있냐고/있느냐고

[idialegre]

I wrote the sentence 어떻게 이런 일이 일어날 수 있느냐고? and a Korean friend corrected it to 어떻게 이런 일이 일어날 수 있냐고? According to my grammar book, the correct form is 있느냐고, so I am confused. Are both forms correct? Is there a difference in meaning?

Thanks for any help!

 

[Superhero1]

Hello idialegre.

You are right. 있느냐 is grammatically correct, though most korean people commonly use '있냐' owing to the economy of pronunciation and the insensitivity of grammar in speaking situation.

Therefore, when you write, 있느냐 is correct, and when you say it, using 있냐 is more natural.