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Words similar to 대여섯?

Korean Language Asked on August 24, 2021

I know that 대여섯 means five or six, but I’m wondering why the ‘대’ takes the meaning of ‘five’ here? Are there other words similar to this that mean ‘A and A+1’. Thanks a lot.

One Answer

There are actually words like this all the way to at least 8:

  • 한두, 한둘: 1 or 2
  • 두세, 두셋: 2 or 3
  • 서너, 서넛: 3 or 4
  • 네댓, 네다섯: 4 or 5
  • 대여섯: 5 or 6
  • 예닐곱: 6 or 7
  • 일여덟: 7 or 8

In each case, the two numbers are compounded, with the first one reduced to just one syllable. In some cases, a contraction seems to have altered the first syllable - as in 대여섯 and 예닐곱 - but I'm not sure the mechanism that brought about this sound change.

Correct answer by gaeguri on August 24, 2021

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