Key Facts
- Hangul: 아쉽다 (aswipda)
- Meaning: regrettable
- Part of speech: adjective (형용사)
- Level: B1
- Stem: 아쉽
- Class: ㅂ-irregular
- Dictionary-form sound: [아쉽따]
What Does 아쉽다 Mean?
아쉽다 captures a wistful pity rather than guilt. 헤어지기 아쉬워요 means "I'm sad to part", and you will hear it at the end of trips, meals and shows. The reason for the feeling usually comes first as a because-clause, as in 끝나서 아쉬워요, and the person feeling it takes 은/는. It says nothing about blame, so nobody needs to be apologized to.
How Do You Pronounce 아쉽다?
The dictionary form is said [아쉽따], with 다 tensed after ㅂ. The formal 아쉽습니다 is [아쉽씀니다], and the guess form 아쉽겠어요 is [아쉽께써요]. After the ㅂ becomes 우, the past 아쉬웠어요 is read [아쉬워써요].
How Do You Use 아쉽다 in a Sentence?
여행이 끝나서 아쉬워요.
I'm sorry the trip has ended.
끝나서 gives the cause, the end of the trip, and 아쉬워요 reports the feeling. It is the classic farewell sentence.
그날 못 가서 아쉬웠어요.
I regretted not being able to go that day.
못 가서 means "because I could not go". The past tense reports a regret about an event that has already passed.
아쉬운 마음에 한 번 더 봤어요.
Feeling reluctant to leave, I looked once more.
아쉬운 comes before 마음 and describes the feeling of reluctance. 한 번 더 means "once more", showing what the reluctance led to.
Usage Notes for 아쉽다
You will hear 아쉽네요 and 정말 아쉬워요 in farewells and in reviews of anything that was good but too short. It is a gentle pity, never guilty regret, so it is not the word to apologize with. Because the speaker comments from outside, it suits sharing feelings with strangers and coworkers. The formal 아쉽습니다 keeps the ㅂ and is common in announcements and speeches.
How Does Aswipda Conjugation Work?
아쉽다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 아쉬워요 | ||
| Polite past | 아쉬웠어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 아쉬울 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 아쉽겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 아쉽습니다 | ||
| Formal past | 아쉬웠습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 아쉬울 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 아쉬워 | ||
| Casual past | 아쉬웠어 | ||
| Casual future | 아쉬울 거야 | ||
| Because / and then | 아쉬워서 | ||
| Conditional (if) | 아쉬우면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 아쉬운 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 아쉬웠던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 아쉬울 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 아쉬워요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 아쉽지 않아요 |
| Form | Korean | Sound if different |
|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 아쉬워요 | — |
| Polite past | 아쉬웠어요 | [아쉬워써요] |
| Polite future (plan) | 아쉬울 거예요 | [아쉬울꺼예요] |
| Polite future (guess) | 아쉽겠어요 | [아쉽께써요] |
| Formal present | 아쉽습니다 | [아쉽씀니다] |
| Formal past | 아쉬웠습니다 | [아쉬웓씀니다] |
| Formal future | 아쉬울 것입니다 | [아쉬울꺼심니다] |
| Casual present | 아쉬워 | — |
| Casual past | 아쉬웠어 | [아쉬워써] |
| Casual future | 아쉬울 거야 | [아쉬울꺼야] |
| Because / and then | 아쉬워서 | — |
| Conditional (if) | 아쉬우면 | — |
| Modifier, present | 아쉬운 | — |
| Modifier, past | 아쉬웠던 | [아쉬웓떤] |
| Modifier, future | 아쉬울 | — |
| Short negative | 안 아쉬워요 | — |
| Long negative | 아쉽지 않아요 | [아쉽찌 아나요] |
Is 아쉽다 Regular or Irregular?
아쉽다 is ㅂ-irregular: the stem-final ㅂ turns into 우 before a vowel ending and stays ㅂ before a consonant. Vowel endings give 아쉬워요, 아쉬워서 and 아쉬운. Consonant endings keep the letter, as in 아쉽습니다 and 아쉽지 않아요. When 어 follows the new 우, the vowels merge into 워. The modifier 아쉬운 keeps 우 without this contraction. Read the ㅂ-irregular overview for the full list of affected words.
Common Mistake with 아쉽다
Wrong: ✗ 아쉽어요
Correct: ✓ 아쉬워요
Why: Writing 아쉽어요 leaves the ㅂ in front of a vowel. The ㅂ-irregular rule turns it into 워, giving 아쉬워요.
아쉽다 Versus 그립다 and 미안하다
| Word | How it differs |
|---|---|
| 그립다 | 그립다 is longing for something absent. 아쉽다 is the sense of "what a pity" that something ended or fell short. |
| 미안하다 | 미안하다 is sorry to someone. 아쉽다 is regret about circumstances, with no apology to a person. |
Leaving a Weekend Trip
Two friends have reached the station after a short trip. They enjoyed it, but wish they had had more time. The exchange uses present, past and modifier forms.
Jisu
벌써 가야 해서 아쉬워요.
Beolsseo gaya haeseo aswiwoyo.
It is a shame we have to leave already.
Alex
저도요. 바다에 못 가서 아쉬웠어요.
