고 낳다

give birth having done X

-고 attaches a manner or a prior circumstance to 낳다 'give birth': 결혼을 안 하고 낳은 애 'a child born outside marriage', 배 안 아프고 낳았냐 'did anyone give birth without pain?'. Three of the five lines here are versions of an old family-planning slogan, 덮어놓고 낳다 보면 거지꼴을 못 면한다 — roughly 'keep having children heedlessly and you'll never escape poverty'. Do not confuse 낳다 'give birth to' with the identically pronounced 낫다 'get better'.

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