This is a list of Korean phonomimes, phenomimes and psychomimes. In Korean, phonomimes are called 의성어, while phenomimes and psychomimes (without distinction) are called 의태어.
Most are reduplicative, but not all, cf. 날씬. Most are adverbial, but not all, cf. 똑똑하다 which is only allowed with the verbal suffix -하다 (there exists an adverbial 똑똑 but the semantics are completely different, as it seems be simply a phonomime “knock knock”). Many of them show variants with an alternation of vowels (mostly within the old Korean vowel harmonies). Most of them appear to derive from “native Korean” (pre-Chinese substrate) but a few have hanja (i.e. are borrowed from Chinese, e.g. 당당하다) – these might not belong, strictly speaking, to the same category but I have included them anyway because the semanto-phonotactics are the same.
There are quite a few, and I have posted several blog entries about them in the past, but I have decided to maintain a simple consolidated list as a separate page, as I have never found one online that exactly presents them in just this way, as a simple list.
The distinction between them is quite vague and unclear. When does a phonomime become a phenomime? When does a phenomime shade into a psychomime? I don’t know that such distinctions are even useful – one can use a phonomime metaphorically to pass into the other semantic categories. What’s interesting to me is their existence as a broad and seemingly fairly active semantic category, collectively.
Actually, the relation in wikipedia between the articles on “ideophone” and on “sound symbolism” (which includes discussion of phenomimes and psychomimes) overlaps substantially, without either article seeming to be aware of the other. In fact, there is other work in other places, too, that doesn’t tie this together very well. In general, the “internet’s” understanding of this phenomenon seems quite fragmented and poor. This is another motivation for posting this updatable “page” on my blog space.
Personally, I’m not sure what to call these, collectively. “‘Mimes”? “Reduplicative adverbials”? “Sound symbolic sememes”? I’ve seen the term “mimetic words.” I think I like “ideophone.”
So here is a list, in 한글순서 (Korean “alphabetical” order) – roughly, I haven’t worked too hard to make sure the vowels under each consonant are in correct order.
- -ㄱ-
- 갈갈 [gal.gal] = greedily, ravenously, avidly
- -ㄲ-
- 꽹구랑 꽹꽹깽 [kkwaeng.gu.rang kkwaeng.kkwaeng.kkaeng] = gongingly
- 깡충깡충 [kkang.chung.kkang.chung] = bouncily, “hoppingly”
- 깡총깡총[kkang.chong.kkang.chong] = bouncily, “hoppingly”
- -ㄴ-
- 날씬 [nal.ssin] = slimly, slenderly
- 늘씬[neul.ssin] = slimly, slenderly
- -ㄷ-
- 당당하다 [dang.dang-hada] = to be stately, to be imposing, to be dignified, to be fair
- 드르르 [deu.reu.reu] excellently, smoothly
- -ㄸ-
- 똑똑 [ttok.ttok] = “knock, knock”, “drip, drip”
- 똑똑하다 [ttok.ttok-hada] = to be smart, to be clever, to be bright, be be explicit, to be distinct
- 띵가띵가놀다 [tting.ka.tting.ka-nol.da] = to play around, to goof off, to dink around
- -ㄹ-
- -ㅁ-
- 말똥말똥 [mal.ttong.mal.ttong] = wide-eyed staringly
- 멀뚱멀뚱 [meol.ttung.meol.ttung] = wide-eyed staringly
- 말랑 몰랑 물렁 [mal.lang mol.lang mul.leong] = softly / tenderly (as a texture of food)
- 말캉 몰캉 물캉 [mal.kang mol.kang mul.kang] = softly / tenderly (as a texture of food)
- 말랑말랑하다 [mal.lang.mal.lang-hada] = to be soft, to be tender, to be spongy
- -ㅂ-
- 보글보글 [bo-geul-bo-geul] = boilingly, bubblingly
- 바글바글 [ba.geul.ba.geul] = boilingly, bubblingly
- 부글부글 [bu.geul.bu.geul] = boilingly, bubblingly
- 바삭바삭(-하다) [ba.sak.ba.sak] = to be crispy
- 방긋방긋 [bang.geut.bang.geut] = broadly [as in a smile]
- 반짝 [ban.jjak] = sparklingly, twinklingly
- 번쩍 [beon.jjeok] = sparklingly, twinklingly
- 반짝반짝 [ban.jjak.ban.jjak] = sparklingly
- 비슬비슬 [bi.seul.bi.seul] = reelingly, totteringly, in a staggering or faltering manner
- -ㅃ-
- 뽀글뽀글 [ppo.geul.ppo.geul] = boilingly, bubblingly
- 빠글빠글 [ppa.geul.ppa.geul] = boilingly, bubblingly
- 뿌글뿌글 [ppu.geul.ppu.geul] = boilingly, bubblingly
- 빡빡 [ppak.ppak] = crustily, tightly, narrow-mindedly
- 뼉뼉 [ppeok.ppeok] = crustily, tightly, narrow-mindedly
- 빤짝 [ppan.jjak] = sparklingly, twinklingly
- 뻔쩍 [ppeon.jjeok] = sparklingly, twinklingly
- 부둑부둑 [bu.dok.bu.dok] = damply-drily, a bit damply mostly drily
- -ㅅ-
- 섭섭(-하다) [seop.seop] = disappointedly, sadly
- 살짝 [sal-jjak] / 설쩍 [seol.jjeok] = stealthily
- 싱글벙글 [sing.geul.beong.geul] = smilingly
- 살살 [sal.sal] = gently, softly
- 설설 [seol.seol] = gently, softly
- 솔솔 [sol.sol] = gently, softly
- 술술 [sul.sul] = gently, softly
- 슬슬 [seul-seul] = gently, softely
- 살금살금 [sal.geum.sal.geum] = sneakily
- 새콤달콤하다 [sae.kom.dal.kom-hada] = to be sweet and sour
- -ㅆ-
- 싹독 [ssak.dok] = choppingly, snippingly
- 썩둑 [sseok.duk] = choppingly, snippingly
- -ㅇ-
- 아삭아사(-하다) [asakasak] = to be crunchy
- 옹기종기 [ong.gi.jong.gi] closely together
- -ㅈ-
- 정정당당하다 [jeong.jeong.dang.dang-hada] = to be fair and sqaure
- 주렁주렁 [ju.reong.ju.reong] = richly, with fullness
- -ㅉ-
- 쫄깃쫄깃(-하다) [jjol.git.jjol.git] = to be chewy
- -ㅊ-
- 추룩 추루룩 추루룩 [chu.ruk chu.ru.ruk chu.ru.ruk] = downpouringly
- 찰랑찰랑 [chal.lang.chal.lang] = lappingly, sloppingly
- 출렁출렁 [chul.leong.chul.leong] = lappingly, sloppingly
- -ㅋ-
- 콜콜 [kol.kol] = gurglingly, deeply
- 쿨쿨 [kul.kul] = gurglingly, with snores, [sleeping] soundly
- -ㅌ-
- 통통(-하다) [tong.tong] = plumply
- 퉁퉁(-하다) [tung.tung] = plumply
- -ㅍ-
- 퍽퍽 [peok.peok] = thrustingly, with repeated thrusts
- 팍팍 [pak.pak] = thrustingly, with repeated thrusts
- -ㅎ –
- 흔들흔들 [heun.deul.heun.deul] shakily
[last updated 2015-10-09]
