누나

Korean

Pronunciation

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

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	nuna
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	nuna
McCune–Reischauer?	nuna
Yale Romanization?	nwūna

Noun

누나 • (nuna)

1. elder sister of a male
2. (by extension, spoken by a male) close elder female friend, an elder girlfriend

Usage notes

• The term 누나 is often used by a male to address an elder female as a polite replacement for a second person singular pronoun (너 (neo) or 당신 (dangsin)).

Alternative forms

• honorific: 누님 (nunim)

Related terms

• 언니 (eonni) - elder sister of a female
• 오빠 (oppa) - elder brother of a female
• 형 (hyeong) - elder brother of a male
• 아줌마 (ajumma) - middle aged woman; older female
• 할머니 (halmeoni) - grandmother; senior female