Korean Grade 4 Complete: 67 Grammar Points + Mini TOPIK II
You finished Korean grade 4 — all 67 grammar points across 28 lessons: causative verbs, quotation contractions, statistics for TOPIK II writing, idioms, and formal written register. Chapter recaps, a 10-item self-check, and a mini TOPIK II quiz.
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Written by Alvin Lim Certified Korean Language Teacher (Level 2)
Congratulations — this lesson completes grade 4: 28 lessons, 7 chapters, and all 67 grammar points of the upper-intermediate curriculum, from workplace reporting to the formal written stage. This page is your victory lap: chapter recaps, a 10-item self-check, a graduation chat, and a mini test in TOPIK II style.
In the last lesson you switched into formal written Korean. Now look back across everything grade 4 gave you — the level where your Korean stopped just reading texts and started producing them.
The whole of grade 4, chapter by chapter
Chapter 1 · Workplace Korean (L1–L4)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L1 · Workplace reporting | -는 대로, -더라도, -고서 |
| L2 · Business email | -고자, -기에 |
| L3 · Meeting phrases | -다시피, -는지, -나 |
| L4 · Causative verbs | 사동 -이/히/리/기/우, -게 하다, 시키다 |
Chapter 2 · Rumors & Retelling (L5–L8)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L5 · Rumors & quote contractions | -대요/-래요/-재요/-냬요, -다면서 |
| L6 · Firsthand retelling | -던데, -더라, -더군 |
| L7 · Surprise reactions | -다니, 까지 |
| L8 · Noticing changes | -더니, -어서인지 |
Chapter 3 · Media & Trends (L9–L12)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L9 · Drama reviews | -거니와, -고 |
| L10 · K-pop & fandom | 이야, 이나마 |
| L11 · Slang & abbreviations | 이란, -는다거나 |
| L12 · Event reviews | -고 보니, -는 듯, -을 모양이다 |
Chapter 4 · Incidents & Accidents (L13–L16)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L13 · Accident stories | -는 바람에, -을 뻔하다 |
| L14 · Excuses & causes | -는 사이에, -는 탓에, -는 통에 |
| L15 · News incidents | (으)로 인해, 마저 |
| L16 · Expressing regret | -을걸, -어 버리다, -나 싶다 |
Chapter 5 · Society in Numbers (L17–L20)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L17 · Graphs & statistics | 에 따르면, 에 비해, -을수록 |
| L18 · Environment | -는 한, 이든 -든지 |
| L19 · Education issues | 은커녕, 치고, -다면 |
| L20 · Social change | -는 줄, 이면, -으려야 |
Chapter 6 · Idioms & Real Talk (L21–L24)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L21 · Proverbs & idioms | -듯이, -어라 |
| L22 · Favors & refusals | -는 김에, -고 해서, 이라도 |
| L23 · Complaints & conflict | -고 들다, -고도, -어 대다 |
| L24 · Casual speech ② (반말) | -어야지, -게 |
Chapter 7 · The Formal Stage (L25–L28)
| Lesson | Key patterns |
|---|---|
| L25 · Job interview | -으로서, -을 따름이다, -이며 |
| L26 · Presentations | -으며, -으로써 |
| L27 · Formal written style | -으므로, 에 의하여 |
| L28 · This review | 67 of 67 grammar points — complete |
The core grammar, in summary boxes
Grade 4 is the level of register. Here is the machinery you now control, gathered into review boxes.
책을 읽혔어요 / 옷을 입혔어요 = made/had them read / dressed them (사동 -이/히/리/기/우) 내일 온대요 = (he) says he’s coming · 같이 가재요 = (she) suggests going · 왜 늦냬요 = (he) asks why you’re late
조사 결과에 따르면 절반이 넘습니다 · 작년에 비해 늘었습니다 = TOPIK II 쓰기 53 frame 지원자로서 최선을 다하며, 규정을 위반했으므로 책임을 집니다 = interview / report register (로서·며·므로)
Can you do these 10 things?
