고추
Korean
Etymology
From Middle Korean 고쵸 (Yale: kwochyo, “black pepper”). Two hypotheses exist regarding its origin:
- From Japanese 胡椒 (koshō), in turn from Chinese 胡椒 [호초 (hocho)].
- From 고초 (苦草, gocho, “bitter vegetable”), acquiring its current meaning after the introduction of chili peppers in the 17th century.
Pronunciation
Audio: (file)
- (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [ko̞t͡ɕʰu]
- Phonetic hangul: [고추]
| Romanizations | |
|---|---|
| Revised Romanization? | gochu |
| Revised Romanization (translit.)? | gochu |
| McCune–Reischauer? | koch'u |
| Yale Romanization? | ko.chwu |
Noun
고추 • (gochu)
- The chili pepper, often specifically the Korean chili pepper, a variety of Capsicum annuum.
- (informal, slang) willy, wee-wee, penis