Nuance Dictionary / Interpersonal Friction

쪼잔하다 jjo-jan-ha-da

Extremely petty, cheap, and narrow-minded

What does 쪼잔하다 mean?

쪼잔하다 (jjo-jan-ha-da) means: Extremely petty, cheap, and narrow-minded.

A very negative and somewhat slangy word. If a millionaire argues for 20 minutes to get a 50-cent discount, or if someone brings up a 5-year-old argument to win a fight, they are incredibly '쪼잔하다'.

How it's actually used

  • 친구가 밥값 천 원 모자란다고 그것까지 칼같이 받아서 좀 쪼잔해 보였다.
    chinguga bapgap cheon won mojaran-dago geugeotkkaji kalgati badaseo jom jjojanhae boyeotda.
    My friend demanded even a thousand won for the food bill down to the last penny, which looked a bit petty.
    💡 Commonly used when someone is overly stingy about trivial amounts of money.
  • 지나간 일 가지고 자꾸 따지지 마, 쪼잔하게 왜 그래.
    jinagan il gajigo jakku ttajiji ma, jjojanhage wae geurae.
    Stop bringing up things that happened in the past, why are you being so small-minded?
    💡 Used to call out someone holding onto minor grievances.
  • 점심값 삼천 원 가지고 그렇게 쪼잔하게 굴지 마.
    jeomsimgap samcheon won gajigo geureoke jjojanhage gulji ma.
    Don't be so cheap over just 3,000 won for lunch.
    💡 Used to call out someone for making a fuss over a tiny amount of money.

Related words in Interpersonal Friction

얄밉다 yal-mip-da괘씸하다 gwae-ssim-ha-da섭섭하다 seop-seop-ha-da서운하다 seo-un-ha-da떼쓰다 tte-sseu-da

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