Korean grammar patterns › Level 4
-(으)ㄹ 게 뻔하다
it's obvious that …, surely will (a predictable, usually bad result)
Level 4 · TOPIK II · intermediate
How to use it
The speaker is sure something will happen because the situation makes it obvious; the result is usually undesirable. Spoken. For the past: -았/었을 게 뻔하다.
Forming it
| 늦다 | → 늦을 게 뻔해요 |
| 화내다 | → 화낼 게 뻔해요 |
| 알다 | → 알 게 뻔해요 |
| 듣다 | → 들을 게 뻔해요 |
게 is short for 것이. Not used for your own plans or intentions.
Examples
지금 출발하면 차가 막혀서 늦을 게 뻔해요.
If we leave now, there'll be traffic and we'll obviously be late.
엄마가 이 점수를 보면 화를 내실 게 뻔해요.
If Mom sees this score, she's definitely going to get angry.
Compared with similar patterns
-(으)ㄹ 거예요 (G1-014) is a neutral guess; -(으)ㄹ 게 뻔하다 is a confident, often critical prediction. -(으)ㄹ 리가 없다 (G3-056) is the opposite (sure it won't happen). -(으)ㄹ지도 모르다 (G3-025) is only a possibility.