Key Facts
- Word: 의자 (uija)
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: Sino-Korean
- Hanja: 椅子 (椅 chair + 子 suffix)
- Register: Neutral everyday word.
- Sense: chair
Chair in Korean: Meaning and Register
의자 means chair. It is Sino-Korean, written 椅子; 椅 means chair and 子 is a suffix. The register is neutral.
Compounds include 의자 등받이, a chair back, and 접이식 의자, a folding chair.
You sit on a chair with 앉다, and you pull or drag one with 끌다.
Pronunciation
의자 has two syllables, and the RR is uija. The first syllable 의 is the tricky part. At the start of a word it is pronounced as written: a quick ㅡ (eu) gliding into ㅣ (i). Do not flatten it to a plain i, or 의자 starts to sound like 이자 (interest).
Example Sentences
의자에 앉으세요.
uijae anjeuseyo.
Please sit on the chair.
의자에 앉으세요. (Please sit on the chair.) 에 marks the seat, and 앉으세요 is the polite request to sit.
이 의자는 편해요.
i uijaneun pyeonhaeyo.
This chair is comfortable.
이 의자는 편해요. (This chair is comfortable.) 편해요 means is comfortable. The sentence is a quick opinion.
의자가 하나 더 필요해요.
uijaga hana deo piryohaeyo.
We need one more chair.
의자가 하나 더 필요해요. (We need one more chair.) 하나 더 means one more, and 필요해요 means need.
Collocations
- 의자에 앉다: to sit on a chair
- 의자를 끌다: to pull a chair
- 의자 등받이: chair back
- 접이식 의자: folding chair
의자에 앉다 is sit on a chair. 의자를 끌다 is pull a chair. 의자 등받이 and 접이식 의자 build on the word.
Common Mistake
Mistake: saying 의자 with a plain 이, so it sounds like 이자 (interest), or mixing it up with 의사 (doctor). Correct: keep the 의 glide, and listen to the last syllable: 의자 is chair, 의사 is doctor.
의자 vs 의사
| Word | Meaning | How to tell them apart |
|---|---|---|
| 의자 | chair | this page's word |
| 의사 | doctor | Sounds similar; 의사 is a physician. |
| 소파 | sofa | A soft seat for several people. |
의사 is a doctor and sounds similar. 소파 is a sofa, a soft seat for several people.
Borrowing a Chair at a Busy Cafe
Two customers are sitting at neighboring tables. One needs an extra chair and asks before moving it.
Customer A
이 의자 써도 돼요?
I uija sseodo dwaeyo?
May I use this chair?
Customer B
네, 쓰세요.
Ne, sseuseyo.
Yes, go ahead.
Customer A
가져가도 돼요?
Gajyeogado dwaeyo?
May I take it over?
Customer B
네, 괜찮아요.
Ne, gwaenchanayo.
Yes, that’s fine.
써도 돼요 asks permission to use something. 가져가도 돼요 checks that moving the chair away is also acceptable. The object marker is omitted after 의자 in the first question, as often happens in speech. The full form is 이 의자를 써도 돼요. The question concerns the chair as an object that can be moved.
When Do You Need 의자, 자리, or 좌석?
의자 names the piece of furniture. 자리 means a place or spot, including somewhere to sit. At a cafe, a question about 자리 may ask whether the place is available, even when there is no separate chair to move. The dialogue uses 의자 because a customer wants the physical chair for another table.
좌석 means a seat, especially in settings such as transport, theaters, and reservations. A numbered seat on a ticket is a 좌석. Calling it an 의자 would focus on its furniture rather than its assigned place. These distinctions explain why a seating notice can discuss available places without using the word 의자.
What Can You Do with a Chair?
의자에 앉다 uses 에 because the chair is the destination of sitting down. 의자에서 일어나다 means getting up from a chair; 에서 marks the starting place. 의자를 옮기다 means moving a chair, so the chair itself takes the object marker 를. The particle changes because the chair has a different role in each action.
의자를 끌다 describes pulling or dragging a chair. 끌다 does not specifically mean lifting it. In a quiet study room, the movement may make noise, so the difference between dragging and carrying matters. 의자 등받이 names the backrest: it supports your back, while the whole object is still an 의자.
These combinations are literal descriptions. Learning the verb beside 의자 gives you more useful language than looking for an idiom where ordinary furniture vocabulary fits the situation.
Where Will You See Chair Vocabulary?
A furniture shop may group products as 사무용 의자, office chairs, or 식탁 의자, dining chairs. The words before 의자 explain their intended use. 접이식 의자 means a folding chair, so 접이식 describes its construction rather than the room it belongs in.
In a clinic or waiting room, 의자에 앉으세요 is an instruction to sit down. The respectful request is in 앉으세요; 의자 stays the same everyday noun. In a product review, 편해요 evaluates comfort. That tells you how the chair feels to the writer, rather than describing a different category of furniture.
Furniture Words beside 의자
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 책상 | desk | Usually the work surface paired with a desk chair. |
| 식탁 | dining table | Appears in 식탁 의자, a dining chair. |
| 등받이 | backrest | A part of a chair, not another seat. |
| 팔걸이 | armrest | Useful when describing the chair’s side supports. |
The furniture vocabulary lesson teaches the surrounding household words. When comparing chairs, naming a part such as 등받이 or 팔걸이 makes your description more precise than repeating that the whole chair is comfortable.
Quick Self-Test
- Which word names a movable piece of furniture: 의자 or 자리?
- Which particle completes 의자__ 앉다?
- What feature does 접이식 의자 describe?
Show answers
- 의자. 자리 refers to a place or spot.
- 에: 의자에 앉다.
- It folds; it is a folding chair.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say chair in Korean? It is 의자, with the RR uija.
How do I say sit on the chair? Say 의자에 앉으세요.
Is 의자 the same as 의사? No. 의자 is a chair and 의사 is a doctor.
What is 접이식 의자? It is a folding chair.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: daily life home furniture vocabulary puts 의자 next to its neighbours.
- Index: Korean words A to Z lists every word page.
- Practice: vocabulary flashcard decks.
- Next word: Desk in Korean