-(으)ㄴ들 Grammar in Korean: Meaning and How to Use It

What you'll learn

• Attach -(으)ㄴ들 to verbs, adjectives and 이다.
• Hear the feeling of futility that the ending carries.
• Match it with a useless result or a rhetorical question.
• Choose between -(으)ㄴ들, -아/어 봤자 and -(으)ㄹ지라도.

Prerequisites: the modifier ending -(으)ㄴ/는 and the plain style -다. Time: about 15 minutes.

Key facts

• -(으)ㄴ들 means "even if", and it implies that the effort is pointless.
• The form is stem + ㄴ들 after a vowel and 은들 after a consonant.
• The result is useless, hopeless or a rhetorical question.
• The related ending -았/었던들 means "had it been so".
• It is literary. You will meet it in essays, speeches and dramas.

Listen to two model sentences.

The next section defines the pattern.

What Does -(으)ㄴ들 Grammar Mean?

-(으)ㄴ들 means "even if" or "even supposing". A connective ending is a word ending that joins one clause to the next. -(으)ㄴ들 is a connective ending that tells the listener, "Grant me this case, and see that it still changes nothing."

Many "even if" endings simply say that the result stays the same. -(으)ㄴ들 goes one step further. It carries a question in its tone: "What good would that do?" Because of this, the second clause is usually negative. It may say that something is useless, or it may ask a rhetorical question. A rhetorical question is a question that expects the answer "no", so the speaker does not want information.

The word 소용 means "use, benefit", so 소용없다 is "to have no use". The second sentence is a rhetorical question. The speaker is not asking for a number; the speaker is suggesting that money alone does not bring happiness.

The next section shows how to build the form.

How Do You Form -(으)ㄴ들?

Remove 다 from the dictionary form to get the stem. The stem is the verb or adjective without its dictionary ending -다. For 먹다 the stem is 먹. Then add ㄴ들 after a vowel and 은들 after a consonant. This is the same rule as the present modifier of adjectives, -(으)ㄴ.

The consonant at the end of the stem moves to the next syllable in speech, so 먹은들 sounds like [머근들] and 많은들 like [마는들]. In 많은들 the ㅎ of ㄶ is silent before a vowel. In 노력한들 the final ㄱ of 력 meets the ㅎ of 한, and they merge into ㅋ, so the spoken form is [노려칸들]. Revised Romanization (RR) writes this aspiration in predicates, so it is noryeokandeul.

Verbs and Adjectives Take the Same Ending

In many Korean endings, verbs and adjectives behave differently. Here they do not. Both take ㄴ/은, with no 는. A learner who writes 가는들 or 많는들 has borrowed the present modifier 는 from a verb. The correct forms are 간들 and 많은들.

Stems Ending in ㄹ

A stem that ends in ㄹ drops it before ㄴ: 살 + ㄴ들 = 산들, 만들 + ㄴ들 = 만든들, 알 + ㄴ들 = 안들. The same ㄹ-drop appears in the present modifier 사는, 아는.

Irregular Stems

Irregular stems change as they do before 은: 어렵다 becomes 어려운들, 춥다 becomes 추운들 and 듣다 becomes 들은들. The ㅂ turns into 우 and the ㄷ turns into ㄹ because 은들 starts with a vowel.

Nouns with 이다

For nouns, use 이다 ("to be"). It becomes 인들: 사람인들 ("even a person"), 누구인들 ("whoever it is"). The negative 아니다 becomes 아닌들. After a vowel, a short form without 이 is also common: 나인들 or 난들 ("even I"), 누구인들 or 누군들.

The Counterfactual: -았/었던들

The ending -았/었던들 is a related form that means "had it been so". It looks back at a case that did not happen: 일찍 출발했던들 늦지 않았을 것이다 ("Had we left early, we would not have been late"). The result is usually in the past with -았/었을 것이다 ("would have"). It is a separate ending, but it shares the final 들, so it is easy to remember.

The next section builds a full sentence.

Worked Example: Building 아무리 노력한들 결과가 바뀌겠어요?

Say "However hard I try, would the result change?" Follow five steps.

1. Write the effort. "To make an effort" is 노력하다, so the stem is 노력하.
2. Add ㄴ들. The stem ends in a vowel, so use 한들 rather than 하은들: 노력한들.
3. Add the helper word. 아무리 means "however much", and it strengthens the idea of a limit being tested: 아무리 노력한들.
4. Write the rhetorical question. "Would the result change?" is 결과가 바뀌겠어요? The ending -겠- shows doubt, and the question expects "no".
5. Join. 아무리 노력한들 결과가 바뀌겠어요?

