병원
byeong'won[ˈpjɘ(ː)ŋwʌ̹n]
The English phrase 'hospital' is translated into Korean as 병원 (byeong'won).
병원 is the general term used to refer to a hospital in Korean.
How do you pronounce it?
byeong'won
Did you know?
- The word 병원 is a Sino-Korean term that originated as an orthographic borrowing from the Japanese word 病院 (byōin).
- The first character 병 (byeong) means 'sickness' and is the same character used in the word for 'illness' or 'disease' in general, rather than a word describing the building itself.
- The second character in 병원, the 院 (won) meaning 'house' or 'institution', is also found in words for other large public buildings, such as 학원 (hagwon) for a private academy.
Examples in context
- 병원에 갈 거예요I'm going to the hospital.
- 지금 병원에 가요.jigeum byeongwon-e gayo.I am going to the hospital now.
- 근처에 큰 병원이 있어요?geun-cheo-e keun byeongwon-i isseoyo?Is there a large hospital nearby?
- 어제 병원에 다녀왔어요.eo-je byeongwon-e danyeowasseoyo.I went to the hospital yesterday.
Example conversation
Seoyeon asks Hyunwoo about his health during a phone call.
- 서연 Seo-yeon현우 씨, 어디 아파요?Hyunwoo ssi, eodi apayo?Hyunwoo, are you sick somewhere?
- 현우 Hyeon-woo네, 감기 때문에 병원에 가려고 해요.Ne, gam-gi ttaemun-e byeongwon-e garyeogo haeyo.Yes, I am planning to go to the hospital because of a cold.
- 서연 Seo-yeon많이 아파요? 조심하세요.mani apayo? josimhaseyo.Are you very sick? Please take care.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo고마워요, 서연 씨.Gomawoyo, Seoyeon ssi.Thank you, Seoyeon.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 병원, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 병원, CC BY-SA 4.0.
