9.2 Loan words
Western loan words often end up contrasting with already existing native Korean andor Sino-Korean words with similar meanings. When this happens, the loan
words are generally associated with a more modern version of the concept.
Native Korean Sino-Korean
Loan words 춤
무용 댄스 dance
가게 상점
마트 store, mart 빵집
제과점 베이커리
bakery 술집
주점 빠, 클럽
drinking bar NOTE: 빵 is a borrowing from Portuguese, but since it has been in the language
for so long, it is considered native Korean. In some cases, loan words are used to denote things for which there is no Korean
word – 껌, 커피, 버스, 잼, 택시 are examples of this. In other cases, Korean words may be pushed aside by their borrowed equivalents – 사진기 by 카메라,
사증 by 비자, 포도주 by 와인, 정구 by 테니스, and so on.
Unless they have become fully Koreanized, foreign expressions tend to be more casual and colloquial. 파킹 ‘parking’ and 컨셉 ‘concept’ may be common
among younger people when speaking casually, but they are to be avoided in formal writing and speech.
The following samples show just how freely fashion magazines use loan words these days.
떠나자, 1 2 일 호텔 뷰티 여
. 최근 내 시선을 사로잡은 것은 웨스턴
조선의 홈스파 앤 푸드 패키지. 해외 리조트의 고 스파에서 사용하는 제품으로 홈스파도 즐기고 맛있는 음 도 먹는데다 피트니스 클럽에서
운동처방도 받고 스트레칭, 필라테스 등의 웰빙 클래스도 수강할 있는 짧은 웰빙 여 이다.
Let’s go for an overnight hotel beauty trip. What caught my eye recently is the ‘Home Spa and Food’ package from the Western Chos
ŏn. It’s a short ‘well-being’ trip where you can enjoy the home spa using high-quality products that are used in
overseas resort areas and enjoy delicious food. Furthermore, you can also get advice on your exercise plan from the fitness club and take ‘well-being’ classes such
as stretching or pilates.
새롭게 오픈한 일 퓨전 레스토랑은 수준 의 음 맛만큼이나 인테리어
시 고 스러워 트렌드 세터들까지 자주 찾을 만큼 벌써
입소문이 났다. The newly opened Japanese fusion restaurant has an interior as great as its
excellent-tasting food. So, it has already become well-known through word of mouth, attracting even the trend setters.
9.2.1 Innovations in loan words
Loan words often have a somewhat different meaning in Korean than in their language of origin, either because only one sense of the word was borrowed or
because its meaning shifted after borrowing .
For instance, 플라스 means only
hard plastic while 비닐 ‘vinyl’ means only soft plastic. So when Koreans visit American supermarkets for the first time, they misunderstand what the cashier
means by a plastic bag Here are more examples of this sort.
린스 rinse
conditioner 스킨
skin toner
팝송 pop song
western pop songs 빌라
villa townhouse
콘도 condo
time share 커닝
cunning cheating on an exam
서비스 service
complimentary; free of charge 미팅
meeting blind date
부킹 booking
pairing-off with a partner in a club 스킨십
skinship romantic touch
팬티 panty
panties; boxers; briefs 런닝셔츠
running shirts short-sleevesleeveless undershirt 키친타월
kitchen towel paper towel 이태리타월
Italy towel scrubbing cloth for skin
콤비 combi
sports coat 잠바
jumper windbreaker, jacket
파스 PAS
medicated plaster , hotcold patch
사인 sign
autograph; signature In addition, English loan words are sometimes combined in novel ways see
10.5.
백미러 back mirror
rearview mirror 핸드폰
hand phone cell phone
에스라인 S-line
curvaceous body 커트라인
cut line passing score on an exam
골인 goal in
kicking a goal in a game 오픈게임
open game game played before the main event
애프터 서비스 after service after-sales service 모닝콜
morning-call wake-up call
비닐하우스 vinyl house
greenhouse 원룸아파트
one-room apt a studio; flat; efficiency 오토바이
auto-bi motorcycle
썬팅 sun-ting
window tinting 캠핑카
camping-car recreation vehicle RV
Sometimes, parts of loan words are combined with other words to create new words:
오피스텔 office-hotel a place where one can do office work and sleep
웰빙버거 well-being burger healthy burger
9.2.2 Phonetic changes to loan words
A loan word’s pronunciation is refashioned to fit the sound pattern of Korean. The following changes are particularly common.
