -죠. (falling, "I suppose") is a soft statement.

❌ Using the full -지요 form in very casual conversation — -죠 is the natural contraction used in everyday speech; -지요 can sound a touch more formal or old-fashioned.

❌ Asking 아시죠? ("you know, right?") when the other person clearly doesn't know something — can come across as presumptuous.

❌ Using -겠죠 to guess about sensitive personal matters (e.g., someone's plans or feelings) — it can sound like you're assuming too much; reserve it for low-stakes guesses.

You're ready to invite agreement and connect through small talk — 화이팅! 🎯✨

Try this exercise

Instructions: For each prompt, write your response in Korean using the patterns from this lesson. Then check the toggle below for a sample answer.

1. Say "It's delicious, right?"

Answer

맛있죠? (It's delicious, right?)

2. Say "Nice weather today, right?"

Answer

오늘 날씨 좋죠? (Nice weather today, right?)

3. Say "This is expensive, right?"

Answer

이거 비싸죠? (This is expensive, right?)

4. Say "That's right! / Exactly!"

Answer

그렇죠! (That's right! / Exactly!)

5. Say "You know, right?"

Answer

아시죠? (You know, right?)

6. Say "You must be tired, right?"

Answer

피곤하시죠? (You must be tired, right?)

7. Say "It was fun, right?"

Answer

재미있었죠? (It was fun, right?)

8. Say "I suppose this would be better."

Answer

이게 더 낫겠죠. (I suppose this would be better.)

9. Say "It'll probably take some time, I'd guess."

Answer

시간이 좀 걸리겠죠. (It'll probably take some time, I'd guess.)

10. Say "You think so too, right?"

Answer

그쪽도 그렇게 생각하시죠? (You think so too, right?)

📚

Vocabulary Box

그렇죠 — that's right, exactly

아깝다 — to be a waste, a shame

산책하다 — to take a walk

입장하다 — to enter (a venue)

당연하다 — to be obvious, of course

기대되다 — to look forward to

브랜드 — brand

최고 — the best

일찍 — early

걸리다 — to take (time)

Pitfalls 💡

Rising -죠? = question; falling -죠 = soft statement.

-죠 is the casual contraction of -지요.

아시죠? can sound presumptuous.

🚀

Want more reps? Head to the Practice Hub below for three full exercise sets!

📦

🎯 Practice Hub — The Seeking Ending: -지요? (Agreement)

Work through these three exercises to practice inviting agreement and softening statements with -죠. Try answering out loud before checking each answer — and use the Iru Helper Widgets above if you want to hear the pronunciation again.

Exercise 1 — Asking for Agreement 🎯

A. Say "This kimchi stew is really delicious, right?"

Answer

이 김치찌개 진짜 맛있죠? [i gim-chi-jji-gae jin-jja ma-sit-jyo?]

B. Say "The weather's really nice today, right?"

Answer

오늘 날씨 정말 좋죠? [o-neul nal-ssi jeong-mal jo-chyo?]

C. Say "This is expensive, right?"

Answer

이거 비싸죠? [i-geo bi-ssa-jyo?]

D. Say "It was fun, right?"

Answer

재미있었죠? [jae-mi-i-sseot-jyo?]

E. Say "You must be tired, right?"

Answer

피곤하시죠? [pi-go-na-si-jyo?]

F. Say "You know, right?"

Answer

아시죠? [a-si-jyo?]

G. Say "There were really a lot of people, weren't there?"

Answer

사람이 정말 많았죠? [sa-ra-mi jeong-mal ma-nat-jyo?]

H. Say "You're going to the next concert too, right?"

Answer

다음 콘서트도 가실 거죠? [da-eum kon-seo-teu-do ga-sil geo-jyo?]

I. Say "You think so too, right?"

Answer

그쪽도 그렇게 생각하시죠? [geu-jjok-do geu-reo-ke saeng-ga-ka-si-jyo?]

J. Say "On a day like this, it'd be a waste to stay home, wouldn't it?"

Answer

이런 날은 집에 있기 아깝죠? [i-reon na-reun ji-be it-gi a-kkap-jyo?]

📚

Quick Reference

-죠? — rising, asks for agreement

그렇죠! — that's right / exactly

아깝다 — a waste, a shame

콘서트 — concert

입장하다 — to enter

Exercise 2 — Soft Assertions with -겠죠 ⚖️

A. Say "I suppose this would be better."

Answer

이게 더 낫겠죠.

B. Say "It'll probably take some time, I'd guess."

Answer

시간이 좀 걸리겠죠.

C. Say "I'd guess so. Since the brand is famous."

Answer

그렇겠죠. 브랜드가 유명하니까요.

D. Say "I guess next time we should go earlier, huh?"

Answer

다음엔 더 일찍 가야겠죠?

E. Say "Of course!" (당연하다).

Answer

당연하죠!

F. Say "I'm already looking forward to it."

Answer

벌써 기대돼요.

G. Say "It took a while to get in" (입장하는 데 시간이 걸리다).

Answer

입장하는 데 시간이 좀 걸렸어요.

H. Say "This bag is really pretty, but this is expensive, right?"

Answer

이 가방 진짜 예쁜데, 이거 비싸죠?

I. Say "I think that'd be good" (그게 좋을 것 같아요).

Answer

그게 좋을 것 같아요.

J. Say "The songs were all great too."

Answer

노래도 다 좋았어요.

📚

Quick Reference

-겠죠 — soft assertion / guess

당연하죠 — of course

유명하다 — to be famous

기대되다 — to look forward to

가방 — bag

Exercise 3 — Full Small-Talk Conversations 💬

A. "어제 콘서트 재미있었죠?" — What does this mean?

Answer

"Yesterday's concert was fun, right?"

B. Respond with "Exactly! It was really the best. The songs were all great too."

Answer

그렇죠! 진짜 최고였어요. 노래도 다 좋았고요.

C. Say "But there were really a lot of people, weren't there?"

Answer

그런데 사람이 정말 많았죠?

D. Say "It took a while to get in."

Answer

입장하는 데 시간이 좀 걸렸어요.

E. Say "Yeah, right. I guess next time we should go earlier, huh?"

Answer

그러게요. 다음엔 더 일찍 가야겠죠?

F. Say "Oh, and you're going to the next concert too, right?"

Answer

아, 그리고 다음 콘서트도 가실 거죠?

G. Say "Of course! I'm already looking forward to it."

Answer

당연하죠! 벌써 기대돼요.

H. Say "The weather's really nice today, right? It's the perfect weather for a walk."

Answer

오늘 날씨 정말 좋죠? 산책하기 딱 좋은 날씨예요.

I. Say "Yes, that's right. On a day like this, it'd be a waste to stay home, wouldn't it."

Answer

네, 맞아요. 이런 날은 집에 있기 아깝죠.

J. Say "Hmm, I'd guess so. Since the brand is famous."

Answer

음, 그렇겠죠. 브랜드가 유명하니까요.

📚

Cheat Sheet

-죠? — right? (seeking agreement)

그렇죠! — exactly! / that's right!

-겠죠 — I suppose / probably

당연하죠 — of course

아깝다 — what a waste

기대되다 — looking forward to

🎉 잘했어요! You can now invite agreement and connect through natural small talk in Korean!