커녕
keonyeong
let alone; far from
Attaches to a noun to strongly negate it by contrast with something even more basic that follows, meaning 'far from X, not even Y' -- similar to English 'let alone.'
Form
- Other shapes
- ㄴ커녕 · 는커녕 · 은커녕
Meanings
- 1
A postpositional particle used to imply negation by emphasizing the preceding statement, while comparing it with the following statement.
뒤의 말과 비교하여 앞말을 강조하여 부정하는 뜻을 나타내는 조사.
- 2
A postpositional particle meaning "on the contrary, not to mention".
‘말할 것도 없거니와 도리어’의 뜻을 나타내는 조사.
Examples
환자는 목이 아파서 밥커녕 죽도 삼키기 힘들다.
The patient's throat hurts so much that even porridge, let alone rice, is hard to swallow.
너무 늦은 시간이라 버스커녕 택시도 한 대 안 다녔다.
It was so late that not even a taxi was running, let alone a bus.
승규는 월급이 적어서 저축커녕 월세 내기도 빠듯하다.
Seunggyu's salary is so low that he can barely pay rent, let alone save.
너희 남편은 집안일 많이 도와주니? 집안일커녕 누워서 꼼짝도 안 해.
Does your husband help out a lot with housework? Help out? He just lies around and doesn't move an inch.
지수는 된장찌개커녕 라면도 제대로 못 끓인다.
Jisu can't even properly cook ramen, let alone doenjang stew.
학생인 나는 자동차커녕 자전거 한 대 살 돈도 없다.
As a student, I don't even have money to buy a bicycle, let alone a car.
Examples: 한국어기초사전, CC BY-SA 2.0 KR.
Don’t confuse with
Forms with a close meaning — a favourite source of wrong answers on TOPIK.
Quick check
1. What does ‘커녕’ mean?
2. Which form means “let alone; far from”?