Korean
/kəˈɹi.ən/adjective, noun
Korean is spelled K-O-R-E-A-N: 6 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 31 times per million words in written English, the 3,052nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, Korean means “Of or relating to the Asian Peninsula comprising North Korea and South Korea” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in Korean?
| Letters | 6: K-O-R-E-A-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 31 times per million words; the 3,052nd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is Korean?
Korean appears 31 times per million words in written English, the 3,052nd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce Korean?
- US /kəˈɹi.ən/
- UK /kəˈɹiːən/
Korean has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-Korean.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with Korean?
9 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as Korean from its last stressed vowel (/iən/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of Korean
- more Korean comparative
- most Korean superlative
- Koreans plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does Korean mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Of or relating to the Asian Peninsula comprising North Korea and South Korea.
- 2
Of or relating to the Korean language.
noun
- 1
A native or resident in North Korea or South Korea, or a person of Korean descent.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Korean in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | coréen , Coréen, Coréenne |
| German | koreanisch , Koreaner, Koreanerin |
| Portuguese | coreano , coreana |
| Spanish | coreano , coreana |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does Korean come from?
From Korea + -an.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).