범아귀

Korean

Etymology

First attested in the Yeogeo yuhae (譯語類解 / 역어유해), 1690, as Early Modern Korean 범아귀 (Yale: pem.akwuy).

By surface analysis, 범 (beom, “tiger”) +‎ 아귀 (agwi, “mouth”). Possibly a calque of Chinese 虎口 (hǔkǒu); the word is first attested as a translation of the Chinese form.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ˈpɘ(ː)ma̠ɡɥi] ~ [ˈpɘ(ː)ma̠ɡy]
• Phonetic hangul: [버(ː)마귀]
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	beomagwi
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	beom'agwi
McCune–Reischauer?	pŏmagwi
Yale Romanization?	pēm.akwi

Noun

범아귀 • (beomagwi)

1. the space between the thumb and the forefinger.

Synonyms

• 웃아귀 (usagwi)

See also

• 손아귀 (sonagwi): grip, grasp