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公 = 공 = Public/Shared/Equal
(Korean name: 공평할 공)
The Korean name of this character translates to “equal/fair 공”, but you will also find this character in a variety of words relating to the public.
Common words using this character:
公원 = park
주人公 = leading role in a story
公연 = performance
公평 = fair/equal
公주 = princess
公공 = public (the other “공” is 共, which you have not learned yet)
公무員 = somebody who works for the government
公개하다 = to make something public/announce
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市= 시 = City
(Korean name: 저자 시)
The words that this character can be found in relate to the word “city.”
You can also find this character after the names of cities in Korean.
市民 = citizen
市內 = downtown
大도市 = big city
小도市 = small city
서울특별市 = the (special) City of Seoul
의정부市 = the City of Uijeongbu
안山市 = the City of Ansan
市장 = market(place)
도市 = city
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區 = 구 = District/Division
(Korean name: 지경 구)
The word “구” acts as a level of division for parts of a city – sort of like how “borough,” “district” or “county” divide parts of states/cities in the US. Within a city, there will be many 구. Within a 구 there will be many 동. You will find this character after the names of various ‘구’ in Korean, or in regular words with the meaning “division.”
I also like this character because the picture depicts the meaning. I picture the outer box as the city, with the small inner boxes as the respective 구 within the city.
區분 = division
區별 = distinguish
區역 = area/district
서울특별市 江南區 = the City of Seoul, Gangnam district
區간 = section
Here is an example of where your knowledge of Hanja characters can pay off. While looking into a list of words that contain the character 區, I came across the word 구민 (區民). I have never seen this word before (in Korean or in 漢字) and I know exactly what it meant as soon as I saw it. With the meaning of 區 being “district” and 民 being “people/citizens of an area”, it is clear that 區民 represents the people who live in a certain district.
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洞 = 동 = Neighborhood
(Korean name: 골 동)
Aside from being in words that have some relation to “neighborhood,” you will also find this character in the names of neighborhoods. The word “동” acts as a level of division for parts of the city, sort of like how “borough” or “county” divide parts of states/cities in the US.
Common words using this character:
서울특별市 江南區 水西洞 = the City of Seoul, Gangnam district, Suseo neighborhood
洞內 = inside a neighborhood (not to be confused with 동네, which actually means “neighborhood”)
洞口 = the entrance to a neighborhood
명洞 = the name of a popular neighborhood in Seoul
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合 = 합 = Combine, Unite
(Korean name: 합할 합)
This character is mostly found in more difficult words, but the simplicity of its scripture (and simple meaning when used by itself) makes it very recognizable for Korean people.
合의 = agreement
종合 = put together
결合 = combine
合리적 = rational
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