말 · Area of life

Words

Words Koreans live by: what people say, what they mean, and why English has no match.

Untranslatable words

Commuters with umbrellas waiting at a subway exit in Seoul

눈치

Nunchi: the Korean sixth sense, explained in six everyday scenes

Nunchi (눈치) is the skill of reading a room before anyone speaks. What it means, where you'll need it in Korea, the phrases built around it, and its stressful side.

Big ideas in this area

눈치Nunchi 돌려 말하기Saying it without saying it 나이Age & hierarchy