그러고 보니 (geu-reo-go-bo-ni) – come to think of it/now that I look at it
This phrase is commonly used in daily conversations and I found out about it while reading a Naver Webtoon!
We can look at it as some sort of filler phrase but 그러고 보니 is usually placed in front of a sentence or after a pause, just like how we would use “come to think of it…” in English.
When expressing a self-discovery or observation after hearing something from somewhere/someone, we can also use 그러고 보니.
Now, to understand it better, we can break it down a little.
그러고 in 그러고 보니 is actually 그렇다 + 고 but in the short form while 보니 is 보다 + 니까 but in the short form as well.
그렇다 = like that/as such/just like that/”meh”
보다 = to look/to see/to try
고 = and (in this context)
니까 = since
Now that we’ve broken it up, it seems to make much more sense, don’t it?
Examples:
그러고 보니 우리 아빠는 젊은 시절은 진짜 멋있었네요.
Now that I think of it, my Dad was really charming during his younger days.
도서관에 애들이 공부하냐 놀냐 너무 시끄러워. 그러고 보니 나 어렸을 때도 그렇지?
Are the kids at the library studying or playing, they are so noisy. But come to think of it, I was like that too when I was young, wasn’t I?
우리 다음에 만나자 이제 좀 바쁠 것 같은데… 그러고 보니 일이 내일은 계속해도 돼.
Let’s meet next time instead, I think I’m a little busy now… now that I look at it, I can continue my work tomorrow.
