남사친
namsachin[na̠msʰa̠t͡ɕʰin]
The Korean term for a platonic male friend is 남사친 (namsachin).
남사친 is used to refer to a male friend when you want to specifically emphasize that the relationship is strictly platonic and lacks any romantic interest. While the general word for friend, 친구, can be used to refer to a male friend in informal settings, 남사친 is more precise for clarifying the nature of the relationship.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
남사친 is a slang abbreviation primarily used in casual conversation among younger people. For more general or informal settings where you are not using slang, you may use the standard term 친구.
How do you pronounce it?
namsachin
Did you know?
- The word 남사친 was created specifically to avoid the ambiguity of 남친, which is the common abbreviation for 'boyfriend'. Adding the word 사람, meaning 'person', creates a linguistic wall between a romantic partner and a platonic friend.
- While 남사친 means 'platonic', it is often used in romantic comedies to describe a character in the 'friend zone' who is secretly in love with the protagonist.
- There is a direct female counterpart to this term, 여사친, which describes a platonic female friend. Together, these terms allow Korean speakers to categorize their social circles by gender and romantic status with extreme precision.
Examples in context
- 그는 그냥 남사친이야.geuneun geunyang namsachin-iya.He is just a male friend.
- 내 남사친이랑 영화를 봤어.nae namsachin-irang yeonghwa-reul bwasseo.I watched a movie with my male friend.
- 남사친이 정말 많아요.namsachin-i jeongmal manayo.I have a lot of male friends.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about a person in a photo.
- 수빈 Su-bin이 사람 누구야?i saram nuguya?Who is this person?
- 도현 Do-hyeon아, 그냥 내 남사친이야.a, geunyang nae namsachin-iya.Ah, he is just my male friend.
- 수빈 Su-bin정말 친해 보이네.jeongmal chinhae boine.You two look really close.
- 도현 Do-hyeon응, 아주 오래된 친구야.eung, aju orae-doen chin-guya.Yeah, he is a very old friend.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 남사친, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 남사친, CC BY-SA 4.0.
