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Say It Like Seoul

헐 What does 헐 mean in Korean?

heol Slang Casual only

Meaning

“OMG”, “What?!” or “Seriously?” A tiny word for big surprise, shock or disbelief.

It can be happy, horrified or just amused. Stretch it out (헐~ or 헐…) to sound even more stunned.

Where it comes from

Nobody knows for sure. 헐 spread through online chat and became so common that people now say it out loud, especially younger Koreans.

Examples

A: 나 휴대폰 잃어버렸어.
B: 헐, 진짜?
A: I lost my phone.
B: What?! Seriously?
헐… 벌써 12시야? Whoa… it’s already midnight?
헐 대박, 저 사람 연예인 아니야? OMG, isn’t that a celebrity?

Grammar tip

헐 is an exclamation, so it never changes form. It often teams up with other reactions.

헐! · what?!헐… · stunned silence헐 대박 · OMG, no way

Check yourself

Which situation is 헐 NOT a good fit for?

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