불리다

부르 (bureu-, “to call”) + 이 (-i-, passive suffix) + 다 (-da, suffix conventionally given for citation forms).

First attested in the Yeogeo yuhae (譯語類解 / 역어유해), 1690, as Early Modern Korean 불니다 (Yale: pwulnita), the orthographic <-ㄴㄹ-> simply being an Early Modern variant of <-ㄹㄹ->; the pronunciation has not changed.

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):
• Phonetic hangul:

불리다 • (bullida) (infinitive 불려 or 불리어, sequential 불리니)

1. to be called

부르 (bureu-, “to be full”) + 이 (-i-, causative suffix) + 다 (-da, suffix conventionally given for citation forms).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):
• Phonetic hangul:

불리다 • (bullida) (infinitive 불려 or 불리어, sequential 불리니)

1. (transitive, of belly) to make full
2. (transitive, figurative) to fatten, enrich

   공금을 먹어서 자기 배를 불렸다.

   Gonggeumeul meogeoseo jagi baereul bullyeotda.

   He got rich off embezzling public funds.

   (literally, “(He) ate public funds and fattened (his) own belly.”)

붇 (but-, “to swell”) + 이 (-i-, causative suffix) + 다 (-da, suffix conventionally given for citation forms).

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):
• Phonetic hangul:
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

불리다 • (bullida) (infinitive 불려 or 불리어, sequential 불리니)

1. to cause to swell up
2. (transitive) to soak, macerate

   쌀을 물에 불리다 ― ssareul mure bullida ― to soak rice in water

3. (transitive) to increase, expand

   Synonyms: 늘리다 (neullida), 증식하다 (jeungsikhada)