조차
조차: Even — The Extreme You Wouldn’t Expect
Particle: includes an extreme case you would not normally expect — often negative contexts.
How to form it
| When | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | N조차 | 물조차 / 이름조차 / 인사조차 |
| With negation / lack | N조차 없다 / 못하다 | 물조차 없어요 / 인사조차 못 했어요 |
조차 means even — the extreme you would not expect to include.
우리말샘 조차 「011」: additive particle; includes an extreme case that is generally hard to expect. English even is too soft a gloss: 조차 often arrives with scarcity or failure.
Why this is hard
Learners already know 도 as “also / even.” They then swap 도 and 조차 freely and lose the bleak edge. 물도 없어요 can be mild addition; 물조차 없어요 says even the basic thing is gone.
Overlap with 마저 and 까지 is real. Native speakers do not always feel a sharp wall between them. The classroom job is still useful: 조차 = unexpected extreme; 마저 often “even the last remaining”; 까지 often extent (“as far as / up to”).
What it does
You stack the last, hard-to-expect item — usually under lack or inability.
물조차 없어요.
이름조차 기억 안 나요.
인사조차 못 했어요.
숨조차 크게 못 쉬겠어요.Common partners: 없다, 못하다, strong negatives. The particle does not require a negative, but that is where learners meet it first.
Forms
Noun + 조차. Classroom focus stays on nouns; do not invent verb endings here.
물조차. ✅
이름조차. ✅
*먹다조차. (not the classroom pattern — use other tools)When not to use it
Do not replace every 도 with 조차 for “emphasis.” Cheerful “even I can do it” praise is usually 도, not this particle’s home.
Do not force it into light “also” lists (사과도 사고 배도 사고). That is addition, not extremity.
Do not treat 마저 and 조차 as identical twins. They overlap, but swapping them in every drill sentence hides the “last remaining” vs “unexpected extreme” colours.
Neighbours — and why they differ
| Form | Why it is not this slot |
|---|---|
| 도 | Broad also / even; lighter, everyday. |
| 마저 | Often even the last one left — residual focus. |
| 까지 | Extent / range (up to); “even” is only one of its jobs. |
Ask: am I naming an extreme, hard-to-expect item — often under lack? If yes, 조차. If you only need soft “also,” stay with 도.
Do not confuse it with
Taught alongside this
On the jabi learning path, this appears in 조사 (inspection) — Advanced Korean 1, Unit 1, on the theme of inspection. These come with it:
Words used above
Quick check
No sign-up, no score saved — just see if it stuck.
1. You were so rushed you couldn't manage even a word of goodbye — the bare minimum of courtesy, gone. Which line captures that bleak 'not even this'?
2. You need the bleak ‘not even X’ particle on 물 — which line uses 조차 correctly?
3. A student's graded essay comes back blank: no comment, no score, no name written anywhere — something so basic you would never expect it to be missing. Which particle fits the pure unexpectedness of the absent item?
Common questions
What does the dictionary say?
우리말샘 조차 「011」: additive particle; includes an extreme case normally hard to expect.
조차 vs 마저?
Both can mean ‘even.’ 마저 often ‘the last remaining’; 조차 stresses unexpected extremity. Overlap is real — learn from examples.
조차 vs 까지?
까지 has range/extent senses; 조차 is extreme inclusion.
After verbs?
Classroom focus is noun + 조차. Verb patterns use other tools.