No. 199Language3 minviews 74
Published by GK Library Annex
Korean "eotteokhae" vs "eotteoke": the next word decides
They sound almost the same, but one is a contraction and the other is a word that modifies the verb after it
In Korean, 「어떡해」 (eotteokhae, "what do I do") is a contraction of 「어떻게 해」 (eotteoke hae, "do what / how to do"), while 「어떻게」 (eotteoke, "how") modifies the action that follows it. So if the sentence ends there, you write 「어떡해」; if a verb like 「가다」 (to go) or 「먹다」 (to eat) follows, you write 「어떻게」. Swapping one phrase in is a quick way to tell them apart.
One of them is a contraction
The Standard Korean Dictionary of the National Institute of Korean Language lists 「어떡하다」 (eotteokhada) as a shortened form of 「어떻게 하다」 (eotteoke hada, "to do how"). 「어떡해」, 「어떡하지」 (eotteokhaji, "what should I do?") and 「어떡할래」 (eotteokhallae, "what will you do?") are all forms of this word. Because 「하다」 ("to do") is already built in, it can end a sentence on its own.
「어떻게」 is 「어떻다」 (eotteota, "to be how") plus the ending 「-게」, and it asks about a method or manner while modifying the word after it. As in 「어떻게 가요?」 ("How do I get there?") or 「요즘 어떻게 지내요?」 ("How are you doing these days?"), a word for an action always follows it.
Try swapping in 「어떻게 해」
When you're unsure, put 「어떻게 해」 in that spot. In 「지갑을 놓고 왔어, 어떡해」 ("I left my wallet behind, what do I do"), replacing it with 「어떻게 해」 keeps the meaning, so 「어떡해」 is correct.
On the other hand, putting 「어떻게 해」 into 「이 문제 어떻게 풀어?」 ("How do you solve this problem?") gives 「어떻게 해 풀어?」, which makes no sense. The verb 「풀다」 (to solve) comes next, so this is a spot for the modifier 「어떻게」. Both 「어떡하면 좋아」 and 「어떻게 하면 좋아」 ("what should I do") are correct sentences.
They sound almost identical
「어떡해」 is pronounced [eotteokae] and 「어떻게」 [eotteoke]. Many people pronounce the vowels 「애」 (ae) and 「에」 (e) the same way, so by ear they are nearly impossible to tell apart. That's why people have no trouble when speaking but slip up only when writing.
The final consonants differ too. In 「어떡해」 the syllable 「떡」 ends in ㄱ (g/k), while in 「어떻게」 the syllable 「떻」 ends in ㅎ (h). Remembering that the contraction is the one holding 「떡」 (tteok, which also means rice cake) makes the final consonant easier to keep straight.
Common wrong forms
The most frequent mistake in text messages is 「어떻해」. When 「어떻게 해」 is shortened, it can only become 「어떡해」, so 「어떻해」, which attaches 「해」 to the ㅎ final consonant, is not a word in the dictionary. 「어떻하지」 and 「어떻할래」 are wrong for the same reason.
The reverse also happens, as in 「어떡게 가?」, where the contraction's final consonant is used in the modifier. Since the verb 「가다」 (to go) follows, it should be corrected to 「어떻게 가?」. Just remember: if the sentence ends, 「어떡해」; if it continues, 「어떻게」. That solves most cases.
Where the sentence ends, write 「어떡해」; when a word for an action follows, write 「어떻게」. 「어떻해」 is not a word.
Notes and references · Standard Korean Dictionary, entry 「어떡하다」. Based on the dictionary entry defining 「어떡하다」 as a contraction of 「어떻게 하다」. The pronunciation notes and the swap test are explained from that entry.
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