Key Facts
- Hangul: 양파; Revised Romanization: yangpa
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: mixed, hanja 洋 (foreign/Western) + 파 (native: green onion)
- Register: Neutral; used in all registers.
Onion in Korean: What Does 양파 Mean?
양파 is the ordinary round onion, and the word is neutral in every register. You meet it in recipes, on shopping lists and in counting phrases such as 양파 한 개. When a Korean recipe lists both 양파 and 파, it means two different ingredients: the bulb and the green stalks.
How Do You Pronounce 양파?
Two syllables, yang-pa. The first ends in the nasal ng, and the second begins with an aspirated p, released with a puff of air.
Example Sentences with 양파
양파를 썰어요.
Yangpareul sseoreoyo
I slice an onion.
A cooking sentence. The object marker 를 follows the vowel-ending noun, and the verb means to slice.
양파는 매워요.
Yangpaneun maewoyo
Onions are pungent.
는 marks onions as the topic. 매워요 literally means "is spicy"; Korean uses the same word for the sting of raw onion.
양파 두 개 사 왔어요.
Yangpa du gae sa wasseoyo
I bought two onions.
A shopping sentence. 두 개 gives two items, and the verb says you came back having bought them.
Common Phrases and Collocations
The four phrases cover cutting, cooking, counting and juicing: 양파를 썰다 (to slice an onion), 양파를 볶다 (to stir-fry an onion), 양파 한 개 (one onion) and 양파즙 (onion juice).
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 양파를 썰다 | to slice an onion |
| 양파를 볶다 | to stir-fry an onion |
| 양파 한 개 | one onion |
| 양파즙 | onion juice |
The Mistake to Avoid
Wrong: 파 when you mean the round onion.
Correct: 양파. On its own, 파 is the green onion; the round bulb always needs 양 in front.
양파 Compared with Similar Words
Three kitchen words sit close to 양파.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 양파 | onion | The round bulb onion |
| 파 | green onion | Long green stalks used as a garnish |
| 마늘 | garlic | A small bulb split into cloves |
| 양배추 | cabbage | Also starts with 양 ("Western"), but it is a cabbage |
Where Does the Word Come From?
양파 is a mixed word: 양 is Sino-Korean 洋 ("ocean", used for things from the West), and 파 is the native word for green onion. The same 洋 appears in 양배추, Western cabbage.
Buying Onions for Dinner
A shopper is buying vegetables at a market stall. The seller asks about quantity, so the answer needs a counter as well as the ingredient name.
Shopper
양파 있어요?
Yangpa isseoyo?
Do you have onions?
Seller
네. 몇 개 드릴까요?
Ne. Myeot gae deurilkkayo?
Yes. How many would you like?
Shopper
세 개 주세요.
Se gae juseyo.
Three, please.
Seller
네, 여기 있어요.
Ne, yeogi isseoyo.
Sure, here you are.
The shopper can leave out 양파 in the third line because the seller already knows which vegetable they want. 세 개 counts three individual bulbs. At a supermarket, onions may instead be packaged together: 양파 한 망 means a net bag of onions. A bag is a shopping unit; it does not tell you how many onions are inside.
What Do Recipes Ask You to Do with 양파?
양파를 썰다 means to slice or cut up an onion. The phrase names the cutting action without fixing the shape. A recipe can add 얇게, “thinly,” for thin slices, or 잘게, “finely,” for small pieces. These extra words matter when a sauce needs finely chopped onion rather than large pieces for a stir-fry.
양파를 볶다 means to stir-fry or sauté onion. It does not mean deep-frying: the pan action is the focus. 양파를 까다 means to peel an onion, removing its outer skin before cutting. All three phrases keep 양파 as the object with 를. The verb tells you which stage of preparation you have reached.
Two common food names also contain the whole word. 양파장아찌 is onion pickle, often served as a side dish, and 양파링 means onion rings. In 양파즙, the final 즙 points to juice or extract. These are literal food combinations; you do not need a figurative meaning to understand them.
Where Will You See 양파?
Look for 양파 on vegetable labels, recipe ingredient lists and burger or sandwich descriptions. A recipe quantity such as 양파 반 개 means half an onion. 반 changes the amount, while 개 still counts the bulb. 양파 한 개 and 양파 반 개 are quantities of the same ingredient.
At a restaurant, 양파 빼 주세요 means “Please leave out the onion.” This is a request about an ingredient, useful when ordering a burger or salad. It does not by itself explain an allergy. If avoiding onion is medically necessary, the kitchen needs that separate information rather than having to guess why you want it removed.
More Words for the Vegetable Drawer
| Korean | Meaning | One useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 대파 | large green onion | Often chopped into soups; it is not a bulb onion. |
| 쪽파 | small green onion | A slimmer green onion used in garnishes and side dishes. |
| 적양파 | red onion | A type of 양파 with reddish purple outer layers. |
| 껍질 | skin / peel | The layer you remove when preparing an onion. |
The vegetable vocabulary lesson puts these ingredients beside other market words. Read the whole vegetable name on a label: the shared 파 syllable connects the onion words, but the ingredients have different shapes and cooking roles.
Quick Self-Test
- A recipe lists 양파 and 대파. Are these the same ingredient?
- What does 양파 반 개 ask you to use?
- Does 양파를 볶다 describe peeling or cooking?
Show answers
- No. 양파 is the round onion; 대파 is a large green onion.
- Half an onion.
- Cooking: stir-frying or sautéing the onion.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say onion in Korean?
Onion in Korean is 양파 (yangpa), the round bulb onion. Do not shorten it to 파, which means green onion. In recipes and at the market, 양파 is the word for the onions you slice and stir-fry.
Is 파 the same as 양파?
No. 파 is the long green onion used as a garnish, while 양파 is the round bulb onion. The 양 at the front, meaning "Western", is what turns 파 into the round onion.
How do I count onions?
Use the general counter 개: 양파 한 개 is one onion and 양파 두 개 is two, as in the example 양파 두 개 사 왔어요, "I bought two onions."
What is 양파즙?
양파즙 is onion juice. 즙 means juice or extract, and in Korea 양파즙 is sold in small pouches as a health drink.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: Korean vegetable words groups 양파 with its neighbours.
- Index: Korean words A to Z.
- Practice: add it to the vocabulary flashcard decks.
- Neighbouring vegetables: potato, 파 and 마늘.