Jeodoyo. Badae mot gaseo aswiwosseoyo.
Me too. I was disappointed we could not go to the sea.
Jisu
저는 아쉬운 마음에 사진을 한 번 더 봤어요.
Jeoneun aswiun maeume sajineul han beon deo bwasseoyo.
Feeling reluctant to leave, I looked at the photos once more.
Alex
다음에 또 와요.
Daeume tto wayo.
Let’s come again next time.
The first speaker feels reluctant now; the second looks back at a missed activity. 아쉬운 마음 connects that feeling to looking at the photos. No one is apologizing or accepting blame.
What Can Be 아쉽다 besides a Farewell?
A meal, film or performance can be enjoyable overall and still leave something to be desired. 아쉬운 점 means a disappointing aspect or a point that could be better. In a review, 점 identifies the particular part under discussion. The phrase does not automatically mean the whole experience was bad.
For example, someone may praise a concert but feel that its length was disappointing. In that situation 아쉽다 points to wanting more, while a complaint about poor sound points to an unsatisfactory feature. The surrounding words tell you which feeling the person writing the review means. English translations such as “a shame”, “disappointing” and “leaves something to be desired” capture different uses of the same adjective.
A sports report may use 아쉬운 패배, a disappointing defeat. The result is still a loss, but 아쉬운 adds the sense that the speaker hoped for better. It does not state the score or prove the match was close. Those details have to come from elsewhere in the report.
What Does 아쉬운 대로 Mean?
아쉬운 대로 means making do with something that falls short of what you wanted. It often introduces a workable second choice. If the preferred restaurant is closed, eating somewhere else can be a case of making do. The phrase acknowledges the limitation while allowing the next action to go ahead.
The literal pieces suggest “in the unsatisfactory way things are”. The natural English meaning is closer to “as a stopgap” or “with what is available”. Write 대로 separately after 아쉬운 in this phrase. It differs from 아쉬운 마음, which names the feeling itself rather than accepting an imperfect substitute. The Korean Learners’ Dictionary lists 아쉬운 대로 as a fixed expression.
How Can 아쉽다 Affect the Tone of Feedback?
아쉽다 can soften criticism by describing the speaker's unmet hopes. That does not make every comment gentle: a review listing several 아쉬운 점 can still be quite negative. Naming the specific feature helps the listener understand what would improve the experience.
아쉽네요 is a common reaction when learning about a missed chance. The ending 네요 presents the feeling as a response to what the speaker has just noticed or heard. 아쉽습니다 is more formal and can appear in an announcement about an event that cannot go ahead. Neither phrase by itself takes responsibility for the cancellation.
For a personal mistake that hurt someone, 미안하다 provides the apology. For longing for an absent person or place, 그립다 names the missing. 아쉽다 stays close to the gap between what happened and what you wished could happen. You can feel that gap even when nobody did anything wrong.
Which Forms Keep the Original ㅂ?
아쉽지 않아요 keeps ㅂ before 지. 아쉬우면 changes it to 우 before the conditional ending, while 아쉬워서 contracts 우 and 어. The modifier 아쉬운 has 우 too, but no 워 contraction. These differences are easier to see by comparing the conditional, reason and noun-modifying rows in the table.
The long negative means that something does not feel regrettable or disappointing. In a farewell, that can imply you are happy for the experience to end. Choose it for its actual meaning; it does not work as a stock reply to someone else's sadness.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful connection |
|---|---|---|
| 기회 | chance / opportunity | Something missed or passed up. |
| 추억 | memory | What remains after a valued experience. |
| 후회 | regret | Often looks back on a choice one wishes had been different. |
| 아쉬움 | regret / disappointment | The noun naming the feeling expressed by 아쉽다. |
See emotion adjectives for other ways to describe a reaction.
Mini Drill: Express the Missed Chance
- Give the polite present of 아쉽다.
- Fill “a disappointing aspect”: ____ 점.
- Use the because-form from the table.
- Give the formal present, keeping or changing ㅂ as needed.
Show answers
- 아쉬워요.
- 아쉬운 점. The modifier uses 우.
- 아쉬워서. 우 and 어 contract to 워.
- 아쉽습니다. The consonant ending keeps ㅂ.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 아쉬운 점 necessarily mean an experience was entirely bad?
- What does 아쉬운 대로 suggest about the available choice?
- Does 아쉽습니다 by itself apologize for a cancellation?
Show answers
- No. It identifies an aspect that fell short.
- It is imperfect, but someone will make do with it.
- No. It expresses disappointment; an apology needs its own wording.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say What a Pity?
Say 아쉽네요 or 정말 아쉬워요. Both are common at the end of an event or a trip.
Is 아쉽다 an Apology?
No. It is a wistful pity about circumstances. To apologize use 미안하다.
Why Is It 아쉬워요 and Not 아쉽어요?
The final ㅂ turns into 우 before a vowel, and 우 plus 어 becomes 워.
What Is the Long Negative?
It is 아쉽지 않아요, said [아쉽찌 아나요].
Which Words Are Related to 아쉽다?
What Should You Learn Next?
Next compare 그립다 for longing and 미안하다 for apology, then 불쌍하다 for pity and 답답하다 for frustration. Test other stems in the Korean verb conjugator, or browse the Korean verb dictionary.