목숨

Korean

Etymology

First attested in the Yongbi eocheon'ga (龍飛御天歌 / 용비어천가), 1447, as Middle Korean 목숨〯 (Yale: mwòkswǔm), equivalent to 목 (mok, “neck”) +‎ 숨 (sum, “breath”).

Pronunciation

(SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [mo̞ks͈um]
Phonetic hangul: [목쑴]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization^?	moksum
Revised Romanization (translit.)^?	mogsum
McCune–Reischauer^?	moksum
Yale Romanization^?	mok.swum

Noun

목숨 • (moksum)

life
탈출 계획을 준비한 선견지명 덕분에 그들은 목숨을 구할 수 있었던 것일지도 모른다.
Talchul gyehoeg-eul junbihan seon'gyeonjimyeong deokbun-e geudeur-eun moksum-eul guhal su isseotdeon geos-ilji-do moreunda.
Having the foresight to prepare an evacuation plan may have saved their lives.
Synonym: 명(命) (myeong)