호랑이

Korean

Etymology

From Sino-Korean 호랑(虎狼) (“tiger”, literally “tigers and wolves”) +‎ 이 (-i, noun suffix). The meaning of "wolves" has been absorbed by "tiger". Displaced native 범 (beom), which is now dated but survives in various compounds.

Pronunciation

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

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	horang'i
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	holang'i
McCune–Reischauer?	horangi
Yale Romanization?	hōlangi

Noun

호랑이 • (horang'i) (counter 마리, hanja 虎狼이)

1. tiger

   호랑이는 사자보다 크다.

   horang'ineun sajaboda keuda.

   Tigers are bigger than lions.

Synonyms

• 범 (beom) (dated)
• 호랑 (horang) (rare, but more common in North Korea)

References

• Hong Yuk-pyo (2005), '호랑이'의 어원.