Dictionary — Entry No. 0156
몰라요
mollayo · expression
몰라요
mollayo
[mol-la-YO]
expressionbeginner
Meaning
The polite present-tense form of 모르다 (to not know), meaning “I don’t know.” It expresses genuine lack of knowledge but in idol and drama culture is also used playfully to feign innocence or shrug off a question with a coy smile. The casual form, 몰라 (molla), drops the polite ending 요.
K-Pop & K-Drama Context
BIGBANG’s smash hit 거짓말 (Lies) features the repeated hook “몰라 몰라 몰라,” which introduced a generation of international fans to this word’s emotional punch. In K-dramas a tearful “몰라요” often signals a character at their absolute limit. The drawn-out, sing-song “몰~라요” with a pout is also a classic aegyo move spotted on variety shows featuring TWICE and aespa members alike.
Example Sentences
나도 몰라요. 정말이에요.
Nado mollayo. Jeongmarieyo.
“I don’t know either. I really don’t.” — the exhausted honesty of a K-drama lead who has finally run out of answers.
왜 이렇게 됐는지 몰라요.
Wae ireoke dwaenneunji mollayo.
“I don’t know how it came to this.” — heavy with regret, the line that lands in every melodrama climax.
그 사람 저 몰라요.
Geu saram jeo mollayo.
“I don’t know that person.” — the curt ice-queen denial K-drama fans love to screenshot and caption.
⚠️ Don’t use mollayo when…
1) 몰라요 states a known fact (“I definitely don’t know this”), while 모르겠어요 (moreugeseoyo) expresses uncertainty (“I can’t quite tell”) — swapping them shifts the nuance in ways that confuse native speakers. 2) Dropping 요 to say plain 몰라 to someone older or in a professional setting reads as blunt or dismissive; reserve it for close friends only.
🎵 Heard In
- K-Drama: My Love from the Star — Do Min-joon flatly delivers 몰라요 when deflecting questions about his centuries-long past, turning a simple phrase into an entire wall of mystery.
- K-Pop: BIGBANG — “거짓말 (Lies)” — the iconic repeated “몰라 몰라 몰라” hook made this word unforgettable for an entire generation of K-Pop fans.
💡 Did You Know? In Korean aegyo culture, stretching 몰라요 into a pouty “몰~라요~” with a head tilt is considered one of the signature cute expressions — devoted fans can immediately name which member of their fave group does it best.
ℹ️ Editorial Note: The cultural context and example usage are for educational reference only. Artist names, song titles, and drama references are used descriptively to illustrate vocabulary in context. This content is AI-assisted and reviewed for accuracy. For official information, please refer to the respective artists’ or studios’ official channels.