# 아이참



## Hyperpolyglot

I was playing a video game and encountered the word 아이참 with an exclamation, and I looked it up on Naver dictionary and it says it is similar to English "jeez" interjection, so I google it to see the images associated with 아이참 and found images only associated with some kind of cosmetic product, but I was expecting some sort of cartoon/picture with some character saying 아이참 with certain surprised look on the face, but found none, so if you use 아이참 as an interjection, do Korean people understand it as an interjection or the cosmetic product? I found that 아이참 is really derived from English "eye charm", so it is a cosmetic product used to enhance one's eyes. Is 아이참 commonly used as an interjection?


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## boomluck

Hyperpolyglot said:


> I was playing a video game and encountered the word 아이참 with an exclamation, and I looked it up on Naver dictionary and it says it is similar to English "jeez" interjection, so I google it to see the images associated with 아이참 and found images only associated with some kind of cosmetic product, but I was expecting some sort of cartoon/picture with some character saying 아이참 with certain surprised look on the face, but found none, so if you use 아이참 as an interjection, *do Korean people understand it as an interjection or the cosmetic product?* I found that 아이참 is really derived from English "eye charm", so it is a cosmetic product used to enhance one's eyes. Is 아이참 commonly used as an interjection?



It would be different depending on the situations, but I think, yes, People would firstly think of it as an interjection. Second guess would be the cosmetic product.


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## Curiosity777

The product '아이참' and the interjection '아이참' have a different meaning each other, and also have nothing to do with each other.

'아이참' wrttien on the product, I think, may be the synthesis of two words from '아이'+'참', but other than that in the interjection case '아이참' is that an exclamation uttered when the speaker is shy, nervous, or dissatisfied with something.


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## talking to someone

Hyperpolyglot said:


> do Korean people understand it as an interjection or the cosmetic product? I found that 아이참 is really derived from English "eye charm", so it is a cosmetic product used to enhance one's eyes. Is 아이참 commonly used as an interjection?


 
Actually, I've just heard from you the product named 아이참. I thinkthe product is not too much general or widesread among Koreans. Women or girls could already know that but I think men rarely know about it. So when the word 아이참 is said, most people in Korea(not sure about North) will think it as an interjection or exclaiming.


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## cherine

I've heard it several times in different dramas, from the context it means something like "oh man!", "you can't be serious!", "I can't believe it!" or something like these. And it's usually pronounce with a longer/stressed "a", and a slight pause between aay and tsham.


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## June123

I agree with cherine, but the expression is kind of old-aged so not much people use it in real life


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## talking to someone

cherine said:


> I've heard it several times in different dramas, from the context it means something like "oh man!", "you can't be serious!", "I can't believe it!" or something like these. And it's usually pronounce with a longer/stressed "a", and a slight pause between aay and tsham.


I don't mean i've never heard of 아이참. This is my first time i've heard the product called '아이참'. We're talking two things called '아이참'. One is exclamation commonly used in Korean and the other is just cosmetic item,which is not popular enough to be recognized by most of the Korean.


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## cherine

I never heard of the product myself, so don't worry my post was not a reply to yours.  And from the context provided in the first post, the 아이참 mentioned here can only be the exclamation, not the cosmetic product. I was just trying to explain the exclamation, based on the instances I've heard it used in dramas.


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## Panjandrum2

'아이참' is most commonly used by old-aged ladies, and denotes a situation where they got surprised or sometimes confused.


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