며느리

Korean

Etymology

First attested in the Seokbo sangjeol (釋譜詳節 / 석보상절), 1447, as Middle Korean 며느〮리〮 (Yale: myènúlí).

Also attested in the Worin cheon'gangjigok (月印千江之曲 / 월인천강지곡), 1449, as Middle Korean 며ᄂᆞᆯ (Yale: myenol).

Equivalent to 며늘 (myeoneul) +‎ 이 (-i, noun-deriving suffix), but the meaning of the root is not clear. The non-suffixed form survives in the vocative 며늘아 (myeoneura, “hey, daughter-in-law”) and the affectionate, now somewhat dated form 며늘아기 (myeoneuragi, “little daughter-in-law”, literally “baby daughter-in-law”).

Pronunciation

(SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [mjʌ̹nɯɾi]
Phonetic hangul: [며느리]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization^?	myeoneuri
Revised Romanization (translit.)^?	myeoneuli
McCune–Reischauer^?	myŏnŭri
Yale Romanization^?	myenuli

South Gyeongsang (Busan) pitch accent: 며느리의 / 며느리에 / 며느리까지
Syllables in red take high pitch. This word always takes high pitch on the first syllable, and lowers the pitch of subsequent suffixes.

Noun

며느리 • (myeoneuri)

daughter-in-law

References

Rei Fukui (2018 March 30) 小倉進平『朝鮮語方言の研究』所載資料による言語地図とその解釈―第２集‎^[1], 東京大学人文社会系研究科韓国朝鮮文化研究室, pages 13-16