아니면 & 또는 Lesson

안녕하세요 여러분! Koreanstudyjunkie입니다~ There are several ways to say "or" in Korean. Today, I'll show you 2 different ways.

아니면 = Or, Either

아니면 is one of the most common ways to say “or.” 아니면 literally translates to “if not.”

It can be thought of as a conjunction. It’s useful when connecting two nouns together also.

For example, saying “this or that”: 이거 아니면 저거

It’s also commonly used when asking someone to choose between 2 different options:

지하철 탈까요? 아니면 택시 탈까요?

= Should we take the subway or the train?

MORE EXAMPLES:

너네 엄마랑 사니? 아니면 아빠랑 사니?

Do you live with your mum or your dad?

걸어가고 싶으세요? 아니면 버스를 타시겠어요?

Would you rather walk or take the bus?

그 케이크 너 먹을 거니? 아니면 내가 먹을래.

Do you want that cake? If not, I’ll have it.

커피에 우유를 넣을까요? 아니면 크림을 넣을까요?

Would you like milk or cream in your coffee?

내가 다음주 아니면 그 다음주에 올 수 있을 거야.

I could come next week, or the week after.

그들이 말을 일본어로 하나요? 아니면 한국어로 하나요?

Are they speaking Japanese or Korean?

또는 (& 혹은) = Or, Either, Otherwise

혹은 and 또는 (If not; or if it’s not) function similarly to 아니면 and -(이)나.

The main difference, however, is that 혹은 and 또는 are much more formal, so you likely would not hear them that often.

I don’t think that there’s a significant difference between 혹은 and 또는 though – 혹은 has Chinese roots while 또는 is a native Korean word I believe, but other than that they’re interchangeable!

EXAMPLES:

남자 또는 여자. = Man or woman

나 또는 너. = Me or you

이것 또는 저것. = This or that

다음 모임은 토요일 또는 일요일이 될 거예요.

The next meeting will be either on Saturday or on Sunday.

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That's it for this lesson! There are 2 more ways to say "Or" in Korean.

Scroll down to see the lesson on "이나 & 거나”