불쏘시개
Korean
[edit]Etymology
[edit]불 (bul, “fire”) + 쑤시− (“to poke”) + -개 (-gae, “-er”, inanimate agentive suffix). The "book" sense comes from the idea that the book is so terrible it would be better used as kindling.
Pronunciation
[edit]- (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [puɭs͈o̞ɕʰiɡɛ] ~ [puɭs͈o̞ɕʰiɡe̞]
- Phonetic hangul: [불쏘시개/불쏘시게]
| Romanizations | |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization? | bulssosigae |
| Revised Romanization (translit.)? | bul'ssosigae |
| McCune–Reischauer? | pulssosigae |
| Yale Romanization? | pul.ssosikay |
Noun
[edit]불쏘시개 • (bulssosigae)
- kindling (twigs used to start a fire)
- (figurative) spark, trigger, catalyst
- (colloquial, derogatory) pot boiler book, low-quality book
- 막장 불쏘시개 ― makjang bulssosigae ― terrible book with a preposterous plot