니애미

Korean

Etymology

Univerbation of 니 (ni, “you, your”) +‎ 애미 (aemi, alternative spelling of 에미 (emi, disparaging term for "mother")), originating from an implication that the addressee is engaging in incest (Cho Hang-beom 2019, pp. 372—378). Compare English motherfucker, Chinese 你媽的／你妈的 (nǐmāde).

First attested as 네 어미 (ne eomi) in Blood Rain (血의 淚/혈의 누), 1906, presumably because prudishness prevented it from appearing in writing earlier; the source in question was the first modern-style novel in Korean.

Pronunciation

(SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [niɛmi] ~ [nie̞mi]
Phonetic hangul: [니애미/니에미]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization^?	niaemi
Revised Romanization (translit.)^?	niaemi
McCune–Reischauer^?	niaemi
Yale Romanization^?	niaymi

Phrase

니애미 • (niaemi)

(vulgar, offensive) fuck, fuck you; a highly profane expression, often used as an insult

Related terms

씨발 (ssibal)
니미럴 (nimireol)
느검 (neugeom)