복불복

Korean

Etymology

Sino-Korean word from (fortune) + 不福 (misfortune).

Pronunciation

  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [po̞k̚p͈uɭbo̞k̚]
  • Phonetic hangul: []
Romanizations
Revised Romanization?bokbulbok
Revised Romanization (translit.)?bogbulbog
McCune–Reischauer?pokpulbok
Yale Romanization?pokpul.pok

Noun

복불복 • (bokbulbok) (hanja 福不福)

  1. a crapshoot; an uncertain or random venture or situation whose outcome is determined by luck
    코로나 감염 복불복이라는 생각 사회 만연하면 방역 지장 생길 이다.
    korona gamyeom-eun bokbulbog-iraneun saenggag-i sahoe-e manyeonhamyeon bang'yeog-e jijang-i saenggil geos-ida.
    If the notion that being infected by the coronavirus is simply out of bad luck is pervasive in society, this will be problematic for anti-epidemic measures.
  2. (entertainment) a game or program based solely on luck, especially in reality TV
  3. (original meaning) the unpredictability of human destiny