독불장군

Korean

Etymology

Sino-Korean word from 獨不將軍 (“one cannot be a general alone”). The term appears to have originally been a chengyu-type proverb, but was turned into a noun describing the people the proverb would have been used for.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [to̞k̚p͈uʎd͡ʑa̠ŋɡun]
• Phonetic hangul: [독뿔장군]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	dokbuljanggun
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	dogbuljanggun
McCune–Reischauer?	tokpuljanggun
Yale Romanization?	tokpulcangkwun

Noun

독불장군 • (dokbuljanggun) (hanja 獨不將軍)

1. a stubborn, obstinate fellow; a fellow who always insists they are right

   Synonym: 고집쟁이 (gojipjaeng'i)

   아무리 강대국이라도 독불장군 식으로 행동하면 우방국의 지지를 잃게 된다.

   Amuri gangdaegug-i-rado dokbuljanggun sig-euro haengdonghamyeon ubanggug-ui jiji-reul ilke doenda.

   No matter how powerful a country may be, if it acts like a recalcitrant, it will lose the support of its allies.

2. (dated) a lonely outcast