-더라도 is "even if" with the volume turned up. Where the everyday -아/어도 accepts an ordinary, plausible condition, -더라도 reaches for an extreme or unlikely supposition and plants a flag: even in that case, the outcome still holds. It is the ending of resolutions, promises, and warnings — the grammar of "even if I fail," "even if it kills me," "no matter what happens." This page also covers its formal, literary twin -(으)ㄹ지라도, which pushes the same idea further into bookish register.
Formation: no allomorphy at all
-더라도 is mechanically easy: it attaches straight to any verb or adjective stem — consonant or vowel, action or descriptive, plus the copula — with no linking vowel and no reshaping.
| Stem |
|
|---|---|
| 실패하다 (fail) | 실패하더라도 |
| 어렵다 (be hard) | 어렵더라도 |
| 죽다 (die) | 죽더라도 |
| 있다 (exist) | 있더라도 |
| 학생이다 (be a student) | 학생이더라도 |
실패하더라도 후회하지 않을 거예요.
silpaehadeorado huhoehaji aneul geoyeyo
Even if I fail, I won't regret it.
무슨 일이 있더라도 꼭 도와줄게요.
museun iri itdeorado kkok dowajulgeyo
No matter what happens, I'll definitely help you.
Because it is hypothetical by nature, -더라도 pulls the main clause toward the future or the irrealis — a resolve, a promise, a threat, a warning. You rarely use it to report a plain past event.
아무리 어렵더라도 포기하지 않겠습니다.
amuri eoryeopdeorado pogihaji anketseumnida
No matter how hard it is, I will not give up.
Notice 아무리 again: it pairs with -더라도 just as it pairs with -아/어도, and here the combination sounds even more emphatic — "however hard it may be."
Past tense: -았/었더라도 for the counterfactual
Add the past marker and you get a fully counterfactual "even if it had been the case" — supposing a past that did not happen and insisting it would not have changed things.
그때 사과했더라도 상황은 똑같았을 거예요.
geuttae sagwahaetdeorado sanghwang-eun ttokgatasseul geoyeyo
Even if I'd apologized back then, the situation would've turned out exactly the same.
The emphatic edge: why -더라도, not -아/어도?
Here is the distinction to feel. -아/어도 takes conditions the speaker treats as real or likely. -더라도 takes conditions the speaker treats as unlikely, extreme, or hypothetical — and braces against them anyway. Compare:
비가 와도 갈게요.
biga wado galgeyo
Even if it rains, I'll go. (rain is plausible — ordinary concession)
무슨 일이 생기더라도 갈게요.
museun iri saenggideorado galgeyo
Even if something (unexpected) comes up, I'll go. (bracing against the improbable)
Rain is an everyday possibility, so 와도 is natural. "Something coming up" is framed as the unlikely worst case you are steeling yourself against, so 생기더라도 fits. Swap them and a native ear notices: 비가 오더라도 갈게요 sounds faintly melodramatic about ordinary weather, while 무슨 일이 있어도 is fine but less braced than 있더라도.
The formal partners: 설령 / 설사
Just as 아무리 front-loads "no matter how," the adverbs 설령 and 설사 front-load "even supposing / even granting that." They belong to a slightly more formal register than 아무리 and specifically flag the following clause as a hypothetical supposition — which makes them a perfect fit for -더라도 (and for -(으)ㄹ지라도). If you see 설령 or 설사 open a sentence, a concessive ending is coming.
설령 그것이 사실이더라도 달라지는 건 없어요.
seollyeong geugeosi sasirideorado dallajineun geon eopseoyo
Even supposing that's true, nothing changes.
This is a distinction English simply does not grammaticalize. English gets by with a single "even if" for both the plausible and the far-fetched, leaning on intonation and context to tell them apart — "even if it rains" and "even if the sky falls" use the identical connective. Korean bakes the difference into the grammar: the choice of -아/어도 versus -더라도 is the signal of how likely the speaker judges the condition to be. Learning to feel that choice is part of sounding like a native rather than a translator.
Two more in their natural habitat — the language of determination:
죽더라도 이 비밀은 지킬 거예요.
jukdeorado i bimireun jikil geoyeyo
Even if it kills me, I'll keep this secret.
아무리 힘들더라도 끝까지 해 볼게요.
amuri himdeuldeorado kkeutkkaji hae bolgeyo
No matter how hard it gets, I'll see it through to the end.
