Is silly a bad word

So earlier this week some kids were out of line and told them to stop being silly. I used the English word silly. Then today one of my teachers comes to me and is pretty upset with me for calling the kids silly and said some of the kids who are good with English translated «silly» for the other kids and now some of them are also upset.

I explained that in English silly is generally a pretty mild rebuke. But she was still upset and told me «Even if I was upset I would never call any of my students silly.»  So I promised to not use the word again. But I still would like to know if silly is really such an awful word in Korean. Can anyone give me some insight here?

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This is a case where you, as the native speaker, should put your foot down and make sure all the students and co-workers understand the meaning of the word.
To just comply and stop using it will result in a misunderstanding of the word for all of them.
You should not promise to stop using it, because you used it appropriately.
Probably a mistaken translation that fails to consider the context of the world.
It probably translated as stupid, foolish or 바보.
Of course that’s not how you meant it and neither would other native.
I know it’s a tired cliche, but teachable moment right here
Sort them out.
Assert yourself. You are the expert in this situation.

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Yeah, she brought up the word 바보 which of course is wrong. But I said silly on Monday and didn’t even hear about anyone being upset until today.

Sadly, I don’t think it’s worth it to make an issue. The teacher in question likes to remind me that she’s the one the principle hears about me from and has dropped the «you can be replaced» hint more than once.

Which really sucks since mostly we get along and I like my school a lot.

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From my understanding Silly doesn’t translate very well and is generally considered bad since Koreans thing it means stupid or dumb.
I would talk to that class and tell them that silly is more like playful/joking around or gag than stupid or dumb. 

Do remember that Koreans talk the meaning of a world more literally and less in context most of the time. Crazy is prefect example.

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«Silly» is generally translated as «stupid» by many Koreans.  However, even in classrooms back home, we were told to avoid using «silly» with students because it can be interpreted as «stupid», «foolish» or «idiot’ depending on the context.  It’s better to use an adjective that is clear and cannot be misinterpreted. 

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It’s better to use an adjective that is clear and cannot be misinterpreted.

It’s better to teach the correct interpretation.  In fact, you’d be silly not to.

(Did you see what I did there?)

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Most Canadians that I know who are my age immediately think of Winnie the Poo getting a honey jar stuck on his nose, where Christopher Robin responds~ silly bear!
To me personally, it’s playful, joking and said in the most creative way. Being silly is what children do when they are being childish. Not all education need to conform to 19th Century Prussian
Educational standards…do they?!!

« Last Edit: May 06, 2012, 05:43:05 pm by Harpoinseoul »

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I’ve dealt with this word before.

I called a Korean friend silly because she made a silly joke.  She got really upset about it.  I tried my best to teach her that it’s not a bad word/insult in English.  She was still upset for some silly reason.  I tried further to explain that since we were speaking English at the time, we have to take the word in the English context.  That didn’t do much and we both pretty much just had to ignore it and proceed.  From my understanding, Koreans often translate it into something like «stupid» (like 바보).

I don’t think there is a Korean word to correctly convey the meaning of «silly».

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It’s better to use an adjective that is clear and cannot be misinterpreted.

It’s better to teach the correct interpretation.  In fact, you’d be silly not to.

(Did you see what I did there?)

 ::)

You missed the point of what I was saying!

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sounds like your coteacher is being silly… 

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use google to search the site

site:waygook.org XXXX

replace ‘XXXX’ with your search term

An expat friend was telling me about this recently too, and the alternative they offered to 바보 was 어리석은, which has a nuance closer to «like a child personality.»  Google translate still defines it as stupid, and I haven’t asked other Koreans how it seems to them, but it might help you define «silly» a little more diplomatically.

Edit: my managing teacher told me that 어리석은 is more of a dictionary word; people don’t commonly use it.  She said you can maybe use the adjective ‘바보같은’ but it’s best to just use it with friends.  In a sentence (not the absence of politeness markers, since you’re speaking to a close friend or someone younger than you), it’s «바보같아.»  When I repeated and added -요 at the end, she laughed out loud.

« Last Edit: May 07, 2012, 10:05:32 am by CellarDoor »

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One of my coteachers just asked me about «silly» today! I think it was in a worksheet with their regular textbook. Her exact question was «Is silly a bad word?»

I told her, «no, not really», and then used the child/adult comparison. Just means funny/goofy. We do silly stuff with children but not with adults. She seemed to accept that explanation.

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One of my coteachers just asked me about «silly» today! I think it was in a worksheet with their regular textbook. Her exact question was «Is silly a bad word?»

I told her, «no, not really», and then used the child/adult comparison. Just means funny/goofy. We do silly stuff with children but not with adults. She seemed to accept that explanation.

That’s exactly what my Thesaurus brain translates «silly» to as well.   Funny; goofy.  If they don’t believe you, maybe show them videos of mothers calling their children «Silly baby» and ask them if they think that parents would call their children stupid.  (^_^)

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Haha, I had to explain this to my students a couple months ago.

In saw some of them put it into their translators and I said that even though it translates into «stupid» or «idiot», we use it to mean «funny» in English.  And I made some goofy gestures.
They all understand.

I call all my students silly and they have no problem with it.

