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-어야. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
-어야, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
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Korean
- 여야 (-yeoya) — used after 하다 (hada) verbs and adjectives
Etymology
From Middle Korean 어〮ᅀᅡ〮 (Yale: é-zá), from Old Korean 良沙 (*-a-sa); equivalent to the addition of the particle 야 (-ya) to the infinitive suffix 어 (-eo). Cognate with Jeju 어사 (-eosa) which preserves the original consonant. Compare 어서 (-eoseo).
Pronunciation
| Romanizations |
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| Revised Romanization? | eoya |
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| Revised Romanization (translit.)? | eoya |
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| McCune–Reischauer? | ŏya |
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| Yale Romanization? | e.ya |
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Suffix
어야 • (-eoya)
- only if: a suffix indicating a strong, essential condition which has to be achieved to realize a certain goal.
- Synonyms: 면 (-myeon), 려면 (-ryeomyeon), 거든 (-geodeun)
물을 많이 마셔야 살을 뺄 수 있어.- Mur-eul mani masyeoya sar-eul ppael su iss-eo.
- You have to drink a lot of water to be able to lose weight.
- (literally, “You can lose weight only if you drink a lot of water.”)
그 짓 안 했어야지... 그래야 사람이지!- Geu jit an haess-eoyaji... geuraeya saram-i-ji!
- He shouldn't have done such a thing... He doesn't even deserve to be called a person otherwise!
- (literally, “He shouldn't have done such a thing... Only if he does so is he a human being!”)
- no matter: a suffix indicating that an action or a state has no influence over a certain situation, often questioning the extent of it.
- Synonyms: 어도 (-eodo), 더라도 (-deorado), 자 (-ja)
알겠지만, 예뻐야 얼마나 예쁘겠나?- al-get-jiman, yeppeoya eolmana yeppeu-gen-na?
- I got that, but granted she is pretty, how pretty can she really be?
- (literally, “I understand that, but no matter if she is pretty, how pretty will she be?”)
아무리 열심히 연습해 봐야 원어민처럼 말할 수는 없을 거예요.- Amuri yeolsimhi yeonseuphae bwaya woneomin-cheoreom malhal su-neun eops-eul geo-yeyo.
- No matter how diligently you may practice, you won't be able to speak like a native.
Usage notes
- For vowel harmony, contractions, and allomorphy, see 아/어/여 (-a/eo/yeo).
- Since 어야 (-eoya) expresses condition or futility, the past tense marker 었 (-eot-) is not used in the second clause.
- Similarly to 어서 (-eoseo), 어야 (-eoya) cannot be followed by imperative or propositive clauses.
- When 어야 (-eoya) expresses condition, it is most likely to be followed by 하다 (hada) or 되다 (doeda) to express obligation or necessity.
- To intensify the meaning of the condition, 만 (-man) and 지 (-ji) are added to 어야 (-eoya).
- In the second sense, the suffix is usually accompanied by 아무리 (amuri) or is used in the interrogative construction R어봐야 얼마나 R겠 (R-eo-bwaya eolmana R-get-).
Derived terms