길을 잃어버리다
gireul ireobeorida
The English phrase 'lost' can be expressed in Korean as 길을 잃어버리다 (gireul ireobeorida). Wiktionary also lists 길을 잃다 (gireul ilta).
Meaning: unable to find one's way (adj)
Ways to say it
| Korean | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 길을 잃어버리다 | gireul ireobeorida |
| 길을 잃다 | gireul ilta |
The phrase is used as an adjective to describe being unable to find one's way.
What does it mean word for word?
길을 잃어버리다 is composed of 길 (road/way), the object marker 을 and 잃어버리다 (to lose/to misplace).
How does it change in a sentence?
The polite past tense form 길을 잃었어요 is the most common way to tell someone you are lost in a real-life situation.
How do you pronounce it?
gireul ireobeorida
Did you know?
- While 길을 잃다 is the literal way to say 'to lose one's way', Koreans often use 길치 (gil-chi) to describe a person who is chronically bad at directions regardless of where they are.
- The word 잃어버리다 contains the auxiliary verb 버리다, which usually means 'to throw away'. In this context, it adds a feeling of regret or a sense of complete and irreversible loss.
- The root of 잃어버리다 can be traced back to Middle Korean 일허ᄇᆞ리다, which appeared in texts as early as 1482.
Examples in context
- 길을 잃었어요. 도와주세요.I am lost. Please help me.
- 길을 잃었어. 도와줘.I am lost. Help me.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lost” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 잃다, 잃어버리다, CC BY-SA 4.0.
