물

Jeju

Etymology

Cognate with Korean 물 (mul, “water”), possible cognate with Proto-Tungusic *mū, Jurchen 木克 (mu-ke /⁠muke⁠/), Manchu ᠮᡠᡴᡝ (muke), Goguryeo 買 (*me, “river; water”), Mongolian мөрөн (mörön, “river”), Japanese 水 (mizu, “water”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /muɭ/

Noun

물 (mul)

1. water

References

• “물” in Andrew Cheng; K. David Harrison, Jeju-eo Talking Dictionary, Living Tongues Institute for Endangered Languages, 2014.
• “물” in Jeju's culture and language, Digital museum.

Korean

Alternative forms

• 믈 (meul) — Early Modern

Etymology 1

First attested in the Hunminjeong'eum haerye (訓民正音解例 / 훈민정음해례), 1446, as Middle Korean 믈〮 (Yale: múl), from Old Korean 勿 (*mul), an element that apparently means “water” in ancient first-millennium place names in southern Korea. Ancient northern Korean toponyms tend to use Goguryeo 買 (*me) for “water”, which now only survives in certain words such as 미나리 (minari).

Possible cognate with Proto-Tungusic *mū, Jurchen 木克 (mu-ke /⁠muke⁠/), Manchu ᠮᡠᡴᡝ (muke), Mongolian мөрөн (mörön, “river”), Japanese 水 (mizu, “water”).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:

• South Gyeongsang (Busan) pitch accent: 물의 / 물에 / 물까지

  Syllables in red take high pitch. This word always takes high pitch and also heightens the next suffixed syllable, unless it is 에.

Noun

물 • (mul)

1. water

   이 꽃은 왜 시들고 있니? 얼마나 자주 물을 주었지?

   I kkoch-eun wae sideulgo inni? - Eolmana jaju mur-eul jueotji?

   Why is this flower withering? - How often did you give water to it?

2. (after another noun, often negative) influence; taint (with verbs 들다 (deulda) or 먹다 (meokda))

   뉴욕 갔다 오니 미국 물이 다 들었네.

   Nyuyok gatda oni Miguk mur-i da deureonne.

   After coming back from New York, you've become so Americanized .

   (literally, “After coming back from New York, all the American water has entered you.”)

Derived terms

Prefix

물— • (mul-)

1. aquatic

Etymology 2

Korean reading of various Chinese characters.

Syllable

물 (mul)