Korean word

눈감다

Pronunciation

Romanizationnungamtta

Meaning

  • verbclose one's eyes

Example

아이가 눈을 감았어요.a i ga nu neul ka ma sseo yo

The child closed their eyes.

Illustration for 눈감다 (close one's eyes)

More examples

눈이 피곤해서 잠시 눈을 감고 있었어요.nu ni pi gon hae seo cham si nu neul kam go i sseo sseo yo

My eyes were tired, so I kept them closed for a moment.

Core concept

Eyelids move shut, blocking the eyes from view and extending figuratively to the final closing of the eyes at death.

Common phrases

  • 눈을 감고 있다nu neul kam go it tta

    have one's eyes closed

  • 눈을 감다nu neul kam tta

    close one's eyes

Similar words

감다kamtta: To shut the eyelids and cover the eyes.
잠들다chamdeulda: To enter a sleeping state.
죽다chuktta: To reach the end of life.
돌아가다toragada: A respectful way to say that a person has died.

Definition in Korean

눈을 감아 눈을 닫는 행동을 가리키는 말로, 비유적으로 사람의 사망을 완곡하게 이르는 뜻으로도 쓰이는 동사.nu neul ka ma nu neul tan neun haeng dong eul ka ri ki neun mal lo pi yu jeo geu ro sa ra mui sa mang eul wan go ka ge i reu neun tteu seu ro do sseu i neun tong sa

Word origin

It combines the Korean noun for eye with the verb for close, so the literal action naturally extends to a gentle reference to death.

Usage tips

  • Context matters because this verb may describe a simple action in daily speech but can soften a reference to death in respectful language.

Other meanings

  • pass awayverb

Opposites

  • 눈을 뜨다nuneul tteudaopen one's eyesverb

Related words

Word lists with this word