살

살 U+C0B4, 살 HANGUL SYLLABLE SAL Composition: ㅅ + ㅏ + ㄹ ← 삳 [U+C0B3] Hangul Syllables 삵 → [U+C0B5]

사삭삮삯산삱삲 삳살삵삶삷삸삹 삺삻삼삽삾삿샀 상샂샃샄샅샆샇
삐 ←	→ 새

Korean

Etymology 1

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

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰa̠ɭ]

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul: [살]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	sal
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	sal
McCune–Reischauer?	sal
Yale Romanization?	sal

Noun

살 • (sal)

1. flesh; skin
2. meat / flesh (of fruits, animals, etc.)

Derived terms

• 굳은살 (gudeunsal)
• 뱃살 (baetsal)
• 살가죽 (salgajuk)
• 살갗 (salgat)
• 살결 (salgyeol)
• 살색 (salsaek)
• 살찌다 (saljjida)
• 삼겹살 (samgyeopsal)
• 튼살 (teunsal)
• 푸석살 (puseoksal)

 

See also

• 뼈 (ppyeo, “bone”)

Etymology 2

First attested in the Yongbi eocheonga (龍飛御天歌 / 용비어천가), 1447, as Middle Korean 살〮 (Yale: sál).

Possibly related to Japanese 幸 (satsu, “hunting, for hunting”, related to ideas of arrows).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰa̠ɭ]

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul: [살]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	sal
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	sal
McCune–Reischauer?	sal
Yale Romanization?	sal

Noun

살 • (sal)

1. arrow

   Synonym: (more common) 화살 (hwasal)

2. frame; support:
   1. spoke (on a wheel)
   2. lattice / latticework or bars (on a door or window)
   3. rib / frame (of a fan, kite, umbrella, etc.)
3. teeth (of a comb)

   Synonym: 빗살 (bitsal)

4. fishing weir

   Synonym: 어살 (eosal)

5. sting (of bees, etc.)
6. (chiefly in compounds)
   1. beam; flow, current

      햇살 ― haetsal

   2. crease; wrinkle

      눈살 ― nunsal

7. pressed patterns (on rice cake)

   살을 박다/찍다 ― sar-eul bakda/jjikda ― to press patterns on rice cake

Derived terms

• 구김살 (gugimsal)
• 눈살 (nunsal)
• 떡살 (tteoksal)
• 문살 (munsal)
• 물살 (mulsal)
• 부챗살 (buchaetsal)
• 빗살 (bitsal)
• 살창 (salchang)
• 어둠살 (eodumsal)
• 어살 (eosal)
• 우산살 (usansal)
• 이맛살 (imatsal)
• 주름살 (jureumsal)
• 창살 (changsal)
• 창쌀 (changssal)
• 햇살 (haetsal)
• 화살 (hwasal)

 

Etymology 3

First attested in the Worin seokbo (月印釋譜 / 월인석보), 1459, as Middle Korean 설〯 (Yale: sěl).

The word 설 (seol, “Lunar New Year”) originally meant both "New Year" and "year of age". The two terms are connected; in Korea, one gains a new year of age at every New Year (so that all people born in the same year have the same age). In the eighteenth century, speakers created the new term 살 (sal, “year of age”) as a yang-vowel alternation of 설 (seol), and the original term came to mean only the New Year. 설 (seol) and 살 (sal) are one of a number of Korean noun pairs with yin-yang vowel alternation which were originally the same word.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰa̠ɭ]

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul: [살]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	sal
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	sal
McCune–Reischauer?	sal
Yale Romanization?	sal

Counter

살 • (sal)

1. years of age (of a person) (takes native numerals)

   Synonym: 세(歲) (se)

   몇 살입니까?

   Myeot sar-imnikka?

   How old are [you]?

   (literally, “How many years of age are [you]?”)

   Audio (South Korea)

   (file)

Usage notes

• In traditional East Asian age reckoning, a baby is one year old at birth and turns two years old on New Year's Day. Thus everyone born in the same year is the same age: the current year subtracted by the year of birth, plus one.

See also

• 나이 (nai, “age”)

Etymology 4

Sino-Korean word from 煞 (“malignant deity”).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰa̠ɭ]

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul: [살]

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	sal
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	sal
McCune–Reischauer?	sal
Yale Romanization?	sal

Noun

살 • (sal) (hanja 煞)

1. evil influence; damnation

Derived terms

• 살풀이 (salpuri, “salvation from damnation”)
• See the hanja entry at 煞 for Sino-Korean compounds of 살 (煞, sal).

See also

• 마(魔) (ma)

Etymology 5

See the main entry.

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [sʰa̠(ː)ɭ]

  • (file)

• Phonetic hangul: [살(ː)]
  • Though still prescriptive in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	sal
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	sal
McCune–Reischauer?	sal
Yale Romanization?	sāl

Verb

살 • (sal)

1. irrealis adnominal form of 살다 (salda, “to live”)

---

Middle Korean

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sál/

Noun

살〮 (sál) (locative 사〮래〮 (sál-áy))

1. arrow
   • 1459, Worin seokbo 月印釋譜 / 월인석보, page 10:26b:

     五(ᅌᅩᆼ〯)百(ᄇᆡᆨ〮) 群(꾼)賊(쯕〮)이〮 ᄒᆞᆫ 사〮래〮 다〯 디니〮 […]

     NGWǑ.PÓYK KKWÙN.CCÚK-í hòn sál-áy tǎ tìní […]

     as the group of five hundred bandits falls to a single arrow […]

2. spoke (on a wheel)
   • 1459, Worin seokbo 月印釋譜 / 월인석보, page 2:38a:

     輻(복〮)은〮 술윗〮 사〮리오〮 輪(륜)은〮 바회〮라〮

     PWÓK-ún swùlGwúy-s sál-ìGwó LYWÙN-ún pàhwóy-lá

     [The Chinese word] 輻 means, "spokes on a cart[wheel]," and [the Chinese word] 輪 means, "wheel."

Descendants

• Korean: 살 (sal)