Korean word

초

Pronunciation

Romanizationcho

Meaning

  • nounsecond

Example

잠깐 5초만 기다려 주세요.cham kkan 5 cho man ki da ryeo chu se yo

Please wait just five seconds.

Illustration for 초 (second)

More examples

몇 초 정도면 충분해.myeot cho cheong do myeon chung bun hae

A few seconds should be enough.

Core concept

One brief tick in the steady measurement of time.

Common phrases

  • 몇 초myeot cho

    how many seconds

  • 1초1 cho

    one second

  • 몇 초 동안myeot cho tong an

    for how many seconds

Similar words

분pun: A small unit of time equal to sixty seconds.
시간sigan: A stretch of time used for schedules, events, or how long something lasts.
시si: The hour shown on a clock when telling the exact time with a number.
순간sungan: A very brief point in time when something happens.

Definition in Korean

시간을 재는 단위로, 보통 한 분을 예순으로 나눈 것이다.si ga neul chae neun ta nwi ro po tong han pu neul ye su neu ro na nun keo si da

Word origin

Its time-unit meaning comes from a Chinese character adopted into Korean through Sino-Korean vocabulary for measuring fine parts of time.

Usage tips

  • This word is useful in waiting and countdowns because it lets a speaker replace a vague moment with an exact number of seconds.

Other meanings

  • candlenoun

Related words

  • 초침chochimsecond handnoun
  • 밀리초millichomillisecondnoun
  • 초단위chodanwiunit of secondsnoun

Word lists with this word