Nunchi refers to a concept in Korean culture, described as "the subtle art of listening and gauging another's mood". [1] In Western culture, nunchi could be described as the concept of emotional intelligence. In Korea, it is the person's kibun being read, which is his or hers pride, mood, or state of mind. It is of central importance to the dynamics of interpersonal relationships in Korean culture. Nunchi is literally translated as "eye-measure". It is closely related to the broader concept of paralanguage, however nunchi also relies on an understanding of one's status relative to the person with whom they're interacting. It can be seen as the embodiment of skills necessary to communicate effectively in Korea's high context culture.

[edit] Nunchi in popular culture

• The concept of nunchi, and one's abundance or lack thereof, forms the basis of many common expressions and idioms. For example, a socially clumsy person can be described as nunchi eoptta (눈치 없다), meaning "absent of nunchi."
• The concept of nunchi was introduced in Cracked under the article, The 10 Coolest Foreign Words The English Language Needs