AYA — MAMAMOO: meaning, key lines and pronunciation
What does “AYA” by MAMAMOO mean?
“AYA” by MAMAMOO is a breakup song named after 아야, the Korean yelp of pain, about walking away from a selfish lover. They compare the split to pulling a rotten tooth, and cast the ex as a villain and criminal with the trigger now in their own hands.
What the song is about
Rain and tears blur together, and the mood is bitter, defiant and finally drained of feeling.
Key lines
4 lines from the song in Korean, with how they sound and what they mean. The full line-by-line breakdown lives in the app.
Hey, ya, 비긴 것 같아 애초에 이길 생각 따윈 없어Listen from this lineRomanization (as sung): Hey, ya, bi·gin geot kka·ta ae·cho·e i·gil saeng·gak tta·wi neop·sseo
Meaning: Hey, looks like a draw; I never meant to win.
Words in this line- 비긴bi·gindrawn, tied
- 것geotthing
- 같아kka·taseems
- 애초에ae·cho·efrom the start
- 이길i·gilto win
- 생각saeng·gakthought
- 따윈tta·wistuff like
- 없어neop·sseothere is none
Word for word: Hey, ya, drawn thing seems, from-the-very-start to-win thought such-as there-is-not.
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 비긴 comes from 비기다, 'to draw', and 것 같아 literally means 'resembles a thing', i.e. 'it seems'. 따윈 means 'things like that' and gives the denial a dismissive edge. With 없어 the whole thing becomes a casual 'I never even thought about winning'.
봐 너나 나나 다 끝난 마당에 으르렁 어이Listen from this lineRomanization (as sung): bwa neo·na na·na da kkeun·nan ma·dang·e eu·reu·reong eo·i
Meaning: Look, now that we're both finished (grr, hey).
Words in this line- 봐bwalook
- 너나neo·nayou or
- 나나na·name or me
- 다daall
- 끝난kkeun·nanended
- 마당에ma·dang·ein a situation where
- 으르렁eu·reu·reonggrowl
- 어이eo·ihey
Word for word: Look, you-or-me me-or-me all ended in-the-yard (growl, hey).
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 너나 나나 literally means 'you or me, me or me', i.e. 'both of us alike'. 마당 alone is a 'yard', but in the phrase 끝난 마당에 it means 'now that it's over'. 으르렁 imitates a growl and adds some snarl.
눈물이야 빗물이야 아야Listen from this lineRomanization (as sung): nun·mu·ri·ya bin·mu·ri·ya a·ya
Meaning: Is it tears or rain? Ouch!
Words in this line- 눈물이야nun·mu·ri·yait's tears
- 빗물이야bin·mu·ri·yait's rain
- 아야a·yaouch
Word for word: Tears it-is, rain it-is, ouch
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 눈물 means 'tears', 빗물 means 'rainwater', and the ending -이야 means 'it is'. With no question word it reads like a statement, but intonation makes it a question, and 아야 adds the sting of pain.
이건 아냐 sad ending, 널 만난 내 잘못이야Listen to the first verse — freeRomanization (as sung): i·geo na·nya sad ending, neol man·nan nae jal·mo·si·ya
Meaning: This isn't right, a sad ending — meeting you was my mistake.
Words in this line- 이건i·geothis
- 아냐na·nyaisn't
- 널neolyou (obj.)
- 만난man·nanwho met
- 내naemy
- 잘못이야jal·mo·si·yais a mistake
Word for word: This is-not sad ending, you-met my mistake is.
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 아냐 means 'it isn't so', 잘못 means 'mistake, fault', and 이야 means 'is'. '널 만난' ('you-met') is a modifier placed before 'my mistake', which English must unfold. Together it means 'it's my own fault for getting involved with you'. The English 'sad ending' is dropped in as a ready-made phrase.
Lyrics © their rights holders. “AYA” — MAMAMOO. Quoted for commentary and learning.
