Key Facts
- Word: 면 (myeon), noun, Sino-Korean origin
- Register: neutral; clothing context
- Senses: cotton (면 for noodles is a different word, 麵)
- Hanja: 綿 for cotton
Cotton in Korean: What Does 면 Mean?
면 is what labels call cotton: 면 티셔츠 is a cotton T-shirt and 면 100퍼센트 is 100 percent cotton. In shops you read it on tags, and in daily talk you describe comfort, as in 여름에는 면 옷이 시원해요. The single syllable is a homograph, which means several words share the spelling. Another 면 is noodles, and a third means face or surface. The fabric sense nearly always shows up next to a clothing noun, so the rest of the sentence settles which one you mean.
How Do You Pronounce 면?
Say myeon, one syllable. It starts with a y glide: ㅕ is "yeo", with the mouth open and the lips unrounded, followed by ㄴ. Say it as one beat, not two. With 이에요, the ㄴ links forward, so 면이에요 is read myeo-ni-e-yo.
Example Sentences with 면
이 셔츠는 면이에요.
i syeocheuneun myeonieyo
This shirt is cotton.
면이에요 uses 이에요 because 면 ends in a consonant. The sentence names the fabric of the shirt.
여름에는 면 옷이 시원해요.
yeoreumeneun myeon osi siwonhaeyo
Cotton clothes are cool in summer.
여름에는 means "in summer". 면 옷 is a noun phrase meaning clothes made of cotton.
면 양말이 부드러워요.
myeon yangmari budeureowoyo
Cotton socks are soft.
양말 is socks and 부드러워요 means soft. The two words 면 and 양말 are written with a space.
Common Phrases and Collocations
Fabric labels use a small set of phrases.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 면 티셔츠 | cotton T-shirt |
| 면 100퍼센트 | 100 percent cotton |
| 면 소재 | cotton material |
The Mistake to Avoid
The identical spelling causes the most trouble.
Wrong: ✗ Reading 면 in a sentence about clothes as noodles
Correct: ✓ A clothing noun beside 면 means cotton; a food context means noodles
Learners confuse 면 cotton with 면 noodles. Context decides, and 면 can also mean face or side, so check the words around it.
면 Compared with Similar Words
The same spelling hides a few neighbouring words.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 국수 | noodles (native) | The noodle dish word; the other 면 (麵) also means noodles. |
| 솜 | cotton wool | Raw cotton filling, not fabric. |
What Is the Hanja for Cotton?
The fabric 면 is written 綿, a Sino-Korean character meaning cotton. The noodle word is a different Sino-Korean word written 麵, even though both are spelled 면 in Hangul.
Asking about a Shirt in a Shop
A shopper checks a shirt’s fabric before buying it. The assistant answers from the label.
Shopper
이 셔츠는 면이에요?
I syeocheuneun myeonieyo?
Is this shirt cotton?
Assistant
네, 면 백 퍼센트예요.
Ne, myeon baek peosenteuyeyo.
Yes, it’s one hundred percent cotton.
Shopper
다른 색도 있어요?
Dareun saekdo isseoyo?
Do you have other colors too?
Assistant
네, 흰색도 있어요.
Ne, huinsaekdo isseoyo.
Yes, we have white too.
The first line turns the existing statement into a question through intonation. 백 is the Sino-Korean number for one hundred. The assistant says the percentage aloud, while a printed label will usually use digits. 다른 색 asks about another color after the material has been settled.
How Do You Read 면 on a Fabric Label?
면 소재 means “cotton material.” 소재 identifies what an item is made from, so a product description can use this phrase before discussing color, size or fit. It tells you the material category; it does not by itself state a percentage.
면 100% gives that extra information: one hundred percent cotton. If a label lists 면 beside another fiber and gives separate percentages, the item contains a blend. Read the whole list rather than stopping at the first familiar word. The presence of 면 alone does not mean pure cotton.
순면 is another useful label word, meaning pure cotton. 면 혼방 means a cotton blend: 혼방 refers to fibers mixed together. These are literal material descriptions. Unlike an idiom, their meaning comes directly from the parts, and the distinction matters when comparing two otherwise similar shirts.
Where Will You See the Fabric Word?
Clothing tags, online product descriptions, bedding listings and towel packaging are common places to find 면. A search result for a cotton T-shirt may show 면 티셔츠, while a bedding description may use 면 소재. The surrounding item tells you that this is fabric, even when no hanja appears.
Material and care instructions answer different questions. A cotton label identifies the fiber, but the washing instructions also depend on the item's construction, dye and other materials. Learn to locate 세탁, “washing,” separately instead of treating 면 as a complete care instruction.
Fabric, Filling and the Finished Item
| Related word | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 소재 | material | Common in product descriptions that identify the fiber. |
| 원단 | fabric / cloth | Useful when discussing fabric before it becomes clothing. |
| 솜 | cotton wool / stuffing | Refers to fluffy filling rather than woven cloth; filling can have different materials. |
| 혼방 | fiber blend | Look for the other fibers and their percentages. |
| 세탁 | washing / laundry | Leads you to care information rather than composition. |
The materials vocabulary lesson teaches the wider material set. In a fabric shop, 원단 may be the thing you buy; in a clothing shop, 면 tells you what the finished shirt is made of. Keeping those roles separate makes product descriptions easier to follow.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 면 소재 guarantee that a shirt is one hundred percent cotton?
- What does 면 혼방 tell you?
- On a shirt tag, is 면 likely to mean noodles?
Show answers
- No. Look for a percentage or an explicit pure-cotton description.
- The fabric is a cotton blend.
- No. The clothing context points to cotton.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is cotton in Korean?
It is 면 (myeon), the fabric.
Does 면 also mean noodles?
Yes, a different word with the same spelling; context tells you which.
How do I read a clothing label?
면 100퍼센트 means 100 percent cotton.
What is cotton wool?
It is 솜, raw cotton filling.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: materials vocabulary groups 면 with other fabric and material words.
- Index: browse Korean words A to Z for more words like cotton.
- Practice: add 면 to your vocabulary flashcard decks.
- Compare: 국수 is the noodle word.