What does 큰일 났다 mean?
큰일 났다 means "a serious problem has arisen" in Korean.
How it works here
큰일 났다 is used alone as an anxious exclamation about a serious situation.
Key expression
큰일(이) 나다
To have a serious and difficult problem
큰일 났다 is conversational and often used as an exclamation. It expresses much more urgency than “There’s a problem.”
When it's used
Used when an unexpected, serious problem has arisen and the speaker is flustered.
The line
큰일 났다
This is bad.
The speaker realizes after checking urgently that the situation is more serious than expected.
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More examples
시험 시간이 10분밖에 안 남았는데 답안지를 아직 한 장도 못 썼어. 큰일 났다.
There are only ten minutes left in the exam, and I haven’t written even one page. This is bad.
비밀번호를 여러 번 틀려서 계정이 잠겼어요. 이거 큰일 났네요.
I entered the password incorrectly several times, so my account is locked. This is really bad.
Quick check
When would you use this expression?
큰일 났다
큰일 났다
This is bad.
- Laughing and saying a small mistake is no big deal.
- Realizing an important item is lost and saying it in a panic.
- Casually organizing the appointment time.
Show the answer
Realizing an important item is lost and saying it in a panic.
to have a serious and difficult problem. 큰일 났다 is conversational and often used as an exclamation. It expresses much more urgency than “There’s a problem.”
Other words in this line
- 큰일
- A serious problem
- 나다
- To happen; to arise
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