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TOPIK II Listening: How to Catch the Speaker's Real Intention
Level
B1
Type
Guide
Theme
Listening
작성자
Y
작성시각
Not every TOPIK II listening question asks what a speaker said. Some ask what a speaker actually meant by saying it, and those two answers aren't always the same. Around questions 27-28, the test shifts from checking whether you caught the details to checking whether you caught the point behind them.
What This Question Type Is Really Asking
A main-idea question asks you to summarize what was said. An intention question asks you to explain why the speaker said it, what they were trying to get the listener to do, think, or feel. The clue usually isn't a single line. It's the shape of the whole conversation: a speaker who lists several problems with something, for example, is rarely just reporting information. They're building a case for why a decision should change.
A Worked Example
Picture a short exchange at a community center front desk.
여자: 저기, 요가 수업 시간표를 좀 봤는데요. 저녁 7시밖에 없더라고요. 저처럼 낮에 일하는 사람은 회사가 늘 늦게 끝나서 그 시간에도 참여하기 어려워요. 그리고 주말반도 하나쯤 있으면 좋을 것 같은데, 지금은 평일반만 있잖아요.
남자: 아, 그 부분은 저희도 이야기가 나온 적 있어요. 다음 학기 시간표 짤 때 참고할게요.
남자: 아, 그 부분은 저희도 이야기가 나온 적 있어요. 다음 학기 시간표 짤 때 참고할게요.
A surface reading might say the woman is just describing the current schedule. But she raises two separate complaints (the evening class conflicts with work hours, and there's no weekend option) back to back, without asking a direct question. That pattern, a list of specific problems with no question mark at the end, is usually a signal that the real goal is to push for a schedule change, not just to describe one.
Reading the Signals, Not Just the Words
A few patterns show up again and again in this question type. Repeating the same complaint in two different ways is usually a sign of building toward a request, not just restating a fact. Right before a "하지만" or "그런데," a positive statement is often there to soften the criticism that's about to follow. And a question the speaker clearly already knows the answer to is rarely a real question at all. It's usually there to lead the listener toward a specific conclusion.
Practicing This Skill
The fastest way to get better at this question type is to stop after each practice conversation and ask two separate questions instead of one: what did the speaker say, and separately, what did the speaker want. If those two answers turn out to be the same thing, the conversation was probably a plain report. If they're different, that gap is exactly what questions 27-28 are testing.