Key Facts
- Hangul: 마늘; Revised Romanization: maneul
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: native Korean
- Register: Neutral; very common in Korean cooking.
Garlic in Korean: What Does 마늘 Mean?
마늘 has one sense, garlic. The register is neutral, and the word is very common in the kitchen. It is the same word for the whole bulb and for the cloves you cook with.
How Do You Pronounce 마늘?
Two syllables, ma and neul. The vowel in 늘 is ㅡ (eu), an unrounded vowel made with spread lips. The RR is maneul, and when a particle follows, the final ㄹ links and becomes a tap, as in maneureul in the first example.
Example Sentences with 마늘
마늘을 좋아해요.
Maneureul joahaeyo
I like garlic.
A taste statement with 좋아해요, "like".
김치에 마늘을 넣어요.
Gimchie maneureul neoeoyo
I put garlic in kimchi.
김치에 means "into the kimchi". 넣어요 is the verb for putting something in.
마늘 냄새가 강해요.
Maneul naemsaega ganghaeyo
The smell of garlic is strong.
냄새 is smell. 강해요 means it is strong, which is garlic's best-known trait.
Common Phrases and Collocations
These kitchen phrases distinguish preparation from the prepared ingredient: 마늘을 다지다 is mincing, 마늘을 까다 is peeling, 다진 마늘 is minced garlic, and 마늘 냄새 is the smell.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 마늘을 다지다 | to mince garlic |
| 마늘을 까다 | to peel garlic |
| 다진 마늘 | minced garlic |
| 마늘 냄새 | garlic smell |
The Mistake to Avoid
Using only 개, the general counter for objects, can leave the amount unclear.
Unclear without context: 마늘 한 개. Is that a bulb or a clove?
Precise: 마늘 한 통 for one whole bulb; 마늘 한 쪽 for one clove.
마늘 Compared with Similar Words
양파 is the onion, 파 is the green onion, and 생강 is ginger. They may appear alongside garlic in ingredient lists, but each names a different ingredient.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 마늘 | garlic | This page's word |
| 양파 | onion | onion |
| 파 | green onion | green onion |
| 생강 | ginger | ginger |
Where Does the Word Come From?
마늘 is native Korean, so it has no hanja.
Cultural Note
Garlic is a staple of Korean cuisine and appears in many dishes, including kimchi.
Checking Garlic at a Barbecue Restaurant
A customer wants raw garlic to eat with the grilled meat. The server checks how much to bring.
Customer
생마늘 좀 주세요.
Saengmaneul jom juseyo.
Some raw garlic, please.
Server
많이 드릴까요?
Mani deurilkkayo?
Would you like a lot?
Customer
아니요, 조금만 주세요.
Aniyo, jogeumman juseyo.
No, just a little, please.
Server
네, 가져다드릴게요.
Ne, gajyeodadeurilgeyo.
Certainly, I’ll bring it over.
생마늘 specifies raw garlic. Plain 마늘 only names the ingredient, so the preparation depends on the setting. 좀 makes the request less abrupt, and 조금만 limits the amount to “just a little”. Neither expression names an exact number of cloves.
Reading Garlic Labels and Recipes
다진 마늘 is garlic that has been minced. The describing word 다진 comes from 다지다, “to mince”, and tells you the preparation is already done. A recipe calling for this ingredient expects small pieces, rather than a whole bulb added to the pan.
깐 마늘 is peeled garlic. Peeling removes the skin; it does not necessarily chop the cloves. These two labels answer different shopping questions. Buy peeled cloves when you want to slice them yourself, and look for minced garlic when the recipe needs it finely chopped.
생마늘 means raw garlic, while 구운 마늘 means roasted or grilled garlic. At a barbecue table, the difference matters because one describes uncooked garlic and the other describes garlic after heating. The noun stays 마늘; the word attached to it explains its state.
마늘장아찌 is pickled garlic. It names a prepared side dish, so a menu using this word is offering something different from plain fresh garlic. The shared 마늘 is still easy to recognise even when the full food name is unfamiliar.
Bulbs, Cloves and Spoonfuls
마늘 한 통 is one whole bulb; 마늘 한 쪽 is one clove. A bulb separates into several cloves, so changing the counter changes the amount substantially. 한 is the counting form of “one” before these counters. Keep the noun, number and counter together when reading a recipe.
The general counter 개 may be understood when the pieces are visible, but it leaves the unit less clear. 통 and 쪽 tell a listener exactly which part you mean. With 다진 마늘, recipes often give a spoon measure or weight instead, because the cloves have already been broken down.
Do not confuse the counter 통 in “one bulb” with packaging. A tub of minced garlic is a container of a prepared ingredient, not a single garlic bulb. Read the preparation label and the quantity together before deciding what to buy.
Talking about Garlic without an Idiom
마늘 냄새 is a literal garlic smell. The phrase can refer to food, someone’s breath or a kitchen; the surrounding sentence identifies the source. 냄새가 강하다 describes a strong smell without itself saying whether the speaker likes it. The earlier example can therefore be an observation rather than a complaint.
마늘을 넣다 means to add garlic, and 마늘을 빼다 means to leave it out or remove it. At a restaurant, asking to leave garlic out concerns preparation. A sauce or marinade may already contain it, so naming the ingredient is only the beginning of that conversation.
Ingredients to Recognise Next
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 양파 | onion | A separate ingredient, even when listed beside garlic. |
| 파 | green onion | Appears in garnish and seasoning lists. |
| 생강 | ginger | Look for its own name in sauces and marinades. |
| 껍질 | skin / peel | Useful when describing peeling garlic. |
The vegetable vocabulary lesson teaches the produce names you will see alongside 마늘 in markets.
Quick Self-Test
- Which is already minced: 깐 마늘 or 다진 마늘?
- Does 마늘 한 쪽 mean a whole bulb?
- Which word in 생마늘 tells you it is uncooked?
Show answers
- 다진 마늘. 깐 마늘 is peeled.
- No. It means one clove; a bulb is 한 통.
- 생- gives the raw meaning here.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say "garlic" in Korean?
Say 마늘 (maneul).
What is minced garlic?
It is 다진 마늘.
How do you peel garlic?
Use 마늘을 까다.
How do you count garlic?
Use 통 for whole bulbs and 쪽 for cloves. 개 can be understood when the pieces are visible, but 통 and 쪽 make the unit clear.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: Vegetable words. 마늘 sits there among other vegetables.
- Index: look up more words near "garlic" in Korean words A to Z.
- Practice: the word for garlic fits into the vocabulary flashcard decks.
- Next in this list, see the page for green onion.
- Compare with the page for onion.