선생

Korean

Alternative forms

  • 션ᄉᆡᆼ(先生) (syeonsaeng)Early Modern

Etymology

    Sino-Korean word from 先生. Doublet of 센세이 (sensei).

    Pronunciation

    • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [sʰʌ̹nsʰɛŋ] ~ [sʰʌ̹nsʰe̞ŋ]
    • Phonetic hangul: [/]
    Romanizations
    Revised Romanization?seonsaeng
    Revised Romanization (translit.)?seonsaeng
    McCune–Reischauer?sŏnsaeng
    Yale Romanization?sensayng

    Noun

    선생 • (seonsaeng) (hanja 先生)

    1. teacher

    Usage notes

    선생 (seonsaeng) is often used to address a person whose professional status is unknown. In this sense, it is often combined with (nim) to produce 선생님 (seonsaengnim).