You have made the decision to start learning Korean and now are looking for useful words and phrases that can help you to start your journey. As a Korean learner myself, I was really surprised whenever I saw a textbook or a blog post that would teach certain words or phrases to learners of Korean because they were actually almost NEVER used by Koreans themselves. Since I have been on my journey for more than 10 years now, it really frustrate me to still see these expressions and words used. Therefore, I have decided to write a post that will actually include useful expressions that Koreans use themselves as well as including the ones that are NOT commonly used and explain why these are not used often.
Politeness levels in Korean
Before we start with learning basic Korean phrases and words, it is important for you to understand that Korean language has different levels of politeness.
Korean language is about showing respect to other people and therefore if you speak to someone you don’t know or is older than you, you will need to be respectful through the use of the language.
However, if you are speaking with a friend then using the polite form of Korean might feel a bit awkward as well as it can put an invisible wall between you, making it more difficult to become close friends.
존댓말 (jeon-daet-mal) is a polite form of Korean language, whereas 반말 (ban-mal) is an informal form of Korean language. Words ending with 니다 (ni-da) or 요 (yo) are an indication that the words are in the polite form.
It is better to learn 존댓말 first as if you use 존댓말 in a situation where you can use 반말, it won’t create any problems, but if you use 반말 where you are supposed to use 존댓말, (especially to older people) they probably won’t appreciate it. Also, once you learn 존댓말, understanding 반말 will be really easy.
But when do I use 존댓말 and when do I use 반말?
There are no strict guidelines and everyone has different opinion, but you can use the below guide.
You use 존댓말 when
- You are talking to someone you have met for the first time OR
- You are talking to someone older
If you have met someone for the first time that looks around your age, after a while of talking you can ask their age and if they are older, you have to use polite Korean until they suggest speaking in 반말 first.
If you are older than them, you can suggest to speak in 반말. And if you are the same age, either of you can suggest to speak in 반말.
Basic Korean Phrases
- 안녕하세요 (an-nyeong-ha-se-yo) – Hello (If you want to know more about this greeting, check out this article).
- 여보세요 (yeo-bo-se-yo) – Hello (used only when answering the phone)
- 감사합니다 (gam-sa-ham-ni-da) – Thank you
- 고맙습니다 (go-map-seum-ni-da) – Thank you (If you want to know the difference between different ways of saying thank you in Korean, check out this article)
- 미안합니다 (mi-an-ham-ni-da) – I’m sorry
- 죄송합니다 (choi-song-ham-ni-da) – I’m sorry (Check out this article to understand the different ways of saying sorry in Korean)
- 네 (ne) – Yes
- 예 (ye) – Yes (To learn the difference between 네 and 예, check out this article)
- 아니요 (a-ni-yo) – No
- 괜찮아요 (gwen-chