Which one do I use? 무엇 or 무슨? I'm still a beginner in Korean and I've come across a bit of a stumbling block when it comes to the word 'what' I was taught to use 무엇 for questions like 'what is this?'

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Lyzzie

Which one do I use? 무엇 or 무슨? I'm still a beginner in Korean and I've come across a bit of a stumbling block when it comes to the word 'what' I was taught to use 무엇 for questions like 'what is this?' or ' what does your dad like?' (이것은 무엇 입니까? / 아버지는 무엇을 좋아합니까?) as it takes the place of a subject/object in a sentence, but I've just come across the question 'what sport do you like?' (무슨 운동을 좋아합니까?) and I'm confused as to the difference? I'm learning in high formal so I can avoid offending anyone but I do understand low/high informal. Any clarification would be well appreciated.

Apr 11, 2018 8:04 PM

Answers · 6

무슨 is a direct modifier. In other words, it comes directly in front of nouns. examples: “무슨 음식을 좋아해요?” (What foods do you like) “무슨 영화가재미있어요?” (What movie is interesting) 무엇 can NEVER be used alone. It always be followed by a particle even in casual speech. examples: “무엇을 좋아해요?” (What do you like?) “무엇이 재미있어요?” (What is interesting) 무슨 is used for nouns which sport is a noun so its used because it modifies it, if that makes sense. I hope i helped you out.

April 11, 2018

It might be complicated, however, usually we just use 뭐 short version of 무엇 like 무슨. 뭐 is informal and colloquial Ex) 뭐 좋아하세요? What do you like? 뮈 드릴까요? What do you want? 뭐뭐 있어요? What do you have?

April 11, 2018

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