Answer honestly — every no points to its lesson, and twenty minutes of review fixes it.
- Make someone do something with a causative: 책을 읽혔어요, 발표를 시켰어요 (L4)
- Contract a quote in speech: 온대요, 가재요, 늦냬요 (L5)
- Retell what you saw with -더-: 분위기가 좋던데요, 많이 변했더라 (L6, L8)
- Pin an unexpected cause: 비가 오는 바람에, 한눈판 사이에 (L13–L14)
- Read an incident headline: 폭우로 인해 도로가 통제되었습니다 (L15)
- Describe a graph: 조사 결과에 따르면 절반이 넘고, 작년에 비해 늘었습니다 (L17)
- Argue a social issue: 쉬기는커녕, 포기하지 않는 한 (L18–L19)
- Use a proverb or body idiom: 물 쓰듯이, 손이 크다 (L21)
- Speak from a role formally: 지원자로서 최선을 다할 따름입니다 (L25)
- Switch into 문어체 for an essay: 비가 왔으므로 행사가 취소되었다 (L27)
Eight or more: grade 4 is genuinely done. Five to seven: skim the flagged chapters this week. Under five: rerun chapters 5 and 7 — statistics and formal register carry the most TOPIK II weight.
Your mini TOPIK II
The quiz on this page works like a TOPIK II warm-up: one causative, one quote contraction, one statistics connector, one cause-and-effect, and one formal written ending — all original, all solvable with grade-4 tools. Comfortable here? You’re pacing right for level 4. Next, add timed reading sets and try the writing items (문항 53 graph, 문항 54 essay) in plain 문어체.
The graduation chat
Every bubble runs on grade-4 machinery — quote contractions, statistics, formal role-marking, and humble register, all woven naturally. That’s the real certificate.
What opens up in grade 5
Grade 4 gave your Korean polish; grade 5 gives it depth: nuanced honorifics and euphemistic speech, discourse connectors for argument and concession, advanced 한자어, and the extended writing behind TOPIK II 문항 54. Grade 5 lessons are in production — until they land, take the level test to confirm your placement and keep the vocabulary packs in rotation.
FAQ
Is grade 4 equal to TOPIK level 4? Closely. This course follows the Korean national standard curriculum (국제 통용 한국어 표준 교육과정), and grade 4 maps onto TOPIK II level 4 territory: roughly 4,000–5,000 words cumulatively and all 67 grade-4 grammar items, each of which you’ve now met. Grade 4 is the upper-intermediate stage where you handle workplace Korean, media and trends, statistics, and the formal written register that the TOPIK II writing tasks (문항 53–54) demand. To consolidate, run timed TOPIK II reading sets and practice the 200–300 character graph-description writing (문항 53) and the 600–700 character essay (문항 54) in plain 문어체.
What were the biggest upgrades in grade 4? Five. First, causative verbs (-이/히/리/기/우-, -게 하다, 시키다) — making someone do something. Second, quotation contractions (-대요, -래요, -재요, -냬요) that turn reported speech into fast, natural conversation. Third, statistics and graph description (에 따르면, 에 비해, -을수록, 늘다/줄다/차지하다) aimed straight at TOPIK II writing. Fourth, idioms, proverbs, and body expressions (손이 크다, 듯이) for media and real talk. Fifth, the formal written register (-으로서, -으며, -으므로, 에 의하여, -는다 문어체) for interviews, presentations, and essays. Together they take you from reading a text to producing one.
What should I learn next after grade 4? Grade 5 — advanced Korean, where the focus shifts to abstract and academic language: nuanced honorifics and indirect/euphemistic speech, discourse connectors for argument and concession, longer 한자어 vocabulary, and the extended writing threads behind TOPIK II 문항 54. Meanwhile, take the level test to confirm grade 4 is solid, keep the vocabulary packs in rotation, and complete at least one full timed TOPIK II set (listening + reading + writing).
Next: Grade 5 begins — experience storytelling with -더라고요, -데요, -었던. Previous: formal written style — -으므로, 에 의하여. Full path: curriculum hub.