This is the 12537th most frequent Korean word.
대륙이었지만
"Was a continent."
In this sentence, "대륙이었지만" conveys that the Earth had a characteristic of being composed of continents in its history, emphasizing a past state followed by subsequent change.
지구의 역사는 대륙이었지만 다른 모양으로 변해왔다.
Earth's history consisted of continents but has changed to different shapes.
Here, "대륙이었지만" indicates that the region was a continent previously and introduces the contrasting current state as islands.
이 지역은 대륙이었지만 지금은 섬으로 나뉘었다.
This area was a continent but has now divided into islands.
This usage of "대륙이었지만" discusses the initial status of the area as a continent, followed by an event or process leading to transformation.