Song facts
- Lines
- 50
- Key lines explained
- 4
- Words explained
- 18
- Length
- 3:31
Mini-lesson: fill in the missing word
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Ask BomiSong vocabulary
Words from the song in Korean alphabetical order, with pronunciation and meaning.
| Word | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 감정도 | gam·jeong·do | even feelings |
| 내게 | nae·ge | to me |
| 눈물이 | nun·mu·ri | tears |
| 눈물인지 | nun·mu·rin·ji | whether tears |
| 떨어진다 | tteo·reo·jin·da | falls |
| 모욕감을 | mo·yok·kka·meul | humiliation |
| 못된 | mot·ttoen | nasty |
| 뭐해 | mwo·hae | what are you doing |
| 미쳐 | mi·cheo | going mad |
| 빗물인지 | bin·mu·rin·ji | whether rain |
| 뽑아내야지 | ppo·ba·nae·ya·ji | must pull out |
| 사랑놀이에 | sa·rang·no·ri·e | in love play |
| 썩은 | sseo·geun | rotten |
| 이기적인 | i·gi·jeo·gin | selfish |
| 이빨 | i·ppal | tooth |
| 이젠 | i·jen | now |
| 줬어 | jwo·sseo | gave |
| 지쳐 | ji·cheo | worn out |
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Questions about “AYA”
What is “AYA” by MAMAMOO about?
“AYA” by MAMAMOO is a breakup song named after 아야, the Korean yelp of pain, about walking away from a selfish lover. They compare the split to pulling a rotten tooth, and cast the ex as a villain and criminal with the trigger now in their own hands. Rain and tears blur together, and the mood is bitter, defiant and finally drained of feeling.
What does “Hey, ya, 비긴 것 같아 애초에 이길 생각 따윈 없어” mean in “AYA”?
In “AYA” by MAMAMOO, “Hey, ya, 비긴 것 같아 애초에 이길 생각 따윈 없어” means: Hey, looks like a draw; I never meant to win. 비긴 comes from 비기다, 'to draw', and 것 같아 literally means 'resembles a thing', i.e. 'it seems'. 따윈 means 'things like that' and gives the denial a dismissive edge. With 없어 the whole thing becomes a casual 'I never even thought about winning'.
What does “봐 너나 나나 다 끝난 마당에 으르렁 어이” mean in “AYA”?
In “AYA” by MAMAMOO, “봐 너나 나나 다 끝난 마당에 으르렁 어이” means: Look, now that we're both finished (grr, hey). 너나 나나 literally means 'you or me, me or me', i.e. 'both of us alike'. 마당 alone is a 'yard', but in the phrase 끝난 마당에 it means 'now that it's over'. 으르렁 imitates a growl and adds some snarl.
How do you pronounce “눈물이야 빗물이야 아야”?
“눈물이야 빗물이야 아야” from “AYA” by MAMAMOO is romanized as “nunmuriya binmuriya aya”: that is how it is actually sung, sound changes included, not the textbook spelling.
Where can I see every line of “AYA” explained?
This page explains 4 key lines. In the theIDOL app Bomi goes through all 50 lines word by word, in sync with the song; the first verse is free and needs no sign-up.
Official music video
The video loads from YouTube only when you press play. YouTube ↗
How we make these breakdowns
theIDOL builds every breakdown with AI assistance and automated checks, and publishes a page only after it passes them. An AI model writes the meaning of each line and the word-by-word glosses from the song's timed lyrics. The pronunciation comes from our own rule-based Korean transcriber, which spells how the words sound when sung, sound changes included, not a letter-by-letter romanization. Pages that fail the audio-sync or translation checks are not published, and we quote only a few key lines. If you spot a mistake, write to support@theidol.ai and we will fix it.
Credits and sources
- Artist
- MAMAMOO
- Official video
- MAMAMOO · YouTube
Lyrics and music belong to their rights holders. This page quotes no more than four lines for commentary; the translations, pronunciation and explanations are written by theIDOL.