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Grammar / Level 3 / Lesson 93

냐 and 느냐: the plain question, and depending on

By Daniel Buckley · 13 minute read · TOPIK 4

Vocabulary

  1. 질문 - question
  2. 대답하다 - to answer
  3. 결혼하다 - to get married
  4. 벌다 - to earn
  5. 결과 - result
  6. 달라지다 - to change, to become different
  7. 점수 - score, mark
  8. 손님 - customer, guest
  9. 생활비 - cost of living
  10. 마음먹다 - to make up your mind

Hamlet's most famous line often comes out in Korean as 사느냐 죽느냐: do you live, or do you die? You wouldn't put a question to a friend that way. 느냐 is the old, full question ending, and it belongs on a stage or a page.

Friends use the short form, 냐, which has an edge to it. The full form lives on in writing, above all in the patterns for "depending on". So you'll say one of these, and read the other every day.

냐: the blunt question

You know the 반말 question: 밥 먹었어? 냐 does the same job with less polish. You'll hear it a lot between friends, male friends above all, where it just sounds relaxed.

It has no place with anyone older or anyone you aren't close to. Even with friends, the wrong tone can turn it into a challenge. So learn to understand it first, and use it only once you've heard your friends use it with you.

Making 냐 in speech

  • Verbs and adjectives: add 냐 to the stem.가다 → 가냐먹다 → 먹냐좋다 → 좋냐
  • Stem ends in ㄹ: the ㄹ drops.살다 → 사냐멀다 → 머냐
  • Past: add 냐 after 았/었.먹었냐갔냐
  • Nouns: 이냐, or 냐 after a vowel.학생 → 학생이냐뭐 → 뭐냐

Pick a verb

가다가가냐

  1. 어디 가냐?

    Where are you off to?

  2. 밥 먹었냐?

    Have you eaten?

  3. 넌 왜 이렇게 늦냐?

    Why are you so late?

  4. 이게 뭐냐?

    What is this?

  5. 그게 말이 되냐?

    How does that make any sense?

  6. 그래서 좋냐?

    So are you happy now?

느냐: the full form

느냐 is the older, fuller form of the question, and it belongs with 한다체. You'll read it in essays and novels, and hear it from grandfathers and kings in dramas. You don't need to say it, but the patterns below are built on it.

Making 느냐

  • Verbs, 있다, 없다: add 느냐. A ㄹ drops.가다 → 가느냐먹다 → 먹느냐있다 → 있느냐살다 → 사느냐
  • Past and 겠: add 느냐.먹었느냐가겠느냐
  • Adjectives: (으)냐, with no 느.크다 → 크냐좋다 → 좋으냐춥다 → 추우냐
  • Nouns: (이)냐, the same as in speech.학생이냐누구냐

Pick a verb

가다가가느냐

Pick a verb

크다크크냐

  1. 왜 한국어를 배우느냐?

    Why do you study Korean?

  2. 밥은 먹었느냐?

    Have you eaten? (A grandfather in a drama.)

  3. 어디 가느냐?

    Where are you going?

  4. 거기가 그렇게 머냐?

    Is it that far?

  5. 날씨가 그렇게 추우냐?

    Is it really that cold?

In speech most people use plain 냐 for everything, so 좋으냐 comes out as 좋냐 and 먹느냐 as 먹냐. The 느 and 으 stay in writing and in careful speech. The same split shows up in 냐고: 어디 가느냐고 물었다 in print, 어디 가냐고 물었어요 out loud.

느냐는: a question before a noun

In Quoting, shortened, 냐는 let a reported question sit before a noun. 느냐는 is the fuller written version: 느냐고 하는 with the middle gone. The noun is usually 질문, 말 or something else that carries words.

  1. 왜 한국어를 배우느냐는 질문을 자주 받아요.

    I often get asked why I'm learning Korean.

  2. 언제 결혼하느냐는 말을 듣기 싫어요.

    I hate being asked when I'm getting married.

  3. 어디서 왔느냐는 질문에 대답하지 못했어요.

    I couldn't answer when they asked where I'd come from.

  4. 몇 살이냐는 질문을 받았어요.

    I was asked how old I was.

  5. 왜 안 왔냐는 문자를 받았어요.

    I got a text asking why I hadn't come.

Example 5 is the spoken version, with 냐는. If no noun follows, that 는 is just the topic particle, and the whole question has become the topic. 얼마나 버느냐는 중요하지 않아요 means "how much you earn doesn't matter".

느냐에 따라: depending on

You know 에 따라 after a noun: 날씨에 따라, depending on the weather. But "depending on where you live" has a question inside it, and 에 따라 wants a noun. 느냐 packs the question up so that it can go there.

Making 느냐에 따라

  • Verbs: 느냐에 따라.어떻게 하느냐에 따라어디에 사느냐에 따라
  • Adjectives: (으)냐에 따라.얼마나 크냐에 따라얼마나 좋으냐에 따라
  • Past: 았/었느냐에 따라.얼마나 연습했느냐에 따라
  • Nouns: (이)냐에 따라.누구냐에 따라
  • Either way: give both sides.오느냐 안 오느냐에 따라

Pick a verb

가다가가느냐에 따라

  1. 어떻게 공부하느냐에 따라 결과가 달라져요.

    Your results depend on how you study.

