아이고

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Meaning and Usage

"아이고" is a common Korean exclamation expressing surprise, sympathy, pain, or frustration. It is often used in everyday conversation to react to unfortunate or unexpected situations.

Tone and Register

This expression is informal and widely used in spoken Korean. It conveys empathy or mild distress without being overly formal or serious.

Common Collocations

  • 아이고, 아파요! (Oh dear, it hurts!) — expressing physical pain
  • 아이고, 어떡해요? (Oh no, what should I do?) — showing worry or confusion
  • 아이고, 힘들겠다. (Oh dear, that must be hard.) — expressing sympathy

Usage Tips

"아이고" is often used at the beginning of a sentence to soften the tone or show emotional reaction. Learners sometimes confuse it with "아이구," which is a similar exclamation but slightly less intense. Using "아이고" appropriately adds naturalness and warmth to your Korean speech.

Example Sentences

아이고, 너무 아파서 병원에 가야겠어요.

Aigo, neomu apaseo byeongwone gaya gesseoyo.

Oh dear, it hurts so much that I need to go to the hospital.

아이고, 그 일을 어떻게 해야 할지 모르겠어요.

Aigo, geu ireul eotteoke haeya halji moreugesseoyo.

Oh no, I don’t know how to handle that task.

아이고, 어머니가 다치셨다니 정말 걱정돼요.

Aigo, eomeoniga dachyeossdani jeongmal geokjeongdwaeyo.

Oh my, I’m really worried that mother got hurt.