Nuance Dictionary / Slang & Internet Culture
월루 wol-lu
Slacking off and browsing the web on company time while looking intensely busy.
What does 월루 mean?
월루 (wol-lu) means: Slacking off and browsing the web on company time while looking intensely busy.
A brilliant portmanteau of 월급 (wol-geup, salary) and 루팡 (lupang, a Korean phonetic spin on Lupin the Third, the legendary thief). It doesn't mean being a lazy slacker who disappears; it refers to the art of stealing your paycheck by doing personal things right at your desk under your boss's nose. Natives use it with a sly, knowing camaraderie when confessing to morning-long shopping sprees on Coupang during slow workdays.
Other sides of 월루
◆ Remote Work Con — While the classic office version of *wol-lu* is about hiding behind a glowing monitor while playing solitaire, the remote work evolution is an art form of invisible absenteeism. Natives use this to affectionately or mockingly confess to doing a load of laundry, taking a two-hour nap, or playing video games while their status icon stays stubbornly green. Textbooks won't tell you that admitting to *wol-lu* over a group chat with close coworkers is practically a bonding ritual—a tiny, shared rebellion against the omnipresent eye of corporate surveillance.
How it's actually used
- 월루 하면서 마시는 커피가 제일 맛있지.
wol-lu ha-myeon-seo ma-si-neun keo-pi-ga jeil ma-sit-ji.
The coffee you drink while quietly slacking off at work tastes the best.
💡 Captures the petty, delicious thrill of corporate rebellion. - 부장님 지나가셔서 급하게 월루 모드 해제했어.
bu-jang-nim ji-na-ga-syseo-seo geu-pa-ge wol-lu mo-deu hae-je-haet-seo.
The manager walked by so I frantically turned off my slacking-off mode.
💡 Shows how seamlessly 'wol-lu' functions as a verb or a state of being in daily office life. - 상사 눈치를 보며 엑셀 창 띄워놓고 웹툰 보는 게 최고의 월루지.
sang-sa nun-chi-reul bo-myeo ek-sel chang tti-wo-noh-go web-tun bo-neun ge choe-go-ui wol-ru-ji.
Keeping an Excel sheet open while reading webtoons under the boss's nose is the ultimate office slacking.
💡 Use playfully among coworkers to describe killing time at work.
Related words in Slang & Internet Culture
여미새 yeo-mi-sae열받다 Yeol-bat-da열공 yeol-gong열일 yeol-il영고 yeong-go