모난 돌이 정 맞는다

monan dori jeong manneunda

Word for word

“The stone with sharp corners gets struck by the chisel.”

What it means

Stand out too much and you'll get criticized or pushed back into line.

When you'd say it

Cautioning someone about speaking up — or criticizing a culture that punishes it.

Closest English saying

The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.

Example

회의 때 혼자 반대해서 찍혔대. 모난 돌이 정 맞는 거지.She disagreed alone in the meeting and got marked for it. The sharp stone meets the chisel.