어떡해 (eotteokhae)

What it means

1. 1.

   What do I do?; oh no. A cry of helplessness, said aloud to nobody in particular as often as to a listener.

2. 2.

   Frequently misspelled 어떻해 even by native speakers. The correct form contracts 어떻게 해.

   어떻게 (how) and 어떡해 (what do I do) are pronounced almost identically and mixing them up is Korea's most-discussed spelling error.

Examples with translations

• 어떡해, 폰 액정 깨졌어.

  Oh no — I've cracked my screen.

• 나 어떡하지?

  What am I going to do?

Other forms

Romanised as:

eotteokhae