4 · 40 words

Housing and building

Buying, renting, building and pulling down.

Property in Korea has its own vocabulary because it has its own system: besides buying (매매) and monthly rent, there is a large lump-sum lease paid back at the end. The building words come in families: 건설 is construction as an industry, 건축 the art of designing buildings, and 공사 the actual work on site, with its noise and its fences. 부동산 means both real estate and the estate agent’s office on the corner.

The words

Verb (8)

거주하다to reside, live (formal)Verb4

이 건물에는 주로 젊은 직장인들이 거주하고 있어요.Mostly young office workers live in this building.

계약하다to sign a contract (for)Verb4

오늘 오후에 새 집을 계약하기로 했어요.We have arranged to sign the contract for the new house this afternoon.

설계하다to design (a building)Verb4

이 다리는 유명한 건축가가 설계했어요.This bridge was designed by a famous architect.

착공하다to break ground, start buildingVerb4

새 병원은 다음 달에 착공해요.Work on the new hospital starts next month.

완공되다to be completed (a building)Verb4

새 도서관은 내년 봄에 완공될 예정이에요.The new library is due to be completed next spring.

짓다to buildVerb3

할아버지가 직접 이 집을 지으셨어요.My grandfather built this house himself.

Irregular: 지어요, 지었어요.

철거하다to demolish, pull downVerb4

오래된 시장 건물을 철거하고 공원을 만들 거예요.The old market building will be pulled down and a park made there.

붕괴되다to collapseVerb4

지진으로 다리 일부가 붕괴됐어요.Part of the bridge collapsed in the earthquake.

Noun (30)

주택house, housingNoun4

이 동네는 아파트보다 주택이 많아요.This neighbourhood has more houses than blocks of flats.

전원주택house in the countryNoun4

부모님은 은퇴하신 뒤에 시골의 전원주택에서 사세요.Since retiring, my parents have lived in a house in the country.

주거housing, residenceNoun4

학교 근처는 주거 환경이 좋은 편이에요.The area near the school is a fairly good place to live.

부동산real estate; estate agent’sNoun4

집을 구하려고 동네 부동산에 들렀어요.I dropped in at the local estate agent’s to look for a place.

공인 중개사licensed estate agentNoun4

공인 중개사가 여러 집을 보여 줬어요.The estate agent showed us several places.

시세market priceNoun4

이 동네 집 시세가 몇 년 사이에 많이 올랐어요.House prices in this area have gone up a lot in the last few years.

매매sale (of property)Noun4

그 집은 매매가 아니라 전세로 나왔어요.That house is on the market as a lump-sum lease, not for sale.

임대lease, lettingNoun4

건물 일 층은 지금 임대 중이에요.The ground floor of the building is being let at the moment.

임대료rent (for business premises)Noun4

임대료가 너무 올라서 가게를 옮겨야 해요.The rent has gone up so much that we have to move the shop.

분양sale (of new flats)Noun4

새 아파트 분양 소식에 사람들이 몰렸어요.Crowds turned up at the news that new flats were going on sale.

신축new buildNoun4

이 아파트는 신축이라서 모든 게 깨끗해요.This block of flats is newly built, so everything is spotless.

건설construction (as an industry)Noun4

새 지하철역 건설이 내년에 시작돼요.Construction of the new underground station starts next year.

건축architectureNoun4

저는 대학에서 건축을 전공했어요.I studied architecture at university.

건설사construction companyNoun4

그 건설사는 이 도시에 아파트를 많이 지었어요.That construction company has built many blocks of flats in this city.

설계도blueprint, plansNoun4

공사를 시작하기 전에 설계도를 꼼꼼히 확인했어요.We checked the plans carefully before starting work.

평면도floor planNoun4

평면도를 보니까 거실이 생각보다 넓어요.Looking at the floor plan, the living room is bigger than I thought.

면적area, floor spaceNoun4

이 집은 면적이 넓어서 가족이 살기 좋아요.This house has plenty of floor space, so it is good for a family.

공사construction workNoun4

도로 공사 때문에 길이 많이 막혀요.The roadworks are causing heavy traffic.

A different 공사 is a public corporation.

공사장construction siteNoun4

공사장 옆을 지날 때는 조심하세요.Be careful when you walk past the building site.

재개발redevelopmentNoun4

우리 동네가 재개발되면서 오래된 집들이 사라졌어요.As our neighbourhood was redeveloped, the old houses disappeared.

재건축rebuilding (of a block)Noun4

그 아파트는 너무 낡아서 재건축을 하기로 했어요.That block of flats is so run-down that it is going to be rebuilt.

기둥pillar, columnNoun4

이 건물은 큰 기둥 네 개가 받치고 있어요.This building is held up by four large pillars.

벽돌brickNoun4

이 집은 빨간 벽돌로 지었어요.This house is built of red brick.

목재timber, woodNoun4

이 창고는 대부분 목재로 만들어졌어요.This shed is made mostly of timber.

시멘트cementNoun4

시멘트가 다 마를 때까지 밟지 마세요.Do not step on it until the cement has completely dried.

크레인craneNoun4

공사장에서 크레인이 무거운 철근을 들어 올렸어요.At the building site a crane lifted the heavy steel bars.

배관plumbing, pipesNoun4

배관이 낡아서 부엌 바닥으로 물이 새요.The pipes are old, so water is leaking onto the kitchen floor.

단열insulationNoun4

단열이 잘 안 돼서 겨울에 집이 추워요.The insulation is poor, so the house is cold in winter.

방음soundproofingNoun4

이 건물은 방음이 잘돼서 옆집 소리가 안 들려요.This building is well soundproofed, so you cannot hear the neighbours.

리모델링renovationNoun4

오래된 아파트를 사서 리모델링했어요.We bought an old flat and renovated it.

Adjective (2)

노후하다to be old, run-down (of a building)Adjective4

노후한 건물은 정기적으로 안전 점검을 받아야 해요.Old buildings have to be inspected for safety regularly.

견고하다to be solid, robustAdjective4

이 성벽은 수백 년이 지났는데도 여전히 견고해요.This city wall is still solid even after hundreds of years.

This list belongs to Home and daily life — six lists and 236 words that can also be practised as a whole.

Practise this list

Multiple choice and gaps, drawn from exactly these 40 words. Whatever you get wrong comes back tomorrow.