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  • Korean
    Korean
    adjective
    of or relating to Korea, its inhabitants, or their language.
  • korean
    korean
    adjective
    of or relating to Korea, its people, or their language

Korean

American  
[kuh-ree-uhn, kaw-, koh-] / kəˈri ən, kɔ-, koʊ- /

adjective

  1. of or relating to Korea, its inhabitants, or their language.


noun

  • Koreans
    plural
  1. a native or inhabitant of South Korea or North Korea.

  2. the language of South Korea or North Korea. Kor

korean British  
/ kəˈriːən /

adjective

  1. of or relating to Korea, its people, or their language

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a native or inhabitant of Korea

  2. the official language of North and South Korea, considered by some scholars to be part of the Altaic family of languages

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of Korean

First recorded in 1605–15; Kore(a) + -an

Compare meaning

How does korean compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

The center will double the museum’s exhibit space and feature three multilevel galleries: the Samuel Oschin Shuttle Gallery, the Korean Air Aviation Gallery and the Kent Kresa Space Gallery.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026

Donors included the Samuel Oschin Family Foundation, Korean Air, the Kresa Family Foundation, the state of California, corporate supporters and other foundations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026

SEOUL—At his cavernous new National Defense Revolution Museum, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un strolled by long-range weaponry able to strike the U.S. mainland.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Plummeting share prices for the Korean memory chip makers were aggravated by a drop in chip stocks in the U.S.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026

But when a killer whale catches and eats a baby seal, I immediately change it back to the Korean variety show.

From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh

All the non “A” places seem to be the korean bbq and japanese shabu restaurants where the customer cooks their own raw meat.

From New York Times ● Jul. 28, 2010

For example, the Iowa project hasn’t actually been approved, and the Koreans were surprised to hear that they had committed $54 billion for a pipeline project in Alaska.

From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026

South Korea—whose constitution treats North Koreans as citizens—has argued it should receive the pair of POWs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026

Employment agencies and help-wanted notices indicate an enduring demand for North Koreans.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

Nearly 90 percent of taxi drivers use ride-hailing apps, yet more than 80 percent of South Koreans over 60 still hail cabs by hand, a survey showed.

From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026

“I like Korea,” he says, I think meaning Koreans.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

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