Key Facts
- Hangul: 약국; Revised Romanization: yakguk
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: Sino-Korean, hanja 藥局 (藥 medicine + 局 office)
- Register: Neutral; used in all registers. Spoken as [yak-kkuk].
Pharmacy in Korean: What Does 약국 Mean?
약국 is the shop where a pharmacist dispenses medicine, and it covers both "pharmacy" and "drugstore". It is neutral and used in all registers. Three related words round out the picture: 약 is the medicine itself, 약사 is the pharmacist, and 병원 is the hospital, a different place for a different job.
How Do You Pronounce It?
Written yakguk, but spoken as [yak-kkuk]. After the final ㄱ of the first syllable, the second ㄱ is tensed, so you hear a doubled k. Stop the first syllable sharply before releasing the next.
Example Sentences with 약국
약국은 어디에 있어요?
Yakgugeun eodie isseoyo
Where is the pharmacy?
The traveller's question. 어디에 있어요 means "where is it", and the topic marker 은 after 약국 makes the pharmacy the topic.
약국에서 감기약을 샀어요.
Yakgugeseo gamgiyageul sasseoyo
I bought cold medicine at the pharmacy.
A past-tense errand. 감기약을 is "cold medicine" as the object, and 샀어요 is the past of "bought".
약국은 저녁 아홉 시에 문을 닫아요.
Yakgugeun jeonyeok ahop sie muneul dadayo
The pharmacy closes at nine in the evening.
An opening-hours remark. 아홉 시 is nine o'clock, and 문을 닫아요 literally means "closes the door".
Common Phrases and Collocations
These phrases cover going, buying, opening and finding the pharmacy that is open on duty.
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 약국에 가다 | to go to the pharmacy |
| 약국에서 사다 | to buy at the pharmacy |
| 약국 문을 열다 | for a pharmacy to open |
| 당번 약국 | on-duty pharmacy |
The Mistake to Avoid
Learners read the romanization yakguk literally and say a soft g.
Wrong: yak-guk, with a soft g.
Correct: yak-kkuk. After the final ㄱ of 약, the second ㄱ is tensed. Neither the Hangul nor the RR shows the change, so you have to remember it.
약국 Compared with 약, 병원 and 약사
Medicine, pharmacist and hospital all share the same area of life as 약국, but each names a different thing: the product, the person or another place.
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 약국 | pharmacy | This page's word |
| 약 | medicine | The pills and syrups themselves, not the shop. |
| 병원 | hospital | Where doctors treat you; 약국 only dispenses medicine. |
| 약사 | pharmacist | The person working inside a 약국. |
Where Does the Word Come From?
약국 is Sino-Korean, written 藥局 in hanja: 藥 (medicine) plus 局 (office). A "medicine office" is a good description of the shop.
Finding an Open Pharmacy
A visitor asks a hotel receptionist for help finding a pharmacy in the evening. The visitor needs a location and opening hours, rather than a recommendation for medicine.
Visitor
근처에 약국이 있어요?
Geuncheoe yakgugi isseoyo?
Is there a pharmacy nearby?
Receptionist
네, 역 앞에 있어요.
Ne, yeok ape isseoyo.
Yes, there is one in front of the station.
Visitor
지금 문 열었어요?
Jigeum mun yeoreosseoyo?
Is it open now?
Receptionist
네, 아홉 시까지 해요.
Ne, ahop sikkaji haeyo.
Yes, it is open until nine.
근처에 means “nearby”. The first question asks whether a pharmacy exists nearby, while the earlier 약국은 어디에 있어요 asks for the location of a pharmacy. Both are useful, but the first leaves open whether there is one at all.
문 열었어요 literally asks whether the door has been opened. In a conversation about a shop, it asks whether the business is open. 아홉 시까지 gives the closing boundary: “until nine”. The receptionist leaves out 약국 because both speakers already know which business they mean.
Where Will You See 약국?
약국 appears on storefronts and map listings. A large 약 on a sign can help you recognize the same kind of business: the sign highlights “medicine”, while the full name for the place is 약국. A search for a shop and a request for a product therefore use related but different words.
영업시간 means “business hours”, and 휴무 means “closed” or a day off. Read these alongside the shop name when checking a listing. Knowing the word 약국 identifies the destination; it does not tell you whether that particular shop is open at the time you arrive.
The noun itself has no special polite replacement. When addressing the pharmacist, 약사님 adds the respectful title 님 to 약사. This names the person you are speaking to. It cannot replace 약국 in a question about where the shop is.
Which Phrase Fits the Errand?
약국에 가다 uses 에 for the destination: going to the pharmacy. 약국에서 사다 uses 에서 for the place where buying happens. In the existing cold-medicine example, the purchase happens inside the pharmacy, so 에서 is the useful marker.
약국 문을 열다 can mean opening the pharmacy for business, rather than merely moving a physical door. Its partner 문을 닫다 can mean closing for the day. These are ordinary shop expressions; you can recognize them even when the speaker omits the word 약국.
A nearby pharmacy is 가까운 약국. This is a useful phrase when the distance matters, while 당번 약국 emphasizes being on duty. “Nearby” and “open” answer different questions, so ask about hours after getting directions.
Words for the Pharmacy Counter
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 처방전 | prescription | Names the document, rather than the medicine. |
| 약사님 | pharmacist, respectfully | A way to address the person at the counter. |
| 영업시간 | business hours | Look for this beside opening and closing times. |
| 휴무 | closed / day off | A listing may use this for a regular closing day. |
The pharmacy vocabulary lesson teaches the wider counter vocabulary. Keep the place, person and product separate: 약국 is where you go, 약사님 is whom you address, and 약 is what you ask about.
Quick Self-Test
- Which marker fits buying something at the pharmacy: 에 or 에서?
- What does 문 열었어요 ask about in this dialogue?
- Does 약사 name the shop or the person?
Show answers
- 에서 marks where the purchase happens.
- It asks whether the pharmacy is open now.
- The person: a pharmacist. The shop is 약국.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you say "pharmacy" in Korean?
Say 약국 (yakguk), spoken as [yak-kkuk].
How do you ask where the pharmacy is?
Say 약국은 어디에 있어요?
What is a 당번 약국?
It is an on-duty pharmacy, one that stays open at night or on a holiday when most others are closed.
What is the difference between 약국 and 병원?
약국 is the pharmacy. 병원 is the hospital.
Related Words and What to Learn Next
- Theme list: health words groups 약국 with other health words.
- Index: Korean words A to Z lists every single-word page.
- Practice: add 약국 to the vocabulary flashcard decks.
- Compare with the page for medicine, the medicine itself.
- Compare with the page for the hospital.
- Deeper dive: the page on pharmacy vocabulary goes further than this entry.