yageul meogeossneundedo yeori an naeryeogayo.

먹었는데도 means even though (someone) took it or despite taking it.

It breaks down like this:

• 먹었- = ate / took in the past
• -는데도 = even though / although / despite that

So the clause 약을 먹었는데도 gives the idea of an unexpected result: medicine was taken, but even so, the fever is not going down.

In Korean, 약을 먹다 is the normal everyday expression for to take medicine by mouth.

Literally, 먹다 means to eat, but with medicine it naturally means to take:

• 약을 먹다 = take medicine
• 비타민을 먹다 = take vitamins

For other kinds of treatment, Korean uses different verbs:

• 주사를 맞다 = get an injection
• 약을 바르다 = apply medicine/ointment

So 약을 먹다 is completely standard.

The particles show different roles in the sentence.

• 약을: 을 marks medicine as the object of 먹다

  • 약을 먹다 = take medicine

• 열이: 이 marks fever as the subject of 내려가다

  • 열이 내려가다 = the fever goes down

So the structure is basically:

• medicine = the thing someone took
• fever = the thing that is or is not decreasing

Literally, it means the fever goes down.

• 열 = heat, temperature, fever
• 내려가다 = go down, decrease

In medical Korean, 열이 내려가다 is a very common way to say:

• the fever goes down
• the fever comes down
• the fever subsides

It sounds very natural in this context.

Because here Korean is describing the fever itself going down, not someone directly lowering it.

• 열이 내려가다 = the fever goes down
• 열을 내리다 = lower the fever

So:

• 열이 안 내려가요 = the fever is not going down
• 약이 열을 내려요 = the medicine lowers the fever

In this sentence, the focus is on the fever not decreasing, so 열이 안 내려가요 is the natural choice.

Because the two parts describe different times:

• 먹었는데도 = the medicine was already taken
• 안 내려가요 = right now, the fever is still not going down

So the sentence means:

• the action of taking medicine is finished
• the current problem remains

This is very common in Korean: a past action can be followed by a present result or current state.

Yes, you can.

Both are correct:

• 안 내려가요
• 내려가지 않아요

But 안 내려가요 is more common and more natural in everyday speech.

A small detail: the verb is 내려가다, so the long negative form is 내려가지 않다, not 내리지 않다.

So:

• natural conversational form: 열이 안 내려가요
• slightly more formal/written-feeling: 열이 내려가지 않아요

They are similar, but not exactly the same.

• 약을 먹었는데도 = even though I already took the medicine
• 약을 먹어도 = even if I take the medicine / even when I take the medicine

So 먹었는데도 points more clearly to a completed action in this specific situation.

Compare:

• 약을 먹었는데도 열이 안 내려가요.
  • I took medicine, but even so, the fever is not going down.
• 약을 먹어도 열이 안 내려가요.
  • Even when I take medicine, the fever does not go down.

The second can sound more general or habitual, depending on context.

They are similar, because both can mean although / but.

But -는데도 often feels stronger, like:

• even though
• despite the fact that
• and yet

So:

• 약을 먹었지만 열이 안 내려가요. = I took medicine, but the fever is not going down.
• 약을 먹었는데도 열이 안 내려가요. = Even though I took medicine, the fever is still not going down.

The -는데도 version highlights the unexpectedness more strongly.

It is basically -는데 + 도.

• -는데 connects to the next clause
• 도 adds the sense of even / despite that

Together, they mean something like:

• even though
• despite

So learners often memorize -는데도 as one useful pattern, even though it is built from smaller parts.

Korean often leaves out the subject when it is already understood from context.

So this sentence could mean:

• I took medicine, but the fever isn’t going down
• My child took medicine, but the fever isn’t going down
• He/She took medicine, but the fever isn’t going down

If needed, Korean can make it explicit:

• 제가 약을 먹었는데도 열이 안 내려가요.
• 아이가 약을 먹었는데도 열이 안 내려가요.

The original sentence sounds natural because the speaker probably thinks the listener already knows who they are talking about.

No. 열 can mean:

• heat
• body temperature
• fever

The exact meaning depends on context.

In medical situations:

• 열이 나다 = to have a fever
• 열이 있다 = to have a fever
• 열이 내려가다 = the fever goes down

So in this sentence, 열 clearly means fever.

내려가요 is in the standard polite -아요/어요 style.

It is appropriate for:

• everyday conversation
• speaking to a doctor or pharmacist
• talking politely with someone you do not speak casually to

Compare:

• 열이 안 내려가. = casual
• 열이 안 내려가요. = polite
• 열이 안 내려갑니다. = more formal

So the original sentence is polite and natural.

A few parts sound different from the spelling:

• 약을 sounds close to 야글
• 먹었는데도 sounds close to 머건는데도
• 열이 sounds close to 여리

So the whole sentence is roughly pronounced like:

• 야글 머건는데도 여리 안 내려가요

You do not need to pronounce it exactly like that in writing, of course, but it helps explain what you may hear from native speakers.