Korean slang profile
맥잡
maekjap
Low-paid job with poor prospects
An English-language term for a low-paid job with poor prospects.
- Expanded form
- McDonald + jobMcDonald + job
- Other spellings
- —
- Earliest source found
- Dec 2005
- 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
그 글은 청년 고용 문제를 맥잡이라는 표현으로 설명했다.
The article used 맥잡 to explain problems in youth employment.
02Documented history
- 2005-12This source introduced “맥잡” and explained its meaning.[1]
03Origin & word formation
Formed by retaining parts of “McDonald + job”. The National Institute of Korean Language’s 『2005년 신어』 lists this headword and its meaning. Who first used it and when have not been verified.
Evidence for the origin explanationMedium
The headword, components, definition, and usage on PDF page 290 (printed page 266) were directly compared. This relies on one source; the older articles quoted by the report were not directly checked. Inclusion in this collection does not establish the year the expression arose or first became popular. This was read in the section tracking the use of previously surveyed terms; it is not claimed to have originated in 2005.
04Sources
Original titles and links are preserved. An English translation does not replace the original source.
- 2005년 신어 (국립국어원)Published Dec 2005Original source checked Nov 14, 2026