Korean Excuses & Causes: -는 사이에, -는 탓에, -는 통에
Korean pins down what went wrong with -는 사이에 (잠깐 한눈판 사이에 일이 벌어졌어요 — it all happened while I looked away for a second), blames a bad cause with -는 탓에 (비가 온 탓에 길이 미끄러웠어요 — the road was slippery because it rained), and points to chaos with -는 통에 (아이가 우는 통에 정신이 없었어요 — the kid was crying and I couldn't think straight).
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Written by Alvin Lim Certified Korean Language Teacher (Level 2)
Explaining what went wrong in Korean means picking the right cause-marker. -는 사이에 sets the brief gap when something slipped in (잠깐 한눈판 사이에 일이 벌어졌어요 — while I looked away for a second, it all happened). -는 탓에 lays the blame on a bad cause (비가 온 탓에 길이 미끄러웠어요 — the road was slippery because it rained). And -는 통에 points to a chaotic mess (아이가 우는 통에 정신이 없었어요 — the kid was crying and I couldn’t think straight). Three ways to say “it wasn’t really my fault” — and one positive mirror, 덕분에, for when a cause actually helped.
Still in Chapter 4’s world of incidents and accidents, this lesson is about the excuses that follow. You’ve just met -는 바람에 for an unexpected cause; now we round out the family with three more cause-markers that each carry a slightly different attitude. Start with the words you reach for when explaining yourself.
Ten words for excuses and causes
These fill out any “here’s what happened” explanation.
While X was happening — -는 사이에
To mark the brief gap of time during which something slipped in — usually something you’d rather hadn’t — attach -는 사이에 to a present verb stem (or -(으)ㄴ 사이에 for a finished action).
잠깐 한눈판 사이에 일이 벌어졌어요 = it all happened while I looked away for a second 제가 자는 사이에 누가 전화했어요 = someone called while I was asleep 잠깐 자리를 비우는 사이에 짐이 없어졌어요 = my bag vanished while I stepped away 제가 없는 사이에 무슨 일 있었어요? = did something happen while I was gone?
Note 한눈판 사이에 (past) versus 자는 사이에 (present) — both work; the past form stresses the action was already complete. Unlike the neutral -는 동안에 (“during”), -는 사이에 zooms in on a short window and usually implies something snuck in unnoticed. Perfect for “the moment I turned my back…”
Because of (blame) — -는 탓에
To lay the blame on a bad cause, use -(으)ㄴ/는 탓에. It assigns fault — the result is always something you’re complaining about.
비가 온 탓에 길이 미끄러웠어요 = the road was slippery because it rained 늦게 잔 탓에 못 일어났어요 = I couldn’t get up because I slept late 길이 막힌 탓에 약속에 늦었어요 = I was late because traffic was jammed 날씨가 추운 탓에 감기에 걸렸어요 = I caught a cold because the weather was cold
Use -(으)ㄴ 탓에 for a finished cause (온 탓에) and -는 탓에 for an ongoing one (오는 탓에); adjectives take -(으)ㄴ (추운 탓에). There’s also a noun form — 날씨 탓에 (because of the weather), 제 탓이에요 (it’s my fault). The flip side is -는 덕분에, “thanks to,” for a good cause: 도와준 덕분에 끝냈어요 = thanks to your help, I finished.
What a mess made you do it? — -는 통에
To point to a chaotic, overwhelming situation as the cause, use -는 통에. It doesn’t just name a reason — it paints a messy, frazzling scene.
아이가 우는 통에 정신이 하나도 없었어요 = with the kid bawling, I couldn’t think at all 사람들이 밀려드는 통에 넘어질 뻔했어요 = with the crowd surging in, I almost fell 옆에서 떠드는 통에 집중을 못 했어요 = I couldn’t focus, what with the racket next to me 갑자기 비가 쏟아지는 통에 다 젖었어요 = caught in the sudden downpour, I got soaked
The nuance is “everything was chaos, so naturally things went sideways.” It pairs beautifully with 정신없다 (frazzled). Now compare the whole family at a glance:
-는 탓에 = plain blame: 늦게 잔 탓에 못 일어났어요 = because I slept late -는 바람에 = unexpected cause: 버스를 놓치는 바람에 지각했어요 = I happened to miss the bus -는 통에 = chaos/disruption: 아이가 우는 통에 정신없었어요 = with the kid screaming, it was mayhem -는 덕분에 = POSITIVE, thanks to: 도와준 덕분에 끝냈어요 = thanks to your help, I finished
For -는 바람에, revisit the accident stories lesson. The first three blame a bad or messy cause; only 덕분에 is grateful.
Explaining yourself to a friend
You’re late and full of excuses — all three cause-markers, live:
Watch them line up: 온 탓에 assigns blame, 밀려드는 통에 paints the chaos, 한눈판 사이에 marks the gap when the wallet dropped. Three excuses, three different cause-markers — and 변명은 됐고 (“enough excuses”) to close it out.
FAQ
How is -는 사이에 different from -는 동안에? -는 동안에 just means ‘during the time that’ — a neutral stretch of time: 제가 자는 동안에 비가 왔어요 = it rained while I slept. -는 사이에 narrows it to a brief gap, and very often something sneaks in during that gap — usually unwanted: 잠깐 한눈판 사이에 지갑을 잃어버렸어요 = in the second I looked away, I lost my wallet. So 동안에 = the whole duration, 사이에 = a short window during which something slipped in. For excuses (‘it happened the moment I turned my back’), 사이에 is the natural choice.
What’s the difference between -는 탓에, -는 바람에, and -는 통에? All three blame a cause for a bad result, but the flavour differs. -는 탓에 simply assigns blame: 늦게 잔 탓에 못 일어났어요 = because I slept late, I couldn’t get up. -는 바람에 (from the last lesson) adds ‘unexpectedly, out of nowhere’: 버스를 놓치는 바람에 지각했어요 = I happened to miss the bus, so I was late. -는 통에 paints a chaotic, overwhelming scene: 사람들이 밀려드는 통에 넘어졌어요 = with the crowd surging in, I fell. Roughly: 탓에 = plain blame, 바람에 = surprise cause, 통에 = chaos. And the positive mirror of all three is 덕분에 (‘thanks to’).
Does -는 탓에 change form for past or adjectives? Yes. On a present action verb use -는 탓에 (비가 오는 탓에). For a clearly finished cause use the past -(으)ㄴ 탓에 (비가 온 탓에 = because it rained). For adjectives and 이다, use -(으)ㄴ 탓에 too: 날씨가 추운 탓에 = because the weather was cold; 초보인 탓에 = because I’m a beginner. There’s also a noun form, 탓 / 명사 + 탓에: 날씨 탓에 (because of the weather), 제 탓이에요 (it’s my fault). Same blame-the-cause meaning throughout.
Next: incident & disaster news — (으)로 인해, 마저. Previous: accident stories — -는 바람에, -을 뻔하다. Full path: curriculum hub.