In Korean culture, family titles are very specific! For example, while in English we just say 'uncle,' Korean has different words depending on which side of the family your uncle is from. 외삼촌 (oe-sam-chon) is the term you use specifically for your mother's brother. It's a respectful and common way to address him.
Using the correct family title shows respect and understanding of Korean customs. So, if your mom has a brother, he's your 외삼촌! It’s different from your father’s brothers, who have other specific titles.
When talking about your mother's brother in Korean, you use the word 외삼촌 (oesamchon). This term specifically refers to an uncle who is your mother's brother, highlighting the maternal side of the family. It's important to differentiate this from 친삼촌 (chinsamchon), which is used for your father's brother.
Understanding these specific kinship terms is crucial in Korean culture, as they reflect the importance placed on family lineage and relationships. While in English we might simply say "uncle" for both, Korean distinguishes between them to show respect and clarity within the family structure.
§ Understanding 외삼촌 (Oesamchon)
The Korean word 외삼촌 (외삼촌) is a noun that specifically refers to your mother's brother. In English, we usually just say 'uncle' for both your mother's brother and your father's brother. However, in Korean culture, family relationships are very detailed, and there are different words for different types of uncles. This is super important to know if you want to sound natural and show respect.
§ When to Use 외삼촌
You use 외삼촌 when you are talking about or to your mother's brother. It's a respectful term. Even if he's much younger than you, the term itself carries respect due to the family relationship. You'll hear this term used in many different situations, from family gatherings to casual conversations about family members.
- DEFINITION
- Uncle (mother's brother).
Here are some common situations where you'd use 외삼촌:
- Introducing your mother's brother to a friend: "이분은 우리 외삼촌이세요." (This is my mother's brother.)
- Talking about your mother's brother with family: "외삼촌이 다음 주에 오실 거예요." (My mother's brother will come next week.)
- Directly addressing your mother's brother: "외삼촌, 안녕하세요!" (Hello, Uncle!)
It's important not to mix this up with uncles from your father's side. For your father's older brother, you would use '큰아버지' (keun-abeoji), and for his younger brother, you would use '작은아버지' (jageun-abeoji). We'll cover those in other lessons, but for now, just remember that 외삼촌 is strictly for your mother's brother.
우리 외삼촌은 요리를 잘 하세요.
Hint: Our mother's brother is good at cooking.
외삼촌께 선물 드렸어요.
Hint: I gave a gift to my mother's brother.
Understanding these specific family terms is a big step in understanding Korean culture. It shows that you care about the nuances of their language and customs. So, next time you talk about your mother's brother, remember to use 외삼촌!
Guía de pronunciación
- Mispronouncing '외' (wae) as 'oe' or 'we'
- Not emphasizing the first syllable '외' (wae)
Ejemplos por nivel
어릴 적 외삼촌 댁에 가면 항상 맛있는 음식을 해주셨어요.
When I was young, if I went to my maternal uncle's house, he always made me delicious food.
댁 (daek) is an honorific form of 집 (jip, house).
외삼촌은 저에게 인생의 중요한 조언을 많이 해주셨어요.
My maternal uncle gave me a lot of important life advice.
해주셨어요 (haejusyeosseoyo) is an honorific past tense form of 해주다 (haejuda, to do for someone).
이번 설에 외삼촌 가족과 함께 시간을 보낼 예정이에요.
This Lunar New Year, I plan to spend time with my maternal uncle's family.
예정이에요 (yejeongieyo) means 'it is planned' or 'I plan to'.
외삼촌의 건강이 안 좋으셔서 걱정이 많아요.
My maternal uncle's health is not good, so I'm very worried.
안 좋으셔서 (an joeusyeoseo) is the honorific form of 안 좋아서 (an joaseo, because it's not good).
외삼촌은 저에게 책을 읽는 습관을 길러주셨어요.
My maternal uncle helped me cultivate the habit of reading books.
길러주셨어요 (gilleojusyeosseoyo) means 'helped me cultivate' or 'raised for me'.
우리 외삼촌은 유머 감각이 뛰어나서 항상 즐거워요.
My maternal uncle has an excellent sense of humor, so it's always fun.
뛰어나다 (ttwieonada) means 'to be excellent' or 'to be outstanding'.
외삼촌 덕분에 새로운 취미를 시작하게 되었어요.
Thanks to my maternal uncle, I got to start a new hobby.
덕분에 (deokbune) means 'thanks to' or 'because of'.
외삼촌은 항상 바쁘시지만, 조카들을 잘 챙겨주세요.
My maternal uncle is always busy, but he takes good care of his nephews/nieces.
