-던 in Korean: “that used to, that was”

-던 (-deon) describes a noun with a past action that was ongoing, repeated or unfinished, like "that I used to" or "that I was": 자주 가던 카페 means "the cafe I used to go to often." It looks back at the past with a feeling of memory. Compare 먹은 빵 (the bread I ate) with 먹던 빵 (the bread I was eating).

How to form it

How to use it

-던 attaches to a verb to describe a noun with something from the past that was not finished or happened again and again: 하던 일 (the work I was doing), 살던 동네 (the neighborhood I used to live in).

-았/었던 is for a past event that was completed, often just once: 작년에 갔던 식당 (the restaurant I went to last year). In everyday speech the two often overlap.

-(으)ㄴ is the simple finished past: 먹은 빵 is bread that was eaten, while 먹던 빵 is bread someone was in the middle of eating.

-던 itself has no politeness level, because it only describes a noun. The ending at the end of the sentence decides how polite you are.

Examples

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Don’t mix it up with

-(으)ㄴ: -(으)ㄴ marks a finished past action (먹은 빵, bread that was eaten). -던 marks one that was ongoing or unfinished (먹던 빵, bread someone was eating).

-곤 하다: -곤 하다 ends a sentence to say "I used to often do" (자주 가곤 했어요), while -던 describes a noun (자주 가던 곳).

Common mistakes

Using 먹은 when you mean something is left unfinished. 먹던 빵 is the half-eaten bread; 먹은 빵 is bread that was eaten.

Want the basics first? Read Describing nouns (-는, -은, -을).