Questions tagged [vocabulary]
General questions about word meanings, or finding an appropriate word.
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How can a non-native Korean speaker say "Pure Korean" or "Native Korean" in Korean?
When talking about Korean word origin, there are "Pure/Native Korean" words, "Sino-Korean" (i.e. Hanja) words, and of course other origins like English. I am wondering how to say "Pure Korean" or "...
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What is the difference between 방금 and 금방?
As far as I know, one of them means "a short while ago", the other "in a short time". Sometimes they are used interchangeably. I'm looking for an explanation of the two words, how they differ, and a ...
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Difference between 되었어요 and 됐어요?
What is the Difference between 되었어요 and 됐어요?
For example:
-서울에 산 지 얼마나 되었어요?
-오 년 됐어요.
Or
-일 년 육 개월 정도 되었어요.
I know both answers are correct.
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Are colors interchangeable
Red is 빨간색 or 홍색.
Green is 초록색 or 녹색.
Blue is 파란색 or 청색.
In each case, the first version is "pure Korean" while the second version comes from Chinese. Probably there are many other examples.
Is ...
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Basic steps to take when learning Korean
Can anyone list basic steps needed to start efficiently learning Korean independently?
I do live in a hole geographically, and I highly doubt that I could find a Korean person in a 100 miles radius (...
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What is the politest way in Korean to say that someone is 'old'?
I am aware of 낡은 and 오래 된, but I'm not sure that these are suitable for saying that an (esteemed) person is old. (I'm sure 헌 probably isn't either!)
What is the politest way to say that someone is ...
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Is there a Korean word for 'Syllable Block'?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hangul#Morpho-syllabic_blocks
The combinations of 2, 3, 4 (or more?) 자모 are often called 'blocks' in English. As they are an important concept in the way Korean is ...
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What's the difference between 마지막으로 and 드디어?
As the title says, what's the difference between 드디어 and 마지막으로? They're both "finally" but are they any different?
user12
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Chronology of orthography before and after the separation of North and South Korea
In another question some differences in orthography between North and South Korea were treated.
But more precisely, what is the chronology of orthography changes in Korean before the separation in the ...
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What are the differences between 힘들다 and 어렵다?
Both seems to mean 'to be difficult' or 'to be hard'. Is there a difference between them, in meaning or in usage (spoken/written, formal/informal)?
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Easy Korean Poems for Beginners
I just wonder if anyone could help me find few poems in Korean that are not too hard for a beginner like me. I believe it could help me improving my vocabulary and grammar usage.
(I've been learning ...
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How do you ask for someone's shoe size in Korean?
How do you ask for someone's shoe size in Korean?
I've heard it before at bowling allies.
I think it is something like: 몇 씨이에요?
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How to spot English loanwords and Hanja words in a text?
While studying Japanese, it's very helpful that nearly all words of foreign origin are marked by using katakana (a syllabary separate from the usual mix of hiragana and Chinese characters) and words ...
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What are the differences in usage and meaning between 아름답다, 예쁘다, 이쁘다 and 곱다?
These four words basically means 'beautiful', 'lovely', 'pretty', according to Naver Online Dictionary: 아름답다, 예쁘다, and 곱다.
From my own experience, it seems to me that 예쁘다 and 이쁘다 have the same ...
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What's the difference between '탕' and '국'?
It seems there are two kinds of Korean soups. Some of them are '국', such as 미역국, 콩나물국, 배추국. But then there are also '탕', such as 갈비탕, 삼계탕. Some even seem to have two names, e.g., '우거지국' & '우거지탕'. ...
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What's the word for "obsolete"?
How can I say "That technology is obsolete" in Korean?
I haven't found a good translation in any dictionary, and my Korean friends say I should use "그 테크놀로지는 더 이상 사용되지 않습니다".
That essentially means "...
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필요하다, 필요 있다, 필요로 하다 : what's the difference in meaning and usage?
I was aware of '필요하다' '필요 있다' both meaning 'to be necessary', and on Naver Dictionary saw that the first translation of 'need' is '필요로 하다'.
What is the difference in meaning and usage, if any, ...
