정말

Korean

Etymology

From 정(正) (jeong, “something that is correct”) +‎ 말 (mal, “word”).

Pronunciation
  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ˈt͡ɕɘ(ː)ŋma̠ɭ]
    • (file)
  • Phonetic hangul: [정(ː)말]
    • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.
Romanizations
Revised Romanization?jeongmal
Revised Romanization (translit.)?jeongmal
McCune–Reischauer?chŏngmal
Yale Romanization?cēngmal

Adverb

정말 • (jeongmal) (hanja 正말)

  1. really; truly
    새 하인들은 일을 정말 잘 해.
    Sae hain-deur-eun ir-eul jeongmal jal hae.
    Those new servants really do a splendid job.

Noun

정말 • (jeongmal) (hanja 正말)

  1. that which is true or genuine
    그거 정말이야? ― geugeo jeongmar-i-ya? ― Is that true?

Usage notes

Like many Korean nouns, this word is often used as a determiner to modify another noun directly.

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