The literary cousin: -(으)ㄹ지라도
-(으)ㄹ지라도 says the same thing as -더라도 but in a formal, literary, even solemn register — the stuff of essays, speeches, scripture, and old proverbs. In everyday conversation it sounds noticeably bookish. Its allomorphy follows the prospective attributive -(으)ㄹ:
| Stem type | Ending | Example |
|---|---|---|
| consonant batchim | -을지라도 | 죽다 → 죽을지라도, 작다 → 작을지라도 |
| vowel stem | -ㄹ지라도 | 실패하다 → 실패할지라도, 크다 → 클지라도 |
| ㄹ stem | -지라도 (ㄹ already there) | 살다 → 살지라도, 알다 → 알지라도 |
It very often travels with 비록 ("although / even though"), the formal front-loaded partner that signals a concession is coming:
비록 실패할지라도 도전할 가치는 있다.
birok silpaehaljirado dojeonhal gachineun itda
Even if it should end in failure, the attempt is worth it.
비록 몸은 멀리 있을지라도 마음은 늘 함께입니다.
birok momeun meolli isseuljirado ma-eumeun neul hamkkeimnida
Even though we may be far apart, our hearts are always together.
Common Mistakes
1. Spelling it -더래도. The vowel is -라-, not -래-. This is a pure spelling trap for the ear.
- ❌ 실패하더래도 후회 안 해요. — wrong: it's 실패하더라도.
✅ 실패하더라도 후회 안 해요.
silpaehadeorado huhoe an haeyo
Even if I fail, I have no regrets.
2. Stacking future -겠- onto -더라도. The ending is already irrealis; it does not take -겠- in front of it.
- ❌ 아무리 힘들겠더라도 참을게요. — wrong: drop the 겠.
✅ 아무리 힘들더라도 참을게요.
amuri himdeuldeorado chameulgeyo
No matter how hard it is, I'll endure it.
3. Using -더라도 for an ordinary, plausible everyday condition. It over-dramatizes. For normal possibilities, plain -아/어도 is the natural choice.
- ❌ 조금 춥더라도 창문 좀 열어 주세요. — over-dramatic for a mild "even if it's a bit cold."
✅ 조금 춥더라도 창문 좀 열어 주세요.
jogeum chupdeorado changmun jom yeoreo juseyo
Even if it's a little chilly, please open the window a bit.
(This is grammatical — but in casual speech 조금 추워도 sounds more natural; save 춥더라도 for when you really mean to stress the concession.)
4. Using literary -(으)ㄹ지라도 in casual conversation. It sounds like you've stepped out of a novel.
- ❌ (chatting with a friend) 조금 비쌀지라도 그냥 살게. — too bookish for a chat.
✅ 조금 비싸도 그냥 살게.
jogeum bissado geunyang salge
Even if it's a bit pricey, I'll just buy it.
Key Takeaways
- -더라도 = the emphatic, hypothetical "even if." It concedes an unlikely or extreme condition and insists the outcome holds — the language of resolve, promises, and warnings.
- No allomorphy: it attaches straight to any stem (실패하더라도, 죽더라도, 있더라도). Past -았/었더라도 gives the counterfactual.
- Stance is the difference from -아/어도: -아/어도 for plausible conditions, -더라도 for far-fetched or extreme ones you're bracing against.
- -(으)ㄹ지라도 is the formal/literary twin (죽을지라도, 실패할지라도), often with 비록 — reserve it for writing and speeches, not casual talk.
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- -아/어도: Even If / Even ThoughTOPIK 2 — The everyday concessive — 'even if / even though / no matter' — built with vowel harmony, spanning hypothetical and factual clauses, and pairing with 아무리; contrasted with plain conditional -(으)면.
- -(으)ㄴ데도 / -는데도: Even Though (Despite the Fact)TOPIK 3 — The concessive built from background -는데 plus 도 — 'even though X (which is actually true), the surprising Y' — marking a real, established fact that should have prevented the result but didn't.
- -(느)ㄴ다면 · (이)라면: If (Vivid Supposition)TOPIK 3 — The supposition conditional built on the plain declarative form — a vivid, hypothetical, often counterfactual 'if' that flags the speaker is entertaining a supposition, never habitual 'when'.
- -지만: But (Plain Contrast)TOPIK 1 — The everyday, all-purpose 'but' — attaches to any stem with no allomorphy, freely carries tense, and states a flat contrast, unlike the background-setting -는데.