but, however / 그렇지만, 그런데

TTMIK Level 2 Lesson 6

but, however / 그렇지만, 그런데

In this lesson, we are introducing two more conjunctive words that you can use at the beginning of sentences. These two words both means “but” or “however”.
그렇지만 [geu-reo-chi-man] = but, however그런데 [geu-reon-de] = but, however
Example
1.
피곤해요. 그렇지만 영화 보고 싶어요.
= I’m tired. But I want to see a movie.
2.
피곤해요. 그런데 영화 보고 싶어요.
= I’m tired. But I want to see a movie.
** 그렇지만 and 그런데 both mean “but” or “however” but
there is some difference between the usages of these two words. Look at the following examples.
1.
어제 이거 샀어요. 그렇지만 정말 커요.
= I bought this yesterday. “그렇지만” it’s really big.
2.
어제 이거 샀어요. 그런데 정말 커요.
= I bought this yesterday. “그런데” it’s really big.
In sentence #1, 그렇지만 means “but” or “however” so the speaker is contrasting the two facts
- “having bought this yesterday” and “this being too big” - so it sounds like the speaker is disappointed that it’s very big.
In sentence #2, 그런데 means “but” but at the same time it can mean “and” as well. If what the
speaker is implying is the meaning of “and”, the entire sentence can mean “I bought this yesterday, and it’s really big.” or “I bought this yesterday, and as I found out, it’s really big.”
In summary,
그렇지만 = “but”
그런데 = “but” or “and”, depending on the context
If you want to contrast two sentences and say “A + but + B” you can choose to use either 그렇
지만 or 그런데.
If you want to introduce two actions or states that occurred one after another, and if the first
sentence works as background information for the second sentence, only use 그런데.
어제 학교에 갔어요. 그렇지만 일요일이었어요.
= I went to school yesterday. But it was Sunday.
어제 학교에 갔어요. 그런데 일요일이었어요.
= I went to school yesterday. But it was Sunday.
= I went to school yesterday. And by the way, it was Sunday.
= I went to school yesterday. And as I found out after I went, it was Sunday.
As you can see, 그런데 can be used for a wider variety of meanings, and in addition to that,
그렇지만 has a very formal nuance to it, so in actual everyday conversations, 그런데 is much
more commonly used than 그렇지만,  and 그렇지만 is more commonly used in written language.
Sample sentences of our friends

경미: 어제 과음했어요. 그런데 말짱해요.
과음하다 = to drink too much
말짱하다 = 멀쩡하다 = to be perfectly okay
= I drank way too much yesterday. But I’m okay now.

미경: 어제 밤 늦게 잤어요. 그런데 전혀 피곤하지 않아요.
늦게 = late, at a late hour
전혀 = not at all
피곤하다 = to be tired
= I went to bed late last night. But I’m not tired at all.

미경: 저는 매일 운동을 해요. 그런데 살이 빠지지 않아요.
매일 = everyday
살이 빠지다 = to lose weight
= I work out everyday. But I don’t lose any weight.

효성: 어제까지는 친구였어요. 그런데 오늘부터는 애인이에요.
애인 = lover, girlfriend or boyfriend
= Until yesterday, we were friends. But from today, we are dating each other.

효성: 저는 친구가 없어요. 그런데 왕따는 아니에요.
왕따 = outcast, loner, someone who is bullied by others
= I don’t have friends, but I’m not a loner.