Korean -(으)ㄹ까 봐: "Worried That..." in Your Diary

You packed an umbrella even though the sky was blue. You set three alarms for one morning. You didn't send a message because you were afraid of how it might sound. In every case you did (or didn't do) something because of a small "what if" in your head. Korean has a tidy pattern for that exact feeling: -(으)ㄹ까 봐. It gives the worry behind an action, and diaries are full of those.

How to form it

Attach the ending to the verb or adjective stem. The shape depends on the last sound of the stem.

Stem ends in	Ending	Example
A vowel	-ㄹ까 봐	오다 → 올까 봐 — in case it rains
A consonant (받침)	-을까 봐	늦다 → 늦을까 봐 — worried I'll be late
ㄹ	-까 봐 (ㄹ is already there)	멀다 → 멀까 봐 — worried it's far
ㅂ irregular	우 + -ㄹ까 봐	춥다 → 추울까 봐 — worried it's cold

Here it is in diary sentences:

• 비가 올까 봐 우산을 챙겼다. — I packed an umbrella in case it rained.
• 늦잠을 잘까 봐 알람을 세 개나 맞췄다. — I set three alarms because I was afraid I'd oversleep.
• 지각할까 봐 택시를 탔다. — I took a taxi because I was afraid of being late.
• 살이 찔까 봐 저녁을 먹지 않았다. — I skipped dinner because I was afraid of gaining weight.
• 엄마가 걱정하실까 봐 전화를 하지 못했다. — I couldn't call because I was afraid Mom would worry.
• 배가 고플까 봐 간식을 가져갔다. — I brought a snack in case I got hungry.

You will also see -(으)ㄹ까 봐서. Adding 서 does not change the meaning.

What it means: a worry about something that might happen

The pattern says "I'm afraid that X might happen, so..." The thing you fear has not been confirmed. It is only a possibility in your mind. The second half of the sentence is what you did (or did not do) about it.

• 친구가 서운해할까 봐 솔직하게 말하지 못했다. — I couldn't be honest because I was afraid my friend would feel hurt.
• 길이 막힐까 봐 한 시간 일찍 나갔다. — I left an hour early in case the roads were jammed.

The main clause is usually something you did, so diary entries mostly end in the past tense (챙겼다, 탔다, 못 했다). The worry itself stays in the pattern.

Worrying about the past: -았/었을까 봐

You can also worry about something that may already have happened. Put -았/었 before the ending.

• 문을 안 잠갔을까 봐 다시 확인했다. — I checked again because I was afraid I hadn't locked the door.
• 면접을 망쳤을까 봐 계속 걱정이 됐다. — I kept worrying that I might have blown the interview.
• 내가 실수했을까 봐 신경이 쓰였다. — I was bothered that I might have made a mistake.

The question is the same ("what if?"), but now it points backward. The thing you fear might already be true.

-(으)ㄹ까 봐 + action vs -(으)ㄹ까 봐 걱정이다

The part after the pattern decides what the sentence says.

Pattern	What it says	Example
-(으)ㄹ까 봐 + an action	A precaution, taken because of the worry	비가 올까 봐 우산을 챙겼다. — I packed an umbrella in case of rain.
-(으)ㄹ까 봐 걱정이다	The worry itself is the point	내일 비가 올까 봐 걱정이다. — I'm worried it will rain tomorrow.

Both are natural. If you only want to say "I'm worried," use 걱정이다 (or 걱정된다). If you want to show what the worry made you do, name the action.

Common mistakes

Mistake	Fix	Why
비가 오을까 봐 ✗	비가 올까 봐 ✓	오다 ends in a vowel, so it takes -ㄹ까 봐, not -을까 봐.
길이 멀을까 봐 ✗	길이 멀까 봐 ✓	A stem that already ends in ㄹ does not add 으.
날씨가 춥을까 봐 ✗	날씨가 추울까 봐 ✓	춥다 is ㅂ irregular: ㅂ turns into 우 before -ㄹ.
비가 올까 봐 때문에 ✗	비가 올까 봐 ✓	-(으)ㄹ까 봐 already gives the reason, so you don't add 때문에.
이미 비가 오는데 "비가 올까 봐 우산을 챙겼다" △	비가 와서 우산을 챙겼다 ✓	Use -(으)ㄹ까 봐 for a possibility. When it is already raining, -아/어서 states the real reason.

Try it in tonight's entry

Think of one thing you did today "just in case," and give it a reason:

• 길이 막힐까 봐 일찍 출발했다.
• 휴대폰 배터리가 없을까 봐 충전기를 챙겼다.
• 친구가 기다릴까 봐 미리 연락했다.
• 시험을 못 봤을까 봐 결과를 확인하기가 무서웠다.

Then add one short sentence on how it turned out: 다행히 괜찮았다 ("luckily it was fine") or 괜한 걱정이었다 ("it was a needless worry"). The first half explains your caution, and the second half closes the story. Want to see whether your -(으)ㄹ까 봐 sentences sound natural? Write your diary at kdiaryai.com and get instant corrections.