You'll know it worked when the first verb ends in 한들 with nothing after it, and the polite ending 요 appears once, at the very end. Try the same steps with "However much money there is, would one be happy?": 많다 gives 많은들, and 돈이 아무리 많은들 행복하겠어요? follows.

The next section covers tense and sentence types.

Which Tenses and Sentence Types Work with -(으)ㄴ들?

Korean puts the tense marker between the stem and the ending. -(으)ㄴ들 normally appears without a marker, in the present form, even when the speaker talks about a future case.

The usual result clauses are 소용없다 ("it is useless"), 무슨 소용이 있겠는가 ("what use would there be?"), 의미가 없다 ("it has no meaning"), 바뀌지 않는다 ("it does not change"), and rhetorical questions. A hopeful result does not fit, because the ending tells the listener that no good will come of it.

The ending -겠는가 is a literary question form that does not need an answer. It is common in essays: 급히 먹은들 맛을 알겠는가? ("Even if you eat in a hurry, can you taste it?"). A question with -ㄹ까 is a bit softer. A rhetorical question does not need a sharp rise.

For a plain, polite sentence, you can replace -다 with 요: 소용없어요. But the ending still sounds literary.

The next section compares -(으)ㄴ들 with its neighbours.

How Is -(으)ㄴ들 Different from -(으)ㄹ지라도 and -아/어 봤자?

All three can be translated as "even if". The difference is the feeling of the second clause.

The same idea, in three registers:

• 지금 후회해 봤자 소용없어요. This is conversation, a little blunt.
• 지금 후회한들 소용없다. This is an essay or a narrator's voice.
• 지금 후회해도 소용없어요. This is the neutral version with -아/어도.

Notice that -(으)ㄴ들 and -(으)ㄹ지라도 are both formal. The difference is that -(으)ㄹ지라도 can lead to a vow ("Even if I fail, I will go on"), while -(으)ㄴ들 leads to a statement of futility. For a firm "even if" in daily speech, see -더라도.

The next section covers set phrases and edge cases.

Variations and Edge Cases of -(으)ㄴ들

Helper Words: 아무리, 어찌, 설령

The word 아무리 ("however much") often appears in front of -(으)ㄴ들: 아무리 어려운들 포기할 수는 없다 means "However hard it is, I cannot give up." Writers also use 어찌 ("how"), which turns the sentence into "How could ..."? 어찌 사람인들 실수하지 않겠는가? means "Being human, how could anyone never make mistakes?" The word 설령 ("even supposing") also appears before it.

Question Word + 인들

With a question word, 인들 means "even". 누구인들 이 상황이 기쁘겠는가 means "Who would be glad of this situation?" The speaker means "nobody would". This pattern is common in speeches.

Quoted Forms: -다고 한들

You will sometimes see the ending after a quotation marker, as in 후회한다고 한들 or 후회했다 한들. These forms add "even if one says ..." and are used in newspaper columns and essays. They are variants of the same idea.

A Stem That Ends in ㄹ

Remember the ㄹ-drop in 산들 and 만든들. A sentence such as 이렇게 산들 무슨 의미가 있겠는가? means "Even if one lives like this, what meaning is there?"

The next section lists the mistakes that appear most often.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make with -(으)ㄴ들?

Learners make six predictable mistakes. Each has a reason and a fix.

Learners often use -(으)ㄴ들 with a positive result. Actually the ending expects futility. Wrong: 열심히 공부한들 합격했다. Right: 열심히 공부해서 합격했다 or 열심히 공부해도 합격하지 못했다. Fix: if the result is good, use -아/어서 or -아/어도.

Learners often use 는 for verbs. Actually both verbs and adjectives take ㄴ/은. Wrong: 가는들. Right: 간들. Fix: no 는 here.

Learners often forget the ㄹ-drop. Wrong: 살은들. Right: 산들. Fix: drop the ㄹ before ㄴ.

Learners often use it in chat. Actually it is literary. Wrong in feeling: 친구야, 지금 후회한들 소용없잖아. Natural: 지금 후회해 봤자 소용없어. Fix: use -아/어 봤자 with friends.

Learners often treat -(으)ㄴ들 as the same as -(으)ㄴ데. Actually 지금 가는데 means "I am going now, and ...". The 들 is what makes the concession. Fix: look for 들.