• The sound ‘f’ becomes ㅍ: 팬 fan
카페인 caffeine 유니폼 uniform
• The sounds ‘j,’ ‘z,’ and sometimes ‘s’ become ㅈ: 엔진 engine
비자 visa 카지노 casino
• The sounds ‘l’ and ‘r’ merge into ㄹ at the beginning of a word: 로션 lotion
레이저 laser 라이벌 rival
• The sound ‘sh’ becomes ㅅ: 샴푸 shampoo
샤워 shower 시트 sheet
• The sound ‘th’ becomes ㅅ in most cases exception: 베드 Macbeth: 스릴 thrill
헬스 health 스미스 Smith
• The sound ‘v’ becomes ㅂ: 베테랑 veteran
비타민 vitamin 인터뷰 interview
• Sequences of consonants are broken up with vowels usually 으: 클럽
club
스탠드 stand 토스트 toast
드라이브 drive 스카프 scarf
유니폼 uniform • A vowel usually 으, but sometimes 이 is added to words that end in sounds
such as ‘s,’ ‘z,’ and ‘ch’: 키스 kiss
치즈 cheese 스포츠 sports
스위치 switch 이미지 image
가스 레인지 gas range
Addition of the extra vowel is optional for words that end in the sounds ‘p,’ ‘t,’ ‘k,’ or ‘g’:
테입테이프 tape 컷커트 cut
케익케이크 cake • Words that end in the sound ‘t’ are spelled with a final ㅅ:
라켓 racket 에티켓 etiquette
인터넷 Internet If the final ㅅ is followed by a suffix that begins with a vowel, it is pronounced
as if it were ‘s’ rather than ‘t’: 인터넷 [인터넫] vs. 인터넷을 [ 인터네슬]. • The sounds ‘p’ and ‘b’ are neutralized into ㅂ; the sounds ‘k’ and ‘g’ are
neutralized into ㄱ: 캡 capcab
백 bagback Because of this, Koreans may mistake ‘Doug called’ for ‘Duck called’ and
Americans may hear 크랩버거 as ‘crap burger’ rather than ‘crab burger’ • The sound ‘r’ is dropped after a vowel exceptions: 코르크 ‘cork,’ 레퍼토리
‘repertoire’: 코트 court
디저트 dessert 포크 fork
마트 mart 포스터 poster
레저 leisure Because of these various changes, different borrowed words can end up with the
same pronunciation in Korean: panfan 팬, passionfashion 패션, coatcourt 코트, folkfork 포크.
9.2.3 The grammar of loan words
Most loan words are nouns that, like Sino-Korean nouns, can be converted into verbs by adding -하다, -나다, and so on as the need arises.
웰빙하다 live a healthy life-style
헬스하다 exercise in a health club
오바하다 overreact; overinterpret 드라이브하다
go for a drive 이메일하다 do e-mail
다운로드하다 download 폼나다
look stylish 펑크나다
appointment gets broken NOTE: The in e-mail addresses is called 골벵이, which is a type of fish that looks
similar to the symbol. Words that are adjectives in the original language tend to become nouns in
Korean, and are then converted into descriptive verbs with the help of -하다. 쿨하다
be cool 스마트하다 be smart
시하다 be sexy
유머러스하다 be humorous
10 Word formation
A language’s vocabulary is a work in progress. New words are constantly being added, sometimes through borrowing from other languages but more often by
making adjustments to currently existing words.
10.1 Compounding
A particularly common strategy for word formation in Korean involves com- bining two or more elements to create a compound word.
10.1.1 Compound nouns
A very large number of Sino-Korean compounds consist of two roots. These roots are often bound
–
that is, they cannot be used as words on their own. 주차 駐車
운전 運轉 교통 交通
Many longer compounds can be created by combining two-item compounds with other words.
주차: 주차위반 parking violation 불법주차
illegal parking 주차금지 No Parking
주차난 parking difficulties
운전: 운전면허 driver’s license
음주운전 driving while intoxicated
초보운전 beginner’s driving 대리운전자 designated driver 교통:
교통사고 traffic accident 교통체증
traffic congestion 대중교통 mass transit
교통신호 traffic signal
속도: 속도위반 speed violation
제한속도 speed limit
경제속도 economical speed 속도계 speedometer
보험: 생명보험 life insurance
자동차보험 car insurance 의료보험 medical insurance 보험료
insurance premium The meanings of these long compounds can usually be predicted from their
component parts: 불법주차 not-law-park-car
illegal parking 음주운전 drink-alcohol-move-turn driving while intoxicated