🇰🇷Korean Source WordCode: KO

와비사비

Pronunciation / Transliteration: wabisabi

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Wabi-sabi/ˌwɑːbi ˈsɑːbi/
nounadjectiveCEFR C1 (Advanced)Top #14500 frequency
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🇰🇷 Example Sentence in Korean:

"와비사비는 불완전함 속에서 아름다움을 찾는 미학입니다."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    A traditional Japanese aesthetic centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection, appreciating beauty that is incomplete, impermanent, and flawed.

    "The artisan's pottery embraced wabi-sabi, with its uneven glaze and subtle cracks telling a unique story of age."
As adjective
  1. 1

    Characterized by a rustic, unpretentious beauty arising from age, wear, or imperfections.

    "Her living room had a distinctly wabi-sabi feel, decorated with weathered wood, faded linens, and handcrafted earthenware."

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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

Derived from Japanese, 'wabi' originally referred to the loneliness of living in nature away from society, later shifting to mean rustic simplicity or quietness, while 'sabi' meant 'chill', 'lean', or 'withered'. Over centuries, particularly influenced by Zen Buddhism and the Japanese tea ceremony, the combined term evolved to represent a profound aesthetic philosophy centered on finding beauty in imperfection, impermanence, and incompleteness.

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