미국인
migugin[miɡuɡin]
In Korean, the word for American is 미국인 (migugin).
미국인 refers to someone who is of or pertaining to the United States, its people or its culture. While it literally denotes a person, it is frequently used as an adjective to describe things such as an American student.
Meaning: of or pertaining to the U.S., its people or its culture (adj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word 미국인 is composed of 미국, meaning USA and 인, meaning person.
Which one should you use?
미국인 is used when referring to an American person or as an adjective. However, if you want to describe something in terms of an American style or method, such as the 'American way', you should use 미국식 instead.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
Although 미국인 literally translates to 'American person', it is often used in Korean to function as the adjective 'American' in various contexts.
How do you pronounce it?
migugin
Did you know?
- The word 미국 comes from the Chinese characters for 'beautiful' and 'country'. It was chosen during the 19th century to provide a phonetic approximation of 'America' using characters with positive meanings.
- In Korean, referring to someone as an 미국인 focuses on their nationality, but if they are an ethnic Korean-American, they might be called 교포.
- While 미국인 describes a person, Koreans often use the term 양키 (Yankee) in very casual or slang contexts, though it can sometimes carry a negative or mocking tone.
Examples in context
- 이 기숙사에는 미국인 학생 두 명이 살고 있다.Two American students live in this dorm.This sentence shows how to use 미국인 to describe an American student.Tatoeba #7794519 by HappyMidnight, translation #1567772 by trieuho
- 저는 미국인이 아니에요I'm not an American.This sentence is useful for expressing that you are not an American using the form 미국인.Tatoeba #8624195 by whykels, translation #831636 by Zifre
- 제 친구는 미국인이에요.je chinguneun migukininieyo.My friend is American.
Example conversation
Seoyeon and Jihun are talking about a new colleague.
- 서연 Seo-yeon새 동료는 미국인이에요?sae dongryoneun miguginim-ieyo?Is the new colleague American?
- 지훈 Ji-hun네, 미국인 맞아요.ne, migugin majayo.Yes, they are American.
- 서연 Seo-yeon영어를 잘하시겠네요.yeongeoreul jalhasigennneyo.They must speak English well.
- 지훈 Ji-hun네, 정말 유창하세요.ne, jeongmal yuchanghaseyo.Yes, they are very fluent.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 미국인, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 미국인, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