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How to say or suggest in an informal (and possibly rude) way that someone can be disregarded?
Warning: the English language I would like to know of a Korean equivalent for is rude, and contained in the examples below.
From this example, we can understand that B wishes to disregard John's ...
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What is the natural way to refer to in-laws of an unexpected gender?
If my father's sister has a husband, I call him 고모부.
If my father's younger brother has a wife, I call her 숙모.
If my father's sister has a wife, what do I call her? If my father's younger brother ...
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I started studying Korean at 32. I'm 34 and still terrible. Is it possible to learn in your 30s?
Despite studying for 2 years and being in a relationship with a native speaker for all that time (she's fluent in English too) I still can't effectively communicate in the language. Basic stuff like 뭐 ...
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Does 'Gee' (as in the 소녀시대 song) have any Korean meaning?
Simple question about an old song. Does 'Gee' in the 소녀시대 song of the same name have any meaning in Korean? If not, is it a non-lexical vocable or just a borrowing of the slightly dated English ...
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What wishes are said during the Korean New Year holiday/설날?
What greetings or wishes are typically or traditionally said on during the Korean New Year holiday, 설날 (Jan. 28, 2017)?
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Are the words 이상 and 이하 inclusive?
The words 이상 and 이하 can follow a number to mean "more than" or "less than":
3년 이상
However, it's not always clear if the number itself is included: does the above mean "more than 3 years" or "3 ...
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Are there equivalent to 때문에 with a positive/negative connotation?
If I am correct, the 'Noun+때문에 / Verb+기 때문에' structure is a neutral way to express a cause. For example, 비 때문에 늦었어요 (I was late because of the rain) expresses a negative cause, whereas 여자친구 때문에 행복해요 (...
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Is there a special name in Korean for adverbs like '반짝반짝', '흔들흔들', '빙글빙글'?
There seems to be a group of 'doubled' words in Korean that often describe how something looks or moves, e.g. :
반짝반짝 - 'twinkle' or 'sparkle'
흔들흔들 - 'shake' or 'wobble'
빙글빙글 - to go round and ...
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What does “짐” mean?
Not as a burden, luggage, etc. I noticed it as a way of a king/emperor to refer someone, does it mean to refer it as himself or the other person he talk to?
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Is there a female equivalent of '인마'?
koreanwikiproject states that '인마' is short for '이놈아', and is usually used towards males (which would make sense as '놈' is an impolite way of saying 'man'). Is there a female equivalent, or is there ...
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Which Korean country names originate from Japanese?
According to this answer,
[Some country names] are borrowed from other languages, like 브라질 (Brazil) is borrowed from the English variant of Brasil, or 독일 is borrowed from the Japanese name for ...
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Would 동경 and 북경 be commonly understood as ways of saying 'Tokyo' and 'Beijing'?
As I understand it, 동경 and 북경 are the Korean pronunciations of the 한국어 forms of 'Tokyo' and 'Beijing'. However, the transliterations from English - 도쿄 and 베이징 - seem more common.
My question: are 동경 ...
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Games with hands, talking/chanting, rhythm, etc
I've played or observed a handful of games involving some sort of hand/rhythm/chanting component. Crucially they all have no equipment/items needed to play.
Examples:
가위바위보 "rock, paper, scissors"...
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What does '여보세요' mean in the middle of a conversation?
I learned '여보세요' as a way of saying 'Hello?' at the start of a conversation on the phone. However, I have heard it said in the middle of conversations too - sometimes when it seemed like people were ...
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two subjects in 당신은 이름이 뭐예요?
I have just studied Korean for a short time. I am having problem with the sentence below.
당신은 이름이 뭐예요? = What is your name?
My friend told me that there are two subjects in that sentence (당신 marked ...
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How to say "neutral flavor" in Korean
I was eating this bread, and the thought that came to my mind was "wow, this bread doesn't taste like anything; there's no particular flavor." It had a very light, neutral taste. I want to say "bland,"...
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What's the adjective for feeling intense cold pain? (while at the dentist)
What's the adjective for feeling intense cold/pain? (while at the dentist)
I hear this all the time when I get a dental cleaning, but I haven't been able to find the word in a dictionary.
