손톱
sontop[sʰo̞ntʰo̞p̚]
The English phrase 'nails' can be translated into Korean as 손톱 (sontop).
손톱 is used to refer to the hard parts at the ends of the fingers and toes.
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a compound of 손 (son), meaning hand and 톱 (top), meaning saw.
Which one should you use?
While 손톱 refers to fingernails, 발톱 is used specifically for toenails.
How do you pronounce it?
sontop
Did you know?
- In Korean folk belief, some people avoid cutting their 손톱 at night because it was traditionally thought to attract bad luck or spirits.
- In Korean, the word for 'nail' (the metal kind used in construction) is completely different from 손톱, as the latter is strictly reserved for biological nails.
- In traditional Korean medicine, the color and shape of the 손톱 are used as diagnostic tools to determine the health of the liver and lungs.
Examples in context
- 손톱 그만 물어 뜯어라.Stop biting your nails.This sentence is useful for telling someone to stop biting their 손톱.Tatoeba #11105509 by intertime, translation #501792 by darinmex
- 그 사람의 손톱은 빨간색이야.Her nails are red.This sentence is useful for describing the color of someone's 손톱.Tatoeba #8365107 by Eunhee, translation #754104 by CM
- 손톱을 오늘 밤에 깎아야 해요.I need to trim my nails tonight.
- 파티 전에 손톱을 칠하는 걸 까먹었어.I forgot to paint my nails before the party.
- 발가락에 발톱을 부딪혀서 부러졌어.I stubbed my toe and broke my nail.
- 손톱을 짧게 깎았어요.sontopeul jjalpge kkakkasseoyo.I cut my nails short.
Example conversation
Two friends are looking at each other's hands in a cafe.
- 도현 Do-hyeon민지 씨, 손톱 색깔이 예쁘네요.Minji ssi, sontop saekkari yeoppeuneyo.Minji, your nail color is pretty.
- 민지 Min-ji고마워요, 도현 씨도 손톱이 깨끗해요.Gomawoyo, Dohyeon ssi do sontopi kkekkethaeyo.Thanks, Dohyeon, your nails are also clean.
- 도현 Do-hyeon그냥 관리만 조금 했어요.Geunyang gwaniman jogeum haesseoyo.I just took a little care of them.
- 민지 Min-ji정말 깔끔해 보여요.Jeongmal kkalkkeumhae boyeoyo.They look really neat.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 손톱, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
