Nuance Dictionary / Grammar
을 뿐이다 Eul ppun-ida
Downplaying an action, achievement, or fault to deflect pressure or criticism.
What does 을 뿐이다 mean?
을 뿐이다 (Eul ppun-ida) means: Downplaying an action, achievement, or fault to deflect pressure or criticism.
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How it's actually used
- 내가 한 일은 그냥 사실을 전달했을 뿐인데 분위기가 왜 이렇게 되지?
nae-ga han il-eun geunyang sasil-eul jeon-dal-haess-eul ppun-inde bun-wi-gi-ga wae ireohge doe-ji?
All I did was simply pass along the facts, so why is the mood turning out like this?
💡 Exonerates the speaker by framing their involvement as a trivial, passive act. - 너무 대단하게 생각하지 마세요. 운이 좋았을 뿐이니까요.
neomu dae-dan-hage saeng-gak-ha-ji ma-seyo. un-i joh-ass-eul ppun-i-ni-kka-yo.
Don't make such a big deal out of it. It's just that I got lucky.
💡 Deflects uncomfortable praise and wards off high expectations with feigned humility. - 화낸 게 아니라 그냥 내 생각을 말했을 뿐이야.
hwa-naen ge a-ni-ra geunyang nae saeng-g-eul mal-haess-eul ppun-i-ya.
I wasn't getting mad, I was just stating my thoughts.
💡 A classic defensive retreat used to invalidate someone else's accusation of emotional outbursts.
Related words in Grammar
을 리가 없다 Eul riga eopda은 / 는 eun / neun은/는 vs 이/가 Eun/neun vs I/ga기분파 Gi-bun-pa기로 하다 Giro hada