What does 울다 mean?
울다 (ul-da) means: To cry.
A very active, painful verb. '울지 마' (Don't cry) is what the hero says while wiping away tears, promising they will take away the pain.
Other sides of 울다
◆ overwhelmed joy or gratitude — Textbooks teach you that 'ulda' means to cry over sadness, which is why learners stand there blinking when a Korean friend bursts into tears while laughing at a comedy show and gasps, '아, 나 너무 웃겨서 울어!' Natives reach for this word whenever an emotion—any overwhelmingly positive emotion—hits them so hard it spills out of their eyes. It signals a complete surrender to the moment, whether you're standing at a surprise birthday party or doubled over in fits of helpless laughter. The amateur mistake is treating tears in Korean culture as exclusively tragic; here, crying is just the body's ultimate volume knob for joy.
◆ inanimate venting — When a machine or the weather throws a dramatic tantrum, Koreans don't just say it's loud; they say it's crying. This isn't poetic personification for a novel; it's everyday slang for mechanical distress or howling gales that demand your attention. If an emergency siren is piercing your eardrums or the winter wind is howling against your windowpane, *ulda* captures that raw, piercing audio assault better than any technical verb.
◆ inanimate venting — When a machine or the weather throws a dramatic tantrum, Koreans don't just say it's loud; they say it's crying. This isn't poetic personification for a novel; it's everyday slang for mechanical distress or howling gales that demand your attention. If an emergency siren is piercing your eardrums or the winter wind is howling against your windowpane, *ulda* captures that raw, piercing audio assault better than any technical verb.
How it's actually used
- 슬픈 영화를 봤더니 눈물이 나서 혼났네.
seulpeun yeonghwareul boatdeoni nunmuri naseo honnatne.
I watched a sad movie and ended up crying so much.
💡 Used casually when moved to tears by a story or emotion. - 무슨 일 있어? 울지 말고 천천히 이야기해 봐.
museun il isseo? ulji malgo cheoncheonhi iyagihae bwa.
What's wrong? Don't cry, take your time and tell me.
💡 A comforting phrase said to someone who is crying. - 너 때문에 더 이상 슬퍼서 울고 싶지 않아.
neo ttaemun-e deo isang seulpeoseo ulgo sipji ana.
Because of you, I don't want to cry from sadness anymore.
💡 Expressing emotional fatigue and moving past heartbreak.