챙겨주세요 (chaenggyeojuseyo) means 'please take care of' or 'he takes care of'.
Se confunde a menudo con
This is the wife of your father's younger brother (작은아버지).
This is your father's sister.
This is your mother's sister.
Fácil de confundir
Korean has many different words for 'uncle' depending on the family relationship. This can be confusing for English speakers who just use one word.
외삼촌 specifically refers to your mother's brother. There are other terms for your father's brothers or your aunts' husbands.
저의 외삼촌은 요리사입니다. (My mother's brother is a chef.)
This is another word for uncle, but it's used differently than 외삼촌.
삼촌 is a general term for 'uncle' that can refer to a younger brother of your father, or can be used broadly for any uncle-like figure who is not your mother's brother. It's often used when the specific relationship is not important or to address a younger, unmarried paternal uncle. However, when specifying, you'd use a more precise term.
삼촌, 안녕하세요? (Hello, Uncle! - broadly, or to a younger paternal uncle)
This also translates to 'uncle' but refers to a specific paternal uncle.
큰아버지 refers to your father's older brother. '큰' means 'big' or 'older', so it literally means 'big father'.
큰아버지께서 저에게 용돈을 주셨어요. (My father's older brother gave me pocket money.)
Another specific 'uncle' term.
작은아버지 refers to your father's younger brother. '작은' means 'small' or 'younger', so it literally means 'small father'.
저는 작은아버지와 축구를 했어요. (I played soccer with my father's younger brother.)
This is also an uncle, but through a different side of the family.
이모부 refers to your mother's sister's husband. He's an 'uncle' by marriage.
이모부가 재미있는 이야기를 해주셨어요. (My mother's sister's husband told me a funny story.)
Ponte a prueba 36 preguntas
저의 어머니에게 남동생이 한 명 있습니다. 그는 저의 ___입니다.
어머니의 남자 형제는 '외삼촌'이라고 부릅니다. (Mother's brother is called '외삼촌'.)
저는 주말에 ___과(와) 함께 영화를 보러 갔습니다.
문맥상 주어인 '저는'과 함께 영화를 보러 갈 수 있는 가족 구성원 중 '외삼촌'이 자연스럽습니다. (Contextually, among the family members who can go to the movies with the subject 'I', '외삼촌' is natural.)
이번 설날에 ___께서 맛있는 음식을 많이 만들어 주셨어요.
음식을 만들었다는 주체가 '외삼촌'일 수 있습니다. '외삼촌'은 존댓말인 '외삼촌께서'로 쓰였습니다. (The subject who made the food could be '외삼촌'. '외삼촌' is used with the honorific '외삼촌께서'.)
제 ___은(는) 의사입니다. 그는 병원에서 일합니다.
직업이 의사인 가족 구성원을 나타내는 데 '외삼촌'이 적절합니다. ( '외삼촌' is appropriate to refer to a family member whose profession is a doctor.)
어머니의 오빠는 저에게 ___입니다.
어머니의 오빠, 즉 어머니의 남자 형제는 '외삼촌'입니다. (Mother's older brother, meaning mother's male sibling, is '외삼촌'.)
어렸을 때 저는 ___과(와) 함께 자주 낚시를 갔습니다.
어린 시절에 함께 낚시를 갔던 가족 구성원 중 '외삼촌'이 자연스러운 선택입니다. (Among the family members who went fishing together in childhood, '외삼촌' is a natural choice.)
저는 다음 주말에 ___과(와) 함께 영화를 볼 거예요. (I'm going to watch a movie with my ___ next weekend.)
The sentence indicates a male relative on the mother's side, which is '외삼촌'. '이모' is mother's sister, '고모' is father's sister, and '숙모' is father's brother's wife.
우리 엄마의 남동생은 저에게 ___이에요. (My mother's younger brother is my ___.)
A mother's brother is referred to as '외삼촌'. '외숙모' is mother's brother's wife, '이모부' is mother's sister's husband, and '고모부' is father's sister's husband.
어렸을 때, ___이(가) 저에게 자전거 타는 법을 가르쳐 주셨어요. (When I was young, my ___ taught me how to ride a bicycle.)
While '아버지' is also a possibility for teaching someone to ride a bike, '외삼촌' fits the context of a supportive male relative who isn't the father, and aligns with the vocabulary focus. '이모' is female, and '할머니' is grandmother.
추석에 저희 가족은 할머니 댁에 가서 ___을(를) 만나요. (During Chuseok, our family goes to grandma's house and meets my ___.)
At a grandmother's house, it's common to meet various relatives. '외삼촌' (mother's brother) is a very common relative to see there.
