저

Jeju

Etymology

Cognate with Korean 저 (jeo).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t͡ɕə/

Pronoun

저 (jeo)

1. (determiner) that

See also

• 그 (geu, “that”)
• 이 (i, “this”)

Korean

Etymology 1

First attested in the Yongbi eocheon'ga (龍飛御天歌 / 용비어천가), 1447, as Middle Korean 뎌〮 (Yale: tyé). From Old Korean 彼 (*TYE).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:

Determiner

저 • (jeo)

1. that (distal determiner)

   Synonym: 조 (jo, “that”, diminutive)

   Coordinate terms: (proximal) 이 (i, “this”), (mesial) 그 (geu, “that”)

   저기 저 나무를 봐 봐. ― Jeogi jeo namu-reul bwa bwa. ― Take a look at that tree over there.

Pronoun

저 • (jeo)

1. that, that thing

   Synonym: 저것 (jeogeot, “that thing”)

Derived terms

• 저들 (jeodeul, “they/them (over there)”)

See also

Etymology 2

Of native Korean origin.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:

Pronoun

저 • (jeo)

1. (humble) I, me; the first-person singular polite pronoun

   Synonym: (non-humble) 나 (na, “I, me”)

   어제, 저는 기차를 탔습니다. ― Eoje, jeo-neun gicha-reul tatseumnida. ― Yesterday, I took a train.

Alternative forms

• 제 (je) — allomorph before 가 (-ga, nominative case marker)

Derived terms

• 저희 (jeohui, “we; us”)

Related terms

• 제 (je, “my”)

Etymology 3

First attested in the Jīlín lèishì (鷄林類事 / 계림유사), 1103, as Late Old Korean 折.

In the Hangul script, first attested in the Gugeupbang eonhae (救急方諺解 / 구급방언해), 1466, as Middle Korean 져〮 (Yale: cyé). The hanja form is from a conflation with 箸 (jeo, “chopsticks”), which happens to be a perfect—albeit etymologically unrelated—semantic and phonetic match. The spelling is unetymological as the two were not historically the same: the character was read as 뎌〯 (tyě) in Middle Korean, whereas the word was 져〮 (cyé) in Middle Korean. Also compare dialectal 절 (jeol).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:

Noun

저 • (jeo) (hanja 箸)

1. (dated or in compounds) chopstick(s)

   Synonym: 젓가락 (jeotgarak)

Derived terms

Etymology 4

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Interjection

저 • (jeo)

1. um..., uh... (conveys hesitation or a pause in speech)

Etymology 5

Sino-Korean word from 著.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Noun

저 • (jeo) (hanja 著)

1. written by... (written after the author's name)

   이상 저 ― I Sang jeo ― by Yi Sang

Derived terms

• See the hanja entry at 著 for Sino-Korean compounds of 저 (著, jeo).

Etymology 6

Sino-Korean word from 底.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Noun

저 • (jeo) (hanja 底)

1. (mathematics) base of a logarithm

   Synonym: 밑 (mit)

Derived terms

• See the hanja entry at 底 for Sino-Korean compounds of 저 (底, jeo).

Etymology 7

First attested in the Seokbo sangjeol (釋譜詳節 / 석보상절), 1447, as Middle Korean 뎧 (Yale: tyèh).

Nativisation of the Sino-Korean term 적 (笛, jeok), of which this is a doublet. Displaced by Korean 피리 (piri), a borrowing from Early Mandarin.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:

Noun

저 • (jeo)

1. (music, archaic) flute; pipe

Etymology 8

Sino-Korean word from 低.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key):

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul:
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Prefix

저— • (jeo-) (hanja 低)

1. low

   Antonym: 고(高) (go-, “high”)

   ‎저(低) (jeo-) + ‎소득(所得) (sodeuk, “income”) → ‎저소득(低所得) (jeosodeuk, “low-income”)

Derived terms

• See the hanja entry at 低 for Sino-Korean compounds of 저 (低, jeo).

Etymology 9

Korean reading of various Chinese characters.

Syllable

저 (jeo)

References