언제나 vs 항상
“always”: 언제나 or 항상?
Source-verified September 7, 2026. AI-assisted and checked against NIKL dictionary sources.
The quick answer
Their selected “always” senses match. 언제나 has two listed senses beyond that.
언제나
The entry lists “always,” “when,” and “at any time.”
나는 점심 식사를 하고 나서 언제나 커피를 마신다.항상
The selected entry lists only “always.”
어머니는 항상 자식 걱정을 한다.One useful caveat
No register difference is claimed here.
More word pairs
Explore more word pairs in Better Korean Dictionary.
Sources and method
Separate grounding and adversarial checks must pass before a guide is published. These guides are not human-reviewed.
- National Institute of Korean Language entry for 언제나
- National Institute of Korean Language entry for 항상
- NIKL copyright and reuse policy
Source examples are adapted from the National Institute of Korean Language's Korean-English Learners' Dictionary under its Attribution-ShareAlike terms.
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