제 ___은(는) 의사라서 건강에 대한 조언을 자주 해주세요. (My ___ is a doctor, so he often gives me health advice.)
The sentence implies a male relative ('he often gives me advice'). Among the options, '외삼촌' is a male relative who would fit this description. '이모' is female, '할아버지' is grandfather, and '사촌' is cousin (could be male or female, but '외삼촌' is more specific and fits the context well).
이번 주말에 ___과(와) 등산을 가기로 했어요. (I decided to go hiking with my ___ this weekend.)
'외삼촌' is a suitable companion for hiking, being a male relative. '어머니' (mother) and '여동생' (younger sister) are also possible but '외삼촌' fits the context of learning this specific vocabulary word. '친구' is a friend, not a relative.
Choose the correct Korean word for 'mother's brother'.
외삼촌 specifically refers to your mother's brother. 삼촌 is a general term for uncle, and 이모부 is your mother's sister's husband, while 고모 is your father's sister.
My mother's brother is visiting this weekend. Which word should I use?
외삼촌 is the specific term for your mother's brother. '우리 외삼촌이 와요' means 'My mother's brother is coming.'
Which of these is NOT a correct way to refer to an uncle?
외숙모 refers to the wife of your mother's brother (your aunt). The others refer to different types of uncles (mother's brother, father's younger brother, father's older brother).
The word '외삼촌' refers to your father's brother.
외삼촌 refers specifically to your mother's brother. Your father's brother would be '큰아버지' (older) or '작은아버지' (younger).
You can use '외삼촌' to refer to any male relative who is older than you.
외삼촌 is a specific family title for your mother's brother, not a general term for any older male relative.
If your mother has a brother, he would be called '외삼촌'.
Yes, '외삼촌' is the correct term for your mother's brother.
This sentence means 'Our uncle (mother's brother) lives in Jeju Island.' The correct order is subject ('우리 외삼촌은') followed by location ('제주도에') and then the verb ('사세요').
This sentence means 'I went on a trip with my uncle (mother's brother).' The subject ('저는') comes first, followed by the person ('외삼촌과 함께') and then the action ('여행을 갔어요').
This sentence means 'I gave a gift to my uncle (mother's brother).' The recipient ('외삼촌께') comes first, followed by the object ('선물을') and then the verb ('드렸어요').
다음 중 '외삼촌'이 누구를 지칭하는지 가장 정확하게 설명하는 것은 무엇입니까?
'외삼촌'은 어머니의 남자 형제를 의미합니다.
어머니의 오빠가 집에 오셨을 때, 여러분은 그분을 무엇이라고 불러야 합니까?
어머니의 남자 형제는 '외삼촌'이라고 부릅니다.
다음 문장에서 '외삼촌'을 올바르게 사용한 것은 어느 것입니까?
'외삼촌'은 어머니의 남자 형제를 지칭합니다.
아버지는 자녀에게 '외삼촌'이라고 불립니다.
아버지는 자녀에게 '아버지'라고 불리며, '외삼촌'은 어머니의 남자 형제를 의미합니다.
어머니의 형제는 모두 '외삼촌'으로 지칭될 수 있다.
어머니의 남자 형제만 '외삼촌'으로 지칭되며, 여자 형제는 '이모'라고 불립니다.
외삼촌은 보통 어머니의 가족 구성원입니다.
'외삼촌'은 어머니의 남자 형제를 의미하므로, 어머니의 가족 구성원입니다.
This sentence means, 'My maternal uncle has been a role model for me since childhood.' The order places the time 'since childhood' first, followed by the subject 'maternal uncle', then the object 'to me', and finally the predicate 'has been a role model'.
This sentence translates to, 'I want to emulate my maternal uncle's business success.' The structure starts with the subject 'I', followed by the possessive 'maternal uncle's', then the object 'business success', and finally the desire 'want to emulate'.
This sentence means, 'My maternal uncle is planning to host a family gathering this weekend.' The sentence begins with the honorific subject 'maternal uncle', followed by the time 'this weekend', then the object 'family gathering', and ends with the intention 'is planning to host'.
/ 36 correct
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백일
A2100th day celebration (of a baby).
환갑
A260th birthday celebration.
칠순
A270th birthday celebration.
팔순
A280th birthday celebration.
알아주다
B1To recognize/understand (feelings); to acknowledge someone's thoughts or efforts.
입양아
A2Adopted child; a child legally taken into another family.
양녀
B1Adopted daughter.
입양
A2Adoption; legally taking another's child as one's own.
귀여워하다
A2To adore, to find cute, to cherish.
정답다
A2To be affectionate; to be friendly.
