Korean syllable 쫓

It appears in Korean verbs for chasing, driving away, or expelling.

The surrounding word sets the sense. In 쫓다, someone may chase a person or animal, drive away a bird or ghost, or push aside sleep and stray thoughts. 쫓기다 means to be pursued; 쫓겨나다 means to be forced out; 쫓아내다 can mean to expel someone or dismiss them from a job.

쫓 is a Hangul syllable block made from the Korean letters ㅉ, ㅗ, and ㅊ. Hangul was developed under Korea’s Joseon dynasty to represent Korean accurately and make written learning more accessible; its development was completed in 1443 and it was promulgated in 1446. This block is part of that writing system, not a picture sign with an independent origin.

Why is 쫓 confused with 좇?

쫓 is for chasing or expelling; 좇 is for following an aim, rule, or gaze.

The first consonant differs: 쫓 begins with ㅉ, while 좇 begins with ㅈ. In careful Korean usage, 쫓다 means chasing a person or animal or driving something away; 좇다 means pursuing an ideal, following a rule or custom, or tracking something with your eyes.

Use 범인을 쫓다 for pursuing a suspect, 행복을 좇다 for pursuing happiness, and 눈으로 좇다 for following something with your eyes. Choose 좇 for an idea, rule, or gaze; choose 쫓 for a chase or expulsion.

Someone sent me 쫓—what does it mean?

By itself, 쫓 is a Korean syllable fragment, not a complete message.

Read it as a fragment, a lookup request, or an input test unless a word or sentence surrounds it. A Korean reader needs the rest of the word—such as 쫓다, 쫓기다, or 쫓아내다—to tell whether it concerns chasing, being pursued, or forcing someone out.

The syllable itself has no complete-message tone; the word and sentence around it carry the intent.