Key Facts
- Korean: 돼지고기, Revised Romanization dwaejigogi
- Part of speech: noun
- Origin: native Korean (돼지 + 고기)
- Register: neutral everyday word
- Spelling point: 돼 is written with ㅙ
Pork in Korean: What Does 돼지고기 Mean?
돼지고기 means pork, the meat of a pig. It follows the same pattern as 소고기 for beef: animal plus 고기.
How Do You Pronounce 돼지고기?
돼지고기 has four syllables, [dwae-ji-go-gi]. The first syllable glides from w into the vowel of "bed".
Example Sentences with 돼지고기
돼지고기를 먹어요.
Dwaejigogireul meogeoyo.
I eat pork.
돼지고기를 is the object, and 먹어요 means "eat".
돼지고기가 맛있어요.
Dwaejigogiga masisseoyo.
The pork is delicious.
돼지고기가 is the subject of 맛있어요, "is delicious".
저는 돼지고기를 안 먹어요.
Jeoneun dwaejigogireul an meogeoyo.
I don't eat pork.
안 before 먹어요 makes the verb negative. This is the sentence to use if you avoid pork.
Common Phrases with 돼지고기
| Korean | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 돼지고기를 굽다 | to grill pork |
| 돼지고기 김치찌개 | kimchi stew with pork |
| 삼겹살 | pork belly |
| 돼지갈비 | pork ribs |
Korean barbecue menus usually list the cut rather than the word 돼지고기: 삼겹살 for belly and 돼지갈비 for marinated ribs. In stews, the word stays in full, as in 돼지고기 김치찌개.
A Common Mistake with 돼지고기
- Wrong: 되지고기
- Correct: 돼지고기
ㅙ and ㅚ sound almost the same in everyday Seoul speech, so learners often pick the wrong one. The pig word is always spelled 돼지, with ㅙ.
돼지고기 Compared with 소고기 and 돼지
| Word | Meaning | How it differs |
|---|---|---|
| 돼지고기 | pork | The meat |
| 소고기 | beef | Beef instead of pork |
| 돼지 | pig | The animal |
Use the full 돼지고기 for the food unless a dish name already shortens it.
Checking What Is in a Stew
A diner asks a server about the meat in a stew before ordering. The exchange identifies the ingredient and then asks about an alternative.
Diner
이 찌개에 돼지고기가 들어가요?
I jjigaee dwaejigogiga deureogayo?
Does this stew contain pork?
Server
네, 돼지고기가 들어가요.
Ne, dwaejigogiga deureogayo.
Yes, it contains pork.
Diner
저는 돼지고기를 안 먹어요. 소고기 요리도 있어요?
Jeoneun dwaejigogireul an meogeoyo. Sogogi yorido isseoyo?
I don’t eat pork. Do you also have beef dishes?
Server
네, 소고기 요리도 있어요.
Ne, sogogi yorido isseoyo.
Yes, we have beef dishes too.
들어가요 literally means “goes in” here. In an ingredient question, it asks whether the food contains pork. 돼지고기가 marks pork as the ingredient that goes into the stew; 돼지고기를 in the diner’s next line marks what they do not eat. The server confirms an alternative without assuming why the diner avoids pork.
Asking about Ingredients Rather than Taste
돼지고기가 들어가다 is a useful recipe and restaurant combination: it means that pork goes into a dish. It is more specific than asking whether a dish has 고기, because 고기 alone does not identify the animal. If pork is the ingredient you need to check, keep the full noun in the question.
The existing sentence 저는 돼지고기를 안 먹어요 states a dietary habit or restriction. It does not mean “I don’t like the taste of pork”. A server can understand that pork is something you avoid without needing a personal explanation. If you also avoid other ingredients, name those separately; the sentence only mentions pork.
돼지고기 김치찌개 explicitly names pork as an ingredient in kimchi stew. 김치찌개 without that modifier names the stew but leaves its particular recipe unstated. Recognizing the dish name alone therefore gives you less information than an ingredient question does.
Reading Pork Labels and Menu Names
돼지고기 is the broad meat category. 삼겹살 and 목살 identify cuts, while 돼지갈비 identifies pork ribs. A menu can list those names without repeating 돼지고기 beside every item. For a learner, the useful connection is that each belongs under the pork category even though the full word looks different.
돼지고기를 굽다 means “to grill pork”. It describes a cooking action rather than a named cut. The pork could be belly or another grilling cut, so the verb does not supply the information that 삼겹살 does. A recipe’s ingredient list and its cooking instructions answer different questions.
Look for 돼지고기 in packaged-food ingredient lists as well as on meat counters. A product may include it even when the front of the packet names only the dish. The word identifies an ingredient, while nearby words may describe its origin or amount. It does not by itself tell you how the finished dish is seasoned.
The spelling 돼지 stays intact in 돼지고기 and 돼지갈비. Remembering the animal name helps with both the full meat word and the shortened form used in a dish name. 고기 is joined to 돼지 in the ordinary word 돼지고기.
Related Meat Words for Shopping
| Korean | Meaning | Useful note |
|---|---|---|
| 고기 | meat | A broad category; specify the animal when needed. |
| 소고기 | beef | Names the meat of cattle rather than pigs. |
| 닭고기 | chicken meat | Makes the food sense explicit. |
| 삼겹살 | pork belly | A specific pork cut often listed on grill menus. |
| 목살 | pork neck | Another cut you may see beside pork belly. |
Use the ingredients lesson for other food categories and the pork belly page for ordering that cut. Knowing the category and the cut lets you read a butcher’s label and a restaurant menu with the same vocabulary.
Quick Self-Test
- Does 고기 alone tell you that the meat is pork?
- What does 들어가요 ask about in the dialogue?
- Is 삼겹살 a different animal from 돼지고기?
Show answers
- No. 고기 means meat; 돼지고기 specifies pork.
- Whether pork is included in the stew.
- No. 삼겹살 is a cut of pork.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do You Say Pork in Korean?
Say 돼지고기 (dwaejigogi). It combines 돼지, pig, and 고기, meat, so it literally means "pig meat". It is the neutral everyday word used at the butcher, in recipes and on restaurant menus, alongside cut names such as 삼겹살 for pork belly.
What Is 삼겹살?
삼겹살 is pork belly, usually grilled at the table and wrapped in lettuce. The name means "three-layer flesh", after the layers of fat and meat. It is one of the most popular ways to eat 돼지고기 in Korea, and many restaurants specialize in it.
How Do I Say I Don't Eat Pork in Korean?
Say 저는 돼지고기를 안 먹어요. 안 before the verb makes it negative, so the sentence means "I don't eat pork". It is polite and clear, which makes it useful at restaurants when you need to explain a dietary restriction.
What Is the Difference between 돼지 and 돼지고기?
돼지 is the live animal, the pig. 돼지고기 adds 고기, meat, and means pork. Use 돼지 for the animal on a farm and 돼지고기 for food. Some dish names shorten the meat to 돼지, as in 돼지갈비, pork ribs.
Related Words and Next Steps
- See the food ingredients list for other meats.
- Find more single words like pork in the Korean words A to Z index.
- Compare poultry: chicken.