Korean

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Sino-Korean word from 生死與奪 (to cause to live, to kill, to give and to seize) + (power, right), with compound/genitive tensing applied.

Pronunciation

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  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [sʰɛŋsʰa̠jʌ̹tʰa̠ɭk͈wʌ̹n] ~ [sʰe̞ŋsʰa̠jʌ̹tʰa̠ɭk͈wʌ̹n]
  • Phonetic hangul: [/]
Romanizations
Revised Romanization?saengsayeotalgwon
Revised Romanization (translit.)?saengsayeotalgwon
McCune–Reischauer?saengsayŏt'alkwŏn
Yale Romanization?sayngsa.ye.thalqkwen

Noun

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생사여탈권 (saengsayeotalgwon) (hanja 生死與奪權)

  1. absolute authority over others; the power to save them and to kill them, to give to them and to take from them
    문화대혁명 당시 홍위병 소위 반동분자 생사여탈권 쥐었다.
    munhwadaehyeongmyeong dangsi hong'wibyeong-deur-eun sowi bandongbunja-ui saengsayeotalgwon-eul jwieotda.
    During the Cultural Revolution, the red guards wielded absolute power over the so-called "reactionaries".

Usage notes

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The form 생살여탈권 is sometimes considered more correct in terms of Chinese grammar, but 생사여탈권 remains much more widely used in practice.