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Yeah, my husband had a similar encounter at his hagwon.  One day he walked into his classroom, & 5 or 6 kids were jumping on the table, chairs, doing flying leaps, etc.  He said something along the lines of «What are you doing!?  This is crazy! Be careful and get down.»
Of course a couple of them told their moms he «called them crazy» or whatever, like he referred to them as criminally insane or something.  The parents were pretty mad about it.  Of course he explained the meaning in context, but it’s not surprising that Koreans wouldn’t be able to fully grasp the concept of a contextual meaning like that.   I don’t mean that Koreans don’t have the capacity to understand it, but that in every part of life here, there’s just 1 way of doing something … the Korean Way.  That’s the way it’s done, end of discussion.  Not surprising that would apply to the language, too.  Ever try to use sarcasm with your Korean friends?  It’s totally lost on all but the most advanced English speakers, and maybe them, too, if they haven’t had many real foreign friends.  That’s the main reason I don’t have any good Korean friends; because it’s just so boring using straight-up, boring-ass English all the time.  They just don’t know when I’m joking, or how, and I find it very difficult to express myself like that. 
Anyway, he made a big deal about how if the parents want native speakers teaching their kids English, not Konglish, then that’s what they’re going to get, and the Korean teachers need to back the native speakers up on that.  Nothing ever came of it again…

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Yeah, my husband had a similar encounter at his hagwon.  One day he walked into his classroom, & 5 or 6 kids were jumping on the table, chairs, doing flying leaps, etc.  He said something along the lines of «What are you doing!?  This is crazy! Be careful and get down.»
Of course a couple of them told their moms he «called them crazy» or whatever, like he referred to them as criminally insane or something.  The parents were pretty mad about it.  Of course he explained the meaning in context, but it’s not surprising that Koreans wouldn’t be able to fully grasp the concept of a contextual meaning like that.   I don’t mean that Koreans don’t have the capacity to understand it, but that in every part of life here, there’s just 1 way of doing something … the Korean Way.  That’s the way it’s done, end of discussion.  Not surprising that would apply to the language, too.  Ever try to use sarcasm with your Korean friends?  It’s totally lost on all but the most advanced English speakers, and maybe them, too, if they haven’t had many real foreign friends.  That’s the main reason I don’t have any good Korean friends; because it’s just so boring using straight-up, boring-ass English all the time.  They just don’t know when I’m joking, or how, and I find it very difficult to express myself like that. 
Anyway, he made a big deal about how if the parents want native speakers teaching their kids English, not Konglish, then that’s what they’re going to get, and the Korean teachers need to back the native speakers up on that.  Nothing ever came of it again…

Bravo to your husband, for sure!

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I’m sure this business relates to how serious Koreans take any accusation of any kind of mental, psychological, or learning disability.

When I worked in a hagwon, I was sitting in the computer room one day with a Korean teacher when the director came in and started chatting with us. Somehow the topic of learning disabilities cam around and I mentioned that I know a little about autistic traits because my little sister has Autism and Down’s Syndrome. My director immediately looked at the floor and said, «I’m sorry to hear this» and walked straight out of the room! I asked the Korean teacher, «What was THAT all about?!» She told me in so many words that people don’t openly admit to having someone with a learning disability as a member of their family. I was having a bit of trouble getting my head around it when she explained that it means the bloodline of your family is tainted.

I was pretty upset at the time, but this aspect of the culture can help explain why parents don’t like ANY mention of imperfection when it comes to their children’s abilities (even «silliness»).

Now I work in a public Elementary School where some of the students have mild learning disabilities. At first, I praised the way Korea mainstreams children with special needs. Until, of course, I realised that many of the children hadn’t been acknowledged as even having special needs.

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I’m sure this business relates to how serious Koreans take any accusation of any kind of mental, psychological, or learning disability.

When I worked in a hagwon, I was sitting in the computer room one day with a Korean teacher when the director came in and started chatting with us. Somehow the topic of learning disabilities cam around and I mentioned that I know a little about autistic traits because my little sister has Autism and Down’s Syndrome. My director immediately looked at the floor and said, «I’m sorry to hear this» and walked straight out of the room! I asked the Korean teacher, «What was THAT all about?!» She told me in so many words that people don’t openly admit to having someone with a learning disability as a member of their family. I was having a bit of trouble getting my head around it when she explained that it means the bloodline of your family is tainted.

I was pretty upset at the time, but this aspect of the culture can help explain why parents don’t like ANY mention of imperfection when it comes to their children’s abilities (even «silliness»).

Now I work in a public Elementary School where some of the students have mild learning disabilities. At first, I praised the way Korea mainstreams children with special needs. Until, of course, I realised that many of the children hadn’t been acknowledged as even having special needs.

You may be interested in this article.  It’s a study that was conducted in Ilsan about autism.  The percentage of children diagnosed with autism was large and people were dumbfounded.  And it also discusses the stigma you alluded to.

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jun/08/world/la-fg-korea-autism-20110608

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A very interesting article, Justanotherwaygook.
I feel sorry for the parents of the children because of the stigma attached to their families.
Imagine not admitting that your child needs special care, and depriving that child because it would affect your daughter’s chances of getting married. These circumstances are a bleak side of Korean culture, that I wish I had never discovered.

It is a shame that Korea hasn’t yet found a place in its society for those with special needs.

The quality of life for these individuals will quickly deteriorate once they slip through the public school system, uneducated and unskilled.

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I don’t think that ‘silly’is a bad word itself. I used this word to teach this sentence ‘Don’t be silly’ even though I’m a Korean teacher. however It still depends. If I use this to a student directly…the way I see it…It couldn’t be that bad if you understand the word exactly.

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