부패

Korean

Etymology

Sino-Korean word from 腐敗, from (rot) + (wither)

Pronunciation

  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ˈpu(ː)pʰɛ] ~ [ˈpu(ː)pʰe̞]
  • Phonetic hangul: [(ː)/(ː)]
    • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.
Romanizations
Revised Romanization?bupae
Revised Romanization (translit.)?bupae
McCune–Reischauer?pup'ae
Yale Romanization?pū.phay

Noun

부패 • (bupae) (hanja 腐敗)

  1. decomposition
  2. corruption
    부패한 책임자bupaehan chaegimjacorrupt boss

Synonyms

  • 비리 (非理, biri, “corruption, irregularity”)
  • 썩다 (sseokda, “rot”)
  • 썩어빠지다 (sseogeoppajida, “be utterly rotten”)

Antonyms

Derived terms

  • adjective: 부패하다 (bupaehada, “be corrupt”)