Korean slang profile
대오
daeo
An extra year at university
An abbreviation likening students who stay an extra university year for job preparation or other reasons to “fifth-year university students.”
- Expanded form
- 대학 오학년대학 오학년 (fifth year at university)
- Other spellings
- —
- Earliest source found
- Dec 30, 2003
- Documented trend period
- Not verified
This is the earliest source we have verified, not the date the term was coined.
01Examples, with English translations
- Example by Julimmal
그는 졸업을 미루고 취업을 준비하는 자신의 처지를 대오라고 표현했다.
He described his situation of delaying graduation to prepare for work as 대오.
02Documented history
- December 2003The 국립국어연구원’s 『2003년 신어』 included “대오” as a headword in its main text and gave its meaning and usage context.[1]
03Origin & word formation
The 국립국어연구원’s 『2003년 신어』 gives the spelling and meaning of “대오” and its contemporary usage. The expanded form given by the source is “대학 오학년 (fifth year at university)”. Its inclusion in this source was verified; its original creator and actual first use have not been established.
Evidence for the origin explanationMedium
The spelling, definition, and usage context were compared in one official collection. The report’s publication date was directly checked on its copyright page and used instead of the dates of articles re-quoted in the text.
04Sources
Original titles and links are preserved. An English translation does not replace the original source.
- 2003년 신어 (국립국어연구원)Published Dec 30, 2003Original source checked Nov 14, 2026