It roughly ...
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기계 (gigye) ==> 機械, 器械, 奇計 (what else?)
en.wiktionary.org is great for Hangul Super- Newbie learners.
For example,
en.wiktionary.org 기계
gives me 3 Kanji (Hanja) meanings/readings for 기계 (gigye) ==> 機械, 器械, 奇計
( btw, in Jp ( Japanese ),...
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Why is there a difference in these translations of 'Grace', 'Power' and 'Precision' for my taekwondo belts?
I am a martial artist, and for years I have had what I thought were the Korean symbols for Grace, Power and Precision put on my belts. Recently, our Grandmaster (Native born Korean) did me the honor ...
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Exact meaning of 마디
I learned that 마디 could be used as a countword for words. Indeed, the dictionary has examples like "한 마디도 안 했다" - I didn't say a word.
However, I'm reading an article (here, unfortunately behind a ...
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What's the difference between the ways to say "try", 시도하다, 노력하다, 하려고 하다, and 해 보다?
There's some confusion between different ways to say "try":
시도하다
노력하다
~려고 하다
~어/아 보다
Are they used differently, or are the interchangeable?
user12
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What is the difference between 도수 versus 빈도?
What is the difference between 도수and 빈도? In an example like this,
제가 단어의 나타나는 도수로 공부하고 있었어요.
, I learned that 빈도 was more appropriate but still don't have a clear understanding of the difference.
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Are there many (or any) 'respectable' acronyms or initialisms in use in modern Korean?
There are lots of English acronyms/initialisms that could not usually be used in a polite or professional context, either because they are rude, or because they are not very well known. Some, though, ...
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What's a natural way to say that someone works somewhere (for a job)?
Normally I would use 일 하다 to express that I (or someone else) works somewhere - e.g. 나는 출판사에서 일한다. But I wonder if this is a bit 'childish', or if it focuses on the action of working rather than the ...
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What's the nuance of meaning of 마음을 먹다 (literally, 'to eat one's mind'), and how does the metaphor work?
I've heard '마음을 먹다' translated as to 'make up one's mind' or to 'have a mind' (to do something).
Is it neutral in feeling, or does it imply hiding or deadening one's emotions in preparation for doing ...
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Addressing someone on the street you have never met and who is of ambiguous age
I was visiting Korea (강원도 춘천시) recently and needed to ask directions to a building on a college campus. (강원대학교 for those who are interested). I was on foot and I did not immediately see a campus map ...
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What is the difference between 볼 and 뺨?
My dictionary translates them both as "cheek".
Can they be used more or less interchangeably?
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What is the difference between 서고 and 도서관?
I know 도서관 is commonly used, but it's my first time hearing 서고 and the meaning is also library. Is there any differences between them?
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What are the differences in the various words for "or"?
Google translate suggests "또는".
Pimsleur has, I believe, "나", or something that sounds like "na" at least.
Finally, the Drops app on android uses "혹은" (sounds ...
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What kind of cheese is 눈꽃치즈 (snow cheese)?
눈꽃치즈 is typically translated into English as "snow cheese" on Korean menus (and sometimes "Hangulized" as 스노치즈). In most food pictures it just appears to be a very finely shredded, light-colored ...
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Etymology for 마찬가지 (just the same)
I have a terrible time remembering 마찬가지. Usually I want to use it and kind of remember what the word sounds like, but I can't remember the exact characters.
Perhaps understanding the etymology of ...
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Besides endic.naver.com, any other good Korean-to-English dictionary site for (hangul) super-newbie learners?
Wiktionary is great for super-newbie learners of Hangul.
For example, see this question re: 기계 (gigye) : 기계 (gigye) ==> 機械, 器械, 奇計 (what else?)
What's another good Korean-to-English dictionary ...
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Family-in-law terms
Are these terms OK?
Father-in-law (my wife's father) = 장인 어른
Father-in-law (my husband's father) = 아버님
Mother-in-law (my wife's mother) = 장모님
Mother-in-law (my husband's mother) = 어머님
Brother-in-...
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