*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of yobo

Borrowed from Korean 여보 (yeobo, “darling, sweetheart”).

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

A soldier's female Korean lover or hired prostitute. · A Korean person.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Borrowed from Korean 여보 (yeobo, “darling, sweetheart”).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "ko:여보<t:darling, sweetheart>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#loanword|Borrowed]] from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"gloss\" : \"darling, sweetheart\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"Korean\", \"term\" : \"여보\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"ko\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"yobo\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"yobo\">\nBorrowed from Korean 여보 (yeobo, “darling, sweetheart”)."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":bor",
        "3": "ko:여보<t:darling, sweetheart>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Borrowed from Korean 여보 (yeobo, “darling, sweetheart”)."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "여보",
      "여보#Korean"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A soldier's female Korean lover or hired prostitute.",
        "A Korean person."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "historical",
        "Hawaii"
      ],
      "recordId": "2a9015c95c7c0d7eae15b0e5f7fda876f7038e9ce098843a86c69d792feaeb8d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "60350b3e297481ad7096667c23272a5108300d145f992f6eb42b647fad837da6",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 536930
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for yobo →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-eW9ibw