Learners often use -았/었던들 for a real past event. Actually it imagines a different past. Wrong: 어제 일찍 갔던들 회사에 도착했다. Right: 어제 일찍 갔기 때문에 회사에 도착했다, or 어제 일찍 갔던들 늦지 않았을 것이다 (as a regret). Fix: use -았/었던들 only with 았/었을 것이다 or a similar "would have" ending.

The next section gives you practice.

Practice and Answers

Do the four tasks, then compare with the key.

Task 1: join the sentences with -(으)ㄴ들. Write one sentence for each pair.

1. 후회해요. / 소용없다.
2. 돈이 많아요. / 행복할까?
3. 어려워요. / 포기할 수는 없다.
4. 사람이에요. / 실수하지 않겠는가?

Task 2: fix the error. Each sentence has one mistake. Rewrite it correctly.

1. 지금 가는들 소용없다.
2. 이렇게 살은들 무슨 의미가 있겠는가?
3. 열심히 한들 합격했다.

Task 3: translate. Write in Korean: "Even if you apologise now, it is no use." and "Had we left early, we would not have been late."

Task 4: write your own. Write one sentence with 아무리 and -(으)ㄴ들, and one with 어찌 and 인들.

Answer key

1. (1) 후회한들 소용없다. (2) 돈이 많은들 행복할까? (3) 어려운들 포기할 수는 없다. (4) 사람인들 실수하지 않겠는가?
2. (1) 지금 간들 소용없다. (2) 이렇게 산들 무슨 의미가 있겠는가? (3) 열심히 한들 소용없다, or 열심히 해서 합격했다.
3. 지금 사과한들 소용없다. 일찍 출발했던들 늦지 않았을 것이다. Other correct versions exist, for example 지금 사과해 봤자 소용없어요 in a spoken setting.
4. Sample answers: 아무리 설명한들 알아듣겠는가? 어찌 누구인들 힘들지 않겠는가? Any pair is correct if the first verb ends in (으)ㄴ들 and the rest follows.

If task 1 was correct, you have the formation rule. If task 2 was hard, check whether you used 는, forgot the ㄹ-drop or paired the ending with a good result. The next section points you to what comes after this lesson.

What Should You Learn after -(으)ㄴ들 Grammar?

After -(으)ㄴ들, learn -아/어 봤자 for the spoken "it is pointless". Then read -(으)ㄹ망정 for the solemn "I may accept this, but not that", and -건만 for a literary "although". If you have not yet studied the neutral partner, go back to -아/어도.

For a wider view, the parent page Contrast and Concession lists every connector in this group. To plan by level, use Advanced Grammar.

A note on level. This site places -(으)ㄴ들 at C1. That is an editorial estimate based on how advanced textbooks usually order grammar, not an official list. For official exam information, check topik.go.kr.

This lesson covers -(으)ㄴ들 in the plain and polite styles. It does not cover every written variation. About this page. Last updated 2026-10-09. Revised Romanization follows the national rules and is shown only as a learning aid.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Does -(으)ㄴ들 Mean?

-(으)ㄴ들 means 'even if' with a feeling of futility: 'even if X, what good would it do?' It usually leads to a negative result or a rhetorical question. 지금 후회한들 소용없다 means 'Even if you regret it now, it is no use.' The tone is literary and slightly dramatic.

How Do You Attach -(으)ㄴ들?

Remove 다 from the verb or adjective. After a vowel add ㄴ들, and after a consonant add 은들. 후회하다 becomes 후회한들, 먹다 becomes 먹은들 and 많다 becomes 많은들. A ㄹ stem drops its ㄹ, so 살다 becomes 산들. The copula 이다 becomes 인들, as in 사람인들.

What Kind of Sentence Follows -(으)ㄴ들?

A sentence that says the effort is pointless, or a rhetorical question that expects the answer 'no'. Typical endings are 소용없다, 무슨 소용이 있겠는가, -ㄹ까? and -겠는가?. A positive result does not fit, because the ending asks 'what use would it be?', so a happy outcome would contradict it.

Is -(으)ㄴ들 Used in Spoken Korean?

Seldom in ordinary talk. You will read it in novels, essays, editorials and speeches, and hear it in historical dramas. In daily speech people prefer -아/어도 or -아/어 봤자 for the same idea. Learn -(으)ㄴ들 to understand advanced texts and to write with a more literary voice.

What Is -았/었던들?

-았/었던들 is the counterfactual form: 'if it had been that way'. It is followed by -았/었을 것이다 ('would have'). 일찍 출발했던들 늦지 않았을 것이다 means 'Had we left early, we would not have been late.' It regrets something that did not happen, while -(으)ㄴ들 concedes a case.

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