IU · Korean · 25 words

Palette, Part 2

The second half of Palette (2017) opens with Black Out, a tipsy insistence that she is not drunk, then turns quiet: 마침표 is a long-postponed goodbye, and 밤편지 and 이름에게 are among the most-loved songs IU has recorded. The vocabulary runs from swearing you're perfectly fine to saying goodbye properly and promising to keep waiting.

Vocabulary

Word	Meaning	Example
멀쩡하다	to be perfectly fine, to be undamaged	넘어졌는데 다행히 멀쩡해요.I fell over but luckily I'm perfectly fine.
맹세하다	to swear, to vow	다시는 늦지 않겠다고 맹세했어요.I swore I'd never be late again.
억울하다	to feel wronged, to be unfairly blamed	제 잘못이 아닌데 정말 억울해요.It wasn't my fault, so I really feel wronged.
상관없다	to not matter, to make no difference	저는 어느 쪽이든 상관없어요.Either way makes no difference to me.
도대체	on earth, what in the world	도대체 무슨 일이 있었던 거예요?What on earth happened?
미루다	to put off, to postpone	청소를 자꾸 내일로 미뤄요.I keep putting the cleaning off until tomorrow.
숙제	homework; a task one has been avoiding	숙제를 다 끝내고 나가려고요.I'm going to finish all my homework before going out.
정직하다	to be honest, to be straight with people	정직하게 말해 줘서 고마워요.Thank you for being honest with me.
변함없이	unchangingly, just as always	그분은 변함없이 친절하세요.That person is as kind as ever.
대답	an answer, a reply	제 질문에 대답을 못 들었어요.I didn't get an answer to my question.
반딧불	a firefly, the glow of a firefly	여름밤 숲에서 반딧불을 봤어요.I saw fireflies in the woods on a summer night.
입맞춤	a kiss	이마에 가벼운 입맞춤을 했어요.I gave a light kiss on the forehead.
모래	sand	신발 안에 모래가 잔뜩 들어갔어요.A load of sand got into my shoes.
행운	good fortune, luck	새해에는 행운이 가득하길 바라요.I hope the new year is full of good fortune.
꺼내다	to take out; to bring up, to put into words	속마음을 꺼내기가 쉽지 않아요.It isn't easy to say what I really feel.
간절히	earnestly, desperately	합격하기를 간절히 바랐어요.I desperately hoped to pass.
멀어지다	to grow distant, to drift apart	연락이 뜸해지면서 사이가 멀어졌어요.We drifted apart as we spoke less often.
뒷모습	the view of someone from behind	떠나는 뒷모습이 오래 기억나요.I still remember the sight of them walking away.
시들다	to wilt, to wither	물을 안 줬더니 화분이 시들었어요.The plant wilted because I didn't water it.
애써	with effort, forcing oneself to	괜찮은 척 애써 웃어 보였어요.I forced a smile, pretending to be fine.
글썽이다	to well up with tears	이야기를 듣고 눈물을 글썽였어요.My eyes welled up when I heard the story.
메아리	an echo	산에서 외치니 메아리가 돌아왔어요.I shouted in the mountains and an echo came back.
기어이	stubbornly, in the end no matter what	말려도 기어이 혼자 가더라고요.I tried to stop them but they went alone anyway.
껴안다	to hug, to hold in one's arms	오랜만에 만나서 꼭 껴안았어요.We hugged tightly after not meeting for so long.
뻗다	to stretch out, to reach out	선반이 높아서 손을 쭉 뻗었어요.The shelf was high so I stretched my hand right out.