Why is 먹어 used instead of 마시/마셔 in this sentence?
아침에는 우유밖에 안 먹어요.

Since milk is a drink, why not use "마셔요"? Are there instances where one could use "먹다" instead of "마시다" for liquids as well?

Question

Why is 먹어 used instead of 마시/마셔 in this sentence?
아침에는 우유밖에 안 먹어요.

Since milk is a drink, why not use "마셔요"? Are there instances where one could use "먹다"  instead of "마시다" for liquids as well?

Answer

In spoken Korean, "먹다" can be used instead of "마시다". Actually, it's quite common.

For example, "사이다 먹을래? 콜라 먹을래?"

However, you recommend you to use "먹다" for "eat" and "마시다" for "drinking", separately.

Answer

Yes, in this case, “먹다” with a drink can be replaced ‘breakfast’. So, it does not only mean drink a cup of milk.

I hopefully you could find what you wanted to know with my answer.

Answers · 2