Ultimate list of Korean Onomatopoeia and mimetic words

Onomatopoeia is defined as the formation of a word imitating or suggesting a sound associated with the action or object in question. When we look at the meaning of Onomatopoeia, we think of words like "bang" or "snap". It's easy to understand why these words are formed by using one sound to represent another action. What about other sounds made by animals ? Are they onomatopoeic too?

Stemming from the Latin, ‘onomatopœia’ combines the words, ‘onoma’ (name) and ‘poiesis’ (creation) to describe literary terms which are words whose meanings become distinct through sound.

Onomatopoeia is one of those words that sounds like it should mean something, but also doesn't have a concrete definition. You've probably used it in conversation before — maybe without even realizing it.

Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like what it represents. It's actually a word that's been around for ages, and many of the words included in this category are commonly used today. But just because these words are frequently used doesn't make them any less of a category of invented words. 

• 의성어 (weeseongeo) is a term used for Korean Onomatopoeia.
• 의태어 is a term used for Korean mimetic.

의성어 (weeseongeo) is a term used for Korean Onomatopoeia.

If you're a beginner in Korean, you've probably tried to look up words like 깔깔 (roar of laughter) or ㅋㅋㅋ (haha), but all you can find are their meanings and not their onomatopoeic pronunciations. This is because onomatopoeic expressions usually aren't taught in beginner's classes.

Today we've brought to you the list of onomatopoeia and mimetic words that Koreans often use in their everyday sentences. While it is difficult to define each concept separately, they both share similar traits as seen in Korean language.

I hope you have enjoyed the list of these unique Korean Onomatopoeia and mimetic words.

See also : Nature words vocabulary list in Korean

Ultimate list of fruits in Korean

List of Korean Adverbs

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