불쏘시개

Korean

Etymology

불 (bul, “fire”) +‎ 쑤시− (ssusi−, “to poke”) +‎ 개 (-gae, “-er”, inanimate agentive suffix). The "book" sense comes from the idea that the book is so terrible it would be better used as kindling.

Pronunciation
  • (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA(key): [puɭs͈o̞ɕʰiɡɛ] ~ [puɭs͈o̞ɕʰiɡe̞]
  • Phonetic hangul: [불쏘시개/불쏘시게]
Romanizations
Revised Romanization?bulssosigae
Revised Romanization (translit.)?bul'ssosigae
McCune–Reischauer?pulssosigae
Yale Romanization?pul.ssosikay

Noun

불쏘시개 • (bulssosigae)

  1. kindling (twigs used to start a fire)
  2. (figurative) spark, trigger, catalyst
  3. (colloquial, derogatory) pot boiler book, low-quality book
    막장 불쏘시개 ― makjang bulssosigae ― terrible book with a preposterous plot
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