물고기

Korean

Etymology

First attested in the Gugeupganibang eonhae (救急簡易方諺解 / 구급간이방언해), 1489, as Middle Korean 믌〮고기〮 (Yale: múl-s kwòkí).

물 (mul, “water”) +‎ ㅅ (-s-, genitive interfix; omitted from the spelling, but this causes the tense phonation of the following consonant) +‎ 고기 (gogi, “fish”).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [muɭk͈o̞ɡi]
• Phonetic hangul: [물꼬기]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	mulgogi
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	mulgogi
McCune–Reischauer?	mulkogi
Yale Romanization?	mul.qkoki

Noun

물고기 • (mulgogi)

1. fish (as living animals)

   Synonyms: 고기 (gogi), (formal) 어류(魚類) (eoryu)

Usage notes

• "Fish" as meat/food is not called 물고기 (mulgogi), but 생선 (生鮮, saengseon).

Alternative forms

• 믉고기 (meulgogi), 믌고기 (meulgogi) – Early Modern

Derived terms

• 민물고기 (minmulgogi, “fresh water fish”)
• 잔물고기 (janmulgogi)