발 벗고 나서다 meaning - bal beosgo naseoda meaning

This is an Advanced Idiomatic Expressions lesson related to 발, the foot. In order to fully understand and use the expressions introduced in this series, it is essential that you understand the grammatical structure of the sentences. When you come across a grammar point that you are unfamiliar with, please go back and review the related TTMIK lessons.

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Keyword:
발 = foot

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1. 발이 넓다 = to be well connected
넓다 = to be wide

→ You can use this expression to describe how someone has good social connections and knows many people in various fields. In this expression, 발 symbolizes the scope of one's reach or influence. If you want to literally describe someone's feet as being large or wide, you would say "발이 크다".

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Ex)
그 사람은 발이 진짜 넓은 것 같아요. 모르는 사람이 없어요.

I think he is really well-connected. There is not one person who he does not know.

2. 발 벗고 나서다 = to throw oneself into a matter with enthusiasm
벗다 = to take off
나서다 = to go, leave (the spot)

→ When someone you know is in trouble, or when you see a problem, even if it is not directly your business, you might want to help out because you know that person needs some help. In that case, you can say 발 벗고 나서다 to describe how you throw yourself into the matter with enthusiasm. 발 벗다 here means "to take off your shoes to go into a room to do something", but it is never used in this way other than in this idiomatic expression. If you want to say "to take off [one's] shoes", you need to say 신발(을) 벗다.

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Ex)
많은 사람들이 우리를 돕기 위해서 발 벗고 나서 줬어요.

A lot of people went out of their way to help us.

3. 발을 담그다 = to be involved in something
담그다 = to dip, to soak

→ When you dip your feet into the water (in the sea or a swimming pool), you can say 발을 물에 담그다. When you take water (물) out of this phrase and just say 발을 담그다, it means "to get involved in a matter." This expression is usually used when you want to describe how hard it is to quit something once you start.

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Ex)
드라마 보는 것에 한번 발을 담그면 빠져나올 수 없어요.

Once you start watching TV dramas, you cannot quit [watching them] easily.

"You can't get (your feet) out of them.." It's related being addicted to something so usually it's about negative things.

4. 발 디딜 틈이 없다 = to be really packed
틈 = gap

→ 발을 디디다 originally means "to step on something," usually in order to start walking or to stand on it. You can use the expression "발 디딜 틈이 없다" when you want to describe how a place is really crowded and you cannot find an empty spot to fit yourself into.

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Ex)
요즘 홍대는 밤에 가면 사람이 너무 많아서 발 디딜 틈이 없어요.

These days, if you go to Hongdae at night, there are so many people [that I can barely find a place to stand].

5. 한 발 늦다 = to fall a step behind
늦다 = to be late

→ This expression is similar to the English expression "to fall a step behind." 한 is native number for "one," so 한 발 can mean "one foot," but in this context, it means "one step"; therefore, the expression literally means you are "late by just one step." This is not usually used when talking about being late for a meeting or work but if you just missed a bus or subway. You can also use it if you have an idea but someone else comes out with it first.

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Ex)
지하철 문이 닫히기 전에 타려고 뛰었는데 한 발 늦었어요.

I ran to get on the train before the door closed, but I was a step behind.

6. 발 빠르게 움직이다 = to move fast, to do the necessary actions quickly
빠르게 = quickly
움직이다 = to move

→ 발 빠르게 움직이다 can mean "to literally and physically move fast". It can also mean "to quickly take care of a problem" or "to quickly do the necessary actions to solve a problem or prevent it from occurring".

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Ex)
경화 씨가 발 빠르게 움직인 덕분에 문제가 더 커지지 않았어요.

Thanks to Kyung-hwa, who moved fast, the problem did not escalate.

7. 발이 묶이다 = to be detained, confined, shackled
묶다 = to tie
묶이다 = to be tied up

→ If your feet are tied up by a rope or a chain, you cannot go anywhere. When you cannot go anywhere, mainly because of the situation you are in or the weather, you can use the expression 발이 묶이다. 발 here can literally mean "feet", but it symbolizes the inability to go somewhere. People often use this expression when there is a lot of rain or snow so you cannot go anywhere.

You cannot use this when you have too much work to do.

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Ex)
이곳에 눈이 너무 많이 와서 발이 묶였어요.

It snowed too much here, so I am snowbound.

8. 발로 뛰다 = to work hard in the field
발로 = with your feet, through your feet
뛰다 = to run, to jump

→ Almost everyone runs with their feet. It is rare to find someone who runs with their hands, but if you say 발로 뛰다 instead of just 뛰다, it means "to work hard in the field" in the sense of actually going out and doing something to get first-hand experience as opposed to doing desk work or just researching through books. You move around on your feet or run.

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Ex)
컴퓨터 앞에만 앉아 있는 것보다 나가서 직접 발로 뛰면 더 좋은 정보를 얻을 수 있을 거예요.

Rather than sitting in front of a computer, if you go out and work in the field yourself, you will get better information.

9. 새 발의 피 = a drop in the bucket
새 = bird
피 = blood

→ Except some large species, birds are usually considered to be small in comparison to many other animals. If a bird is injured and bleeds from its foot, there is usually a small amount of blood because its feet are very small. If you say 새 발의 피, it is like the English phrase means "a drop in the bucket". meaning that the situation is insignificant or pales in comparison to something that happened before.

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Ex)
이번 일에 비하면 지난번 일은 정말 새 발의 피예요.

This is nothing compared to what happened last time.
= Compared to this time, what happened last time was nothing.

10. 발을 끊다 = to stop visiting
끊다 = to cut

People also say 발 길를 끊다 = foot path cut

→ If there is a place that you visit regularly or often, but you stop visiting that place, that is what 발을 끊다 is referring to. 발 here does not literally mean "feet", but it means the visit itself. If you cut off the 발 (visit), it means you no longer visit or go to a particular place.

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Ex)
살이 많이 쪄서 살을 빼려고 자주 가던 치킨 집에 발을 끊었어요.

I have gained a lot of weight, so in order to lose it, I quit going to a chicken restaurant that I used to go frequently.