[Korea Quiz] Daebak!

Find the answer at the bottom.

“Daebak (대박)” is a Korean slang term used to express excitement, amazement or approval.

The word originally means “jackpot," often resulting in significant financial success, such as winning the lottery or a film becoming a mass box-office hit.

In colloquial Korean today, the expression has broadened its usage to convey a sense of something being fantastic, surprising or overwhelmingly positive.

People might say "daebak" when they hear good news, experience something impressive, or even when they enjoy food or entertainment. The term can be used in various contexts, from casual conversations among friends to reactions on social media. Former President Park Geun-hye used it in a 2014 speech, “Reunification (with North Korea) is daebak,” expressing her belief that reunification would bring significant benefits to the country.

"Daebak" can be found in the Oxford English Dictionary, which defines it as a noun meaning "something lucrative or desirable, especially when acquired or found by chance; a windfall, a jackpot," or as an exclamation and adjective expressing approval, similar to "fantastic" in English.

Several other slang words have similar meanings and can be used alternately to accentuate the speaker’s enthusiastic approval. They include “jjang (짱) ” and “kaep (캡),” which both mean "the best" or "awesome."

“Kkwang (꽝)” means "failure” and is used to express disappointment. For example, if you bought a lottery ticket and didn’t win anything, you could say it was “kkwang.”

Answer: (d)

By Korea Herald(khnews@heraldcorp.com)