비밀번호

Korean

Etymology

Sino-Korean word from 秘密 (“secret”) + 番號 (“number”).

Pronunciation

• (SK Standard/Seoul) IPA^(key): [ˈpi(ː)miɭbʌ̹nβo̞]
• Phonetic hangul: [비(ː)밀번호]
  • Though still prescribed in Standard Korean, most speakers in both Koreas no longer distinguish vowel length.

Romanizations
Revised Romanization?	bimilbeonho
Revised Romanization (translit.)?	bimilbeonho
McCune–Reischauer?	pimilbŏnho
Yale Romanization?	pīmil.pen.ho

Noun

비밀번호 • (bimilbeonho) (hanja 秘密番號)

1. password

   Synonyms: (colloquial) 비번 (bibeon), (North Korean) 통과암호 (tonggwaamho)

Usage notes

2015 study by the National Institute of the Korean Language

Would you say 비밀번호 (bimilbeonho) or 비번 (bibeon) for "password"?
Age cohort	16 to 25	26 to 35	36 to 45	46 to 55	56 to 65	65 or above
비밀번호 (bimilbeonho)	27 respondents (39%)	23 respondents (40%)	19 respondents (42%)	39 respondents (61%)	20 respondents (87%)	49 respondents (90%)
비번 (bibeon)	42 respondents (61%)	34 respondents (60%)	14 respondents (58%)	25 respondents (39%)	1 respondents (4%)	3 respondents (6%)
Other	0 respondents	0 respondents	0 respondents	0 respondent	2 respondents	2 respondents