Nuance Dictionary / Grit, Survival, & Hardship
악착같이 ak-chak-ga-chi
With gritty, desperate determination; clinging to a goal tenaciously to survive
What does 악착같이 mean?
악착같이 (ak-chak-ga-chi) means: With gritty, desperate determination; clinging to a goal tenaciously to survive.
The core spirit of Korea's rapid economic growth. Surviving no matter how ugly it gets.
🎙️ 악착같이는 표기 그대로 읽지 않아요 — 실제로는 [악착까치]로 소리나요 (경음화, 구개음화). 발음 연습하기 →
How it's actually used
- 그 친구는 비상금 모으려고 악착같이 아끼더라고요.
geu chinguneun bisanggeum mo-euryeogo akchakgachi akkideoragoyo.
That friend was tenaciously pinching every penny to save emergency money.
💡 Use to describe fierce, relentless thriftiness or effort. - 그는 몇 번의 실패에도 불구하고 악착같이 다시 일어섰다.
geuneun myeot beoneui silpae-edo bulguhago akchakgati dasi il-eoseotda.
Despite failing several times, he doggedly got back up with gritty determination.
💡 Describes refusing to give up against harsh odds. - 그 친구는 불우한 환경을 이겨내려고 악착같이 공부해서 결국 장학생이 되었어.
geu chinguneun buru-han hwan-gyeong-eul igyeonaeryeogo akchakgachi gongbuhaeseo gyeolguk janghaksaeng-i doeeosseo.
That friend studied with desperate grit to overcome a troubled environment and ended up becoming a scholarship student.
💡 Use when praising someone's fierce, survival-driven determination.
Related words in Grit, Survival, & Hardship
기(를) 쓰다 gi-reul-sseu-da고군분투(하다) go-gun-bun-tu발버둥(치다) bal-beo-dung뼈 빠지게 ppyeo-ppa-ji-ge맨땅에 헤딩(하다) maen-ttang-e-he-ding