New Word Glossary

From "고지능" (high intelligence): being smart and impressively skilled at getting things done. "고능하다" (adjective) praises someone's sharp judgment and competence; "고능아" is the noun for such a person.

A Korean interjection shouted when you're excited or thrilled, roughly equivalent to "yay!", "woo-hoo!", or "yes!". It caught on among Korean Gen Z (teens and twenties).

Compressed pronunciation of "understand-well-exact-clean-sense-bearing." Describes judging situations well and handling oneself appropriately.

A Korean acronym combining the first syllables of nine tech companies developers and job seekers love to work for: Naver, Kakao, Line, Coupang, Baemin (Baedal Minjok), Danggeun Market, Toss, Zigbang, and Yanolja. It's shorthand for the "dream job" list.

A Korean slang from "그건 내가 알 바 아니다" (that's not mine to care about), ending with the Gyeongsang-dialect question particle "-no." Used to cynically express total indifference to someone else's situation or problem.

Compressed from "wanting perfection stresses me out." Describes the exhaustion and stress caused by pursuing perfection.

Compressed from "spoiler burns joy." Describes enjoying stories like dramas, movies, web novels even after knowing the ending.

A Korean slang combining "god" (신) with "life/living" (생). Describes a perfectly organized, productive, and admirable lifestyle.

Slang meaning "angry like a king," or "seriously frustrated." Expresses extreme frustration or annoyance, amplified from casual anger.

Online fandom that criticizes and ridicules celebrity behavior on SNS. Etymology possibly blends "억울한" (aggrieved) with "audience" (청중).

A derogatory Korean internet slang term for an old person, from '틀니 딱딱' (the clacking of dentures). Used to mock elderly people seen as outdated or stubborn. It is a clear ageist slur, so it should be used with caution.

A playful portmanteau blending the Korean interjection "yareu" (an exclamation of joy) with EXO's song title "Growl" (으르렁, eureureong). It has no real meaning beyond the joke: the word just sounds silly, and that awkwardness is the whole point.

Short for "저녁 메뉴 추천" (dinner menu recommendation). Used to ask for or share suggestions when you can't decide what to eat for dinner.

Korean abbreviation of "독자 AI 파운데이션 모델" (independent AI foundation model): a large-scale AI base model that a country builds and controls on its own, free of dependence on foreign vendors or licenses. It is the centerpiece of Korea's sovereign-AI strategy.

Designing and optimizing the "harness" around an LLM or AI agent — its tools, prompts, action space, observation formatting, verification loops, and permissions — to get higher task-completion rates from the same model.

Designing and operating AI agents so they iterate in autonomous loops to plan, execute, and verify tasks without direct human intervention.

Building software by describing your intent to an AI in natural language and accepting the output by "feel" rather than scrutinizing every line of code.

An autonomous AI system that, given a goal, plans actions, executes them, evaluates results, and iterates to solve problems without direct human intervention.

Systematically designing and refining input queries (prompts) to maximize the performance and accuracy of Large Language Models.

A technique where an LLM retrieves relevant information from an external database before generating responses, ensuring accuracy and currency of output.

The structure describing how components of a system or organization are arranged and connected. Originally a network/mathematical concept, it is now widely used as "Team Topologies" — a framework for how to divide and connect engineering teams.

The fusion of a traditional industry with advanced technology like AI or IT to create new value — an umbrella term for combinations such as fintech, edtech, and agtech.

The maximum number of tokens (words) an LLM can process in a single interaction. Larger context windows enable deeper understanding of longer documents and more accurate responses.

An architectural principle that organizes software into concentric layers (entities → use cases → interface adapters → frameworks/drivers) so dependencies always point inward toward business logic. Proposed by Robert C. Martin.

A state where a product satisfies market demand well enough that customers seek it out, recommend it, and pay for it on their own. Considered the milestone startups must hit before investing heavily in marketing and sales.

An acronym for five object-oriented design principles — Single Responsibility, Open/Closed, Liskov Substitution, Interface Segregation, and Dependency Inversion — used as a guide for writing maintainable, extensible code.

A self-reinforcing growth loop where one driver feeds the next, spinning faster and faster over time. Popularized by Jeff Bezos's napkin sketch of Amazon's growth strategy.

Knowledge gained through experience, intuition, and hands-on skill that is hard to fully put into words or formulas — in contrast to "explicit knowledge," which can be written down and shared easily.

A traditional way of learning by working alongside a master — observing, imitating, and practicing to absorb skills and know-how. It is especially effective for passing on "tacit knowledge" that is hard to put fully into words.

A phrase or button that prompts the user to take a specific action — like "Sign up now" or "Start free" — clearly telling them what to do next on a website, ad, or email.

A key metric tracked to measure progress toward a goal — like revenue, signups, or return-visit rate — that turns a team's or organization's performance into a number.