Graduation — NCT DREAM: meaning, key lines and pronunciation
What does “Graduation” by NCT DREAM mean?
“Graduation” by NCT DREAM is about leaving an anxious, lonely chapter behind and stepping into a new world with someone steady beside them. Space supplies the imagery: an unknown star to travel toward, a lost planet circling alone, a frozen Milky Way they vow to melt, and a fire guiding through a snowstorm.
What the song is about
They don't ask for forever, only to make the present shine, and the goodbye feels like a last hug that lets go freely.
Key lines
4 lines from the song in Korean, with how they sound and what they mean. The full line-by-line breakdown lives in the app.
My graduation 그 첫걸음Listen from this lineRomanization (as sung): My graduation geu cheot·kkeo·reum
Meaning: My graduation, the first step
Words in this line- 그geuthat
- 첫걸음cheot·kkeo·reumfirst step
Word for word: My graduation, that first foot-step
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 그 literally means 'that', but here it just points to something already understood, like 'the'. 첫걸음 joins 첫 'first' and 걸음 'step', and together they mean the start of a new path. The English word graduation is dropped straight into the Korean phrase.
어쩔 줄 모르던 오래전 내 안의 그 작은 어른Listen to the first verse — freeRomanization (as sung): eo·jjeol jjul mo·reu·deo no·rae·jeon nae a·ne geu ja·geu neo·reun
Meaning: That little grown-up inside me from long ago, who didn't know what to do.
Words in this line- 어쩔eo·jjeolwhat to do
- 줄jjulway
- 모르던mo·reu·deonot knowing
- 오래전no·rae·jeonlong ago
- 내naemy
- 안의a·neinside
- 그geuthat
- 작은ja·geusmall
- 어른neo·reunadult
Word for word: What-to-do way not-knowing long-ago my inside-that small adult.
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 어쩔 줄 모르다 literally means 'not knowing the way to act', but in practice 'to be at a loss'. 작은 and 어른 alone are 'small' and 'adult', but together they mean a child forced to grow up early. The whole long phrase describes the final word 어른.
손 흔들어 "안녕" 마지막 인사하고 (인사를 하고)Listen to the first verse — freeRomanization (as sung): son heun·deu·reo "an·nyeong" ma·ji·mak in·sa·ha·go (in·sa·reul ha·go)
Meaning: I wave my hand and say a last goodbye
Words in this line- 손sonhand
- 흔들어heun·deu·reowaving
- "안녕""an·nyeong"goodbye
- 마지막ma·ji·maklast
- 인사하고in·sa·ha·gogreet and
- (인사를(in·sa·reulthe greeting
- 하고)ha·go)doing and
Word for word: Hand waving "peace" last greeting doing (greeting doing).
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 안녕 literally means 'peace, well-being', so it covers both 'hello' and 'goodbye'. 인사하다 is 'greeting' plus 'do', the Korean way to talk about any ritual of meeting or parting. So 'last greeting' actually means 'farewell'.
미지의 별, 동경했던 여행을 시작할 때 (it's only us)Listen to the first verse — freeRomanization (as sung): mi·ji·e byeol, dong·gyeong·haet·tteon yeo·haeng·eul si·ja·kal ttae its only uhs
Meaning: When we begin the journey to the unknown star we longed for (it's only us)
Words in this line- 미지의mi·ji·eunknown
- 별,byeol,star
- 동경했던dong·gyeong·haet·tteonlonged for
- 여행을yeo·haeng·euljourney
- 시작할si·ja·kalto begin
- 때ttaewhen
Word for word: Of-unknown star, longed-for journey to-begin when (it's only us)
Why it doesn't translate word for word: 미지 means 'the unknown', 별 'star', and 동경하다 'to long for something far away', which together paint a dream of a distant, undiscovered world. The ending -던 turns the verb into 'the journey we had long yearned for', and 때 ('time, moment') makes it 'when we begin'. The literal version sounds choppy because Korean stacks all descriptions before the noun.
