3 · Linking clauses, further
Even if, even though: -아도/어도
the concessive ending
-아도/어도 says that the second clause holds whatever the first one says — “even if” or “even though”.
The ending is built exactly like the polite present: take the -아요/어요 form, drop 요 and add 도. 가요 becomes 가도, 먹어요 becomes 먹어도, 마셔요 becomes 마셔도 and 해요 becomes 해도. Irregular verbs change just as they do before 요: 추워도, 들어도, 몰라도. After a noun it is 이어도 after a consonant and 여도 after a vowel: 학생이어도, 친구여도.
The first clause names a condition or a fact; the second says that it changes nothing. English needs two words for this — “even if” for something that may or may not happen, “even though” for something that is true — and Korean uses the same ending for both. 비가 와도 갈 거예요 is “even if it rains, I will go”; 약을 먹어도 안 나았어요 is “even though I took the medicine, it did not get better”. The context and the end of the sentence decide which one is meant.
The -아도 clause normally carries no tense of its own: the tense stands at the end of the sentence. A past form, -았/었어도, exists for something that is imagined as already done, and is mostly used for a past that did not happen: 택시를 탔어도 늦었을 거예요, “even if I had taken a taxi, I would have been late”. Put 아무리 in front of the clause and it becomes “no matter how”: 아무리 바빠도, “however busy I am”.
The commonest mistake is to reach for -지만, “but”, when the meaning is “even if”. -지만 presents the first clause as a fact, so 내일 비가 오지만 claims that it will rain tomorrow. The second is to use -(으)면, “if”, which says the very opposite of what was meant. And the 도 is not a separate word: it is written together with the verb, like every ending.
The form
| the stem ends in -a- or -o- | 가다 → 가도, 보다 → 봐도 |
| any other vowel | 먹다 → 먹어도, 마시다 → 마셔도 |
| 하다 verbs | 공부하다 → 공부해도 |
| after a noun | 학생이어도, 친구여도 |
| done, or unreal | 갔어도, 먹었어도 |
| no matter how | 아무리 바빠도 |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is aboutThe word that calls for it
Take the polite present, drop 요 and add 도: the vowel rules are exactly those of -아요/어요.
이 옷은 비싸도 사고 싶어요.Even though these clothes are expensive, I want to buy them.
The -아도 clause carries no tense of its own; the end of the sentence says whether it is past or future.
약을 먹어도 감기가 안 나았어요.Even though I took medicine, my cold did not get better.
아무리 in front of the clause makes it “no matter how”.
아무리 불러도 대답이 없어요.No matter how often I call, there is no answer.
With the past, -았/었어도 often imagines something that did not happen: “even if … had”.
그때 택시를 탔어도 늦었을 거예요.Even if I had taken a taxi then, I would have been late.
After a noun, 이어도 follows a consonant and 여도 a vowel.
아무리 친한 친구여도 돈 문제는 조심해야 해요.However close a friend is, you have to be careful about money.
A closer look
One ending, two English words
English keeps “even if” and “even though” apart because it cares whether the condition is real. Korean does not mark that difference in the ending; it leaves it to the tense at the end of the sentence and to common sense. 아무리 먹어도 배가 고파요 is a fact about every meal; 지금 출발해도 늦을 거예요 is a guess about the future; 약을 먹어도 안 나았어요 is something that really happened.
The same ending turns up in places that do not look like “even if” at first. -아도 되다 is the way Korean asks and gives permission — literally “even if you do it, it is all right” — and 그래도, “even so”, is simply 그렇다 with -어도, used to open a new sentence.
Exceptions and special cases (1)
-
the verb ends in 하다
the form is 해도 in speech; formal writing still has the full 하여도.
아무리 노력하여도 결과는 바뀌지 않았다.However hard he tried, the result did not change.
하다 does not follow the vowel rule. It takes 여, which contracts with 하 to 해 — the same contraction as in 해요.
How to spot it
- -아도/어도
- 아무리
- -았어도
- 그래도
Example sentences
비가 와도 내일 산에 갈 거예요.Even if it rains, we are going to the mountains tomorrow.
이 식당은 늦게 가도 자리가 있어요.Even if you go late, there are seats at this restaurant.
아무리 바빠도 아침은 꼭 먹어요.However busy I am, I always eat breakfast.
한국어는 어려워도 재미있어요.Even though Korean is difficult, it is fun.
창문을 닫아도 소리가 들려요.Even when I close the window, I can hear the noise.
지금 출발해도 늦을 거예요.Even if we leave now, we will be late.
8 more example sentences
돈이 많아도 행복하지 않을 수 있어요.Even with a lot of money, you might not be happy.
그 영화는 몇 번을 봐도 재미있어요.However many times I watch that film, I still enjoy it.
아무리 찾아도 열쇠가 안 보여요.No matter how hard I look, I cannot find the key.
피곤해도 숙제는 끝내야 해요.Even if you are tired, you have to finish your homework.
설명을 들어도 잘 모르겠어요.Even after hearing the explanation, I do not really understand.
밤늦게 전화해도 괜찮아요.It is fine even if you call late at night.
일찍 잤어도 피곤했을 거예요.Even if I had gone to bed early, I would have been tired.
겨울이 와도 이 동네는 별로 안 추워요.Even when winter comes, it is not very cold in this area.
Worth knowing (2)
-
Permission is the same ending
Asking whether something is allowed is -아도 돼요?, literally “even if I do it, is it all right?”. The answer is 네, 돼요 or 네, 괜찮아요. The ending does not change; only the verb after it does.
여기 앉아도 돼요?May I sit here?
-
Even so: 그래도
At the start of a sentence, 그래도 carries the whole meaning of -아도 over from the sentence before: “even so”, “all the same”.
비가 많이 와요. 그래도 나갈 거예요.It is pouring. I am going out all the same.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
-지만 states the first clause as a fact: “it will rain tomorrow, but we will play”. To leave open whether it rains at all — “even if it rains” — Korean needs -아도/어도. The English “even” has no word of its own here; it lives in the ending.
Polite form minus yo, plus do: whatever happens in the first half, the second half stands.
Your turn
10 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.