  2. 누구를 만나느냐에 따라 인생이 달라질 수 있어요.

    Your life can change depending on who you meet.

  3. 어디에 사느냐에 따라 생활비가 크게 달라요.

    The cost of living varies a lot depending on where you live.

  4. 얼마나 연습했느냐에 따라 점수가 달라질 거예요.

    Your score will depend on how much you've practised.

  5. 민수가 오느냐 안 오느냐에 따라 계획이 달라져요.

    Our plans depend on whether Minsu comes or not.

  6. 날씨가 좋으냐 나쁘냐에 따라 손님 수가 달라요.

    The number of customers depends on whether the weather's good or bad.

Two things to look for. The clause before it nearly always has a question word or a two-sided choice, because it's a real question. And the clause after it usually says something varies, so 달라지다 and 다르다 are everywhere.

※ 따라 often takes 서 with no change in meaning: 어떻게 하느냐에 따라서 달라요. You'll also see 냐에 따라 without the 느, especially in speech.

는지에 따라: nearly the same

는지에 따라 does the same job, and you already know how to build it from ~는지. The two are close to interchangeable, and you'll meet both in speech and in writing. 느냐에 따라 sounds a little weightier to me, so I'd save it for an essay or a speech.

  1. 어떻게 공부하는지에 따라 결과가 달라져요.

    Your results depend on how you study.

  2. 날씨가 어떤지에 따라 일정이 바뀔 수 있어요.

    The schedule may change depending on what the weather's like.

  3. 얼마나 큰지에 따라 가격이 달라요.

    The price depends on how big it is.

  4. 뭘 먹을지에 따라 갈 식당이 달라져요.

    Where we go depends on what we're going to eat.

Example 4 uses ㄹ/을지, because the choice is still open.

기에 따라: depending on how you do it

기에 따라 is narrower. It takes a verb with no question word, and it means "depending on the way you do this". It mostly turns up with a handful of verbs: 보다, 생각하다, 듣다, 마음먹다 and 하다.

Pick a verb

보다보보기에 따라

  1. 그건 생각하기에 따라 달라요.

    That depends on how you look at it.

  2. 보기에 따라 좋은 일일 수도 있어요.

    Depending on how you see it, it could be a good thing.

  3. 듣기에 따라 기분 나쁠 수도 있는 말이에요.

    Depending on how you take it, that remark could offend.

  4. 네가 하기에 따라 결과가 달라질 거야.

    The result will depend on what you do.

  5. 인생은 마음먹기에 따라 달라져요.

    Life depends on the attitude you bring to it.

  1. 어떤 책을 ___ 생각이 달라져요.

    The way you think changes depending on what books you read.

  2. 그건 ___ 좋을 수도 있고 나쁠 수도 있어요.

    Depending on how you look at it, it could be good or bad.

  3. 왜 ___ 질문에 대답을 못 했어요.

    I couldn't answer when they asked why I was late.

  4. 너 밥 먹었___?

    Texting your best friend: have you eaten?

Listen and type

1 / 3

Play it as often as you like.

In a conversation

A

야, 어디 가냐?

Hey, where go?

B

도서관. 내일 시험이야.

Library. Tomorrow exam is.

A

공부 많이 했냐?

Study much did?

B

아니. 오늘 밤에 얼마나 하느냐에 따라 결과가 달라질 거야.

No. Tonight how much do, depending on result will change.

A

그럼 밥은 먹었냐?

Then meal ate?

B

넌 왜 자꾸 밥 먹었냐고 물어? 엄마야?

You why keep meal ate whether ask? Mum are?

Common mistakes

  1. 할머니, 어디 가냐?

    할머니, 어디 가세요?

    냐 is for close friends and people younger than you. To a grandmother it's rude.

  2. 일이 얼마나 바쁘느냐에 따라 달라요.

    일이 얼마나 바쁘냐에 따라 달라요.

    느 is for verbs, plus 있다 and 없다. Adjectives take (으)냐.

  3. 왜 왔느냐고 질문이 어려웠어요.

    왜 왔느냐는 질문이 어려웠어요.

    Before a noun you need 는. 고 leads into a verb.

Check yourself

Quick check

1 / 6

어떻게 ___ 결과가 달라져요. (공부하다, use 느냐에 따라) Your results depend on how you study.

공부하다 is a verb.

Summary

느냐 (verbs) forms
DictionaryStem느냐 (verbs)
가다가가느냐
먹다먹먹느냐
살다살사느냐
있다있있느냐
(으)냐 (adjectives) forms
DictionaryStem(으)냐 (adjectives)
크다크크냐
좋다좋좋으냐
춥다춥추우냐
멀다멀머냐

The family

  • 냐: the blunt spoken question, for close friends and people younger than you.
  • 느냐: the full form, for reading. It's also the question ending of 한다체.
  • 느냐는 + noun: a reported question before a noun.
  • 느냐에 따라, 는지에 따라: depending on, with a real question in front. The two are close to interchangeable.
  • 기에 따라: depending on how you do something, with no question word.

Now you can say

  1. 그건 생각하기에 따라 달라요.

    That depends on how you look at it.

  2. 어디에 사는지에 따라 생활비가 달라요.

    The cost of living depends on where you live.

  3. 왜 한국어를 배우느냐는 질문을 자주 받아요.

    I often get asked why I'm learning Korean.

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