Lyrics © their rights holders. “Graduation” — NCT DREAM. Quoted for commentary and learning.
Song facts
- Lines
- 57
- Key lines explained
- 4
- Words explained
- 18
- Length
- 3:57
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Words from the song in Korean alphabetical order, with pronunciation and meaning.
| Word | Sounds like | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 가는 | ga·neun | passing |
| 가득한 | ga·deu·kan | full of |
| 감싸 | gam·ssa | wrapping |
| 감정 | gam·jeong | feeling |
| 거야 | geo·ya | it will be |
| 그리고 | geu·ri·go | and |
| 기다린 | gi·da·rin | waited for |
| 기억해 | gi·eo·kae | remember |
| 꿈꾸지는 | kkum·kku·ji·neun | to dream |
| 남은 | na·meun | remaining |
| 돌아서면 | do·ra·seo·myeon | when you turn |
| 많이 | ma·ni | a lot |
| 모두 | mo·du | all |
| 뿐야 | ppu·nya | only |
| 세상 | se·sang | world |
| 세상으로 | se·sang·eu·ro | to the world |
| 순간 | sun·gan | moment |
| 행복하게 | haeng·bo·ka·ge | happily |
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Questions about “Graduation”
What is “Graduation” by NCT DREAM about?
“Graduation” by NCT DREAM is about leaving an anxious, lonely chapter behind and stepping into a new world with someone steady beside them. Space supplies the imagery: an unknown star to travel toward, a lost planet circling alone, a frozen Milky Way they vow to melt, and a fire guiding through a snowstorm.
What does “My graduation 그 첫걸음” mean in “Graduation”?
In “Graduation” by NCT DREAM, “My graduation 그 첫걸음” means: My graduation, the first step. 그 literally means 'that', but here it just points to something already understood, like 'the'. 첫걸음 joins 첫 'first' and 걸음 'step', and together they mean the start of a new path. The English word graduation is dropped straight into the Korean phrase.
What does “어쩔 줄 모르던 오래전 내 안의 그 작은 어른” mean in “Graduation”?
In “Graduation” by NCT DREAM, “어쩔 줄 모르던 오래전 내 안의 그 작은 어른” means: That little grown-up inside me from long ago, who didn't know what to do. 어쩔 줄 모르다 literally means 'not knowing the way to act', but in practice 'to be at a loss'. 작은 and 어른 alone are 'small' and 'adult', but together they mean a child forced to grow up early. The whole long phrase describes the final word 어른.
How do you pronounce “손 흔들어 "안녕" 마지막 인사하고 (인사를 하고)”?
“손 흔들어 "안녕" 마지막 인사하고 (인사를 하고)” from “Graduation” by NCT DREAM is romanized as “son heundeureo "annyeong" majimak insahago (insareul hago)”: that is how it is actually sung, sound changes included, not the textbook spelling.
Where can I see every line of “Graduation” explained?
This page explains 4 key lines. In the theIDOL app Eunsu goes through all 57 lines word by word, in sync with the song; the first verse is free and needs no sign-up.
Official music video
The video loads from YouTube only when you press play. YouTube ↗
How we make these breakdowns
theIDOL builds every breakdown with AI assistance and automated checks, and publishes a page only after it passes them. An AI model writes the meaning of each line and the word-by-word glosses from the song's timed lyrics. The pronunciation comes from our own rule-based Korean transcriber, which spells how the words sound when sung, sound changes included, not a letter-by-letter romanization. Pages that fail the audio-sync or translation checks are not published, and we quote only a few key lines. If you spot a mistake, write to support@theidol.ai and we will fix it.
Credits and sources
- Artist
- NCT DREAM
- Official video
- NCT DREAM · YouTube
Lyrics and music belong to their rights holders. This page quotes no more than four lines for commentary; the translations, pronunciation and explanations are written by theIDOL.