"How" do you do?

Hello… how have you been?

Where is this guy looking? We heard it's good manners to make eye contact, so we move into his sightline.

Who says we're not good-mannered? 🙄

어떻게: one word, lots of useful questions

어떻게 means “how”. Use it to ask about the way something is done, or how someone is getting along. It normally comes before the verb you’re asking about.

The question from the reel

어떻게 지내셨어요?
How have you been?

지내다 means to spend time or get along. 지내셨어요? is a respectful past-tense form. Together, the question asks how the person has been doing. It’s handy when catching up after some time apart.

How would you answer this question?

Try these in real life

How or where?

어디 가요? = “Where are you going?” Ask for a place.
어떻게 가요? = “How are you getting there?” Ask for a way, such as by bus or on foot.

Small grammar note: 어떻게 works as an adverb, not a pronoun. For now, remember it as your “how” question word. Not every English “how” uses 어떻게: “How much?” is 얼마예요?

어떡해?

This is a question that confuses even Koreans! Here's an easy rule so that you never confuse between 어떻게 vs 어떡해.

어떡해 is 어떻게 해?

Easy, right?

So now, the next time you spill something you can shout: 어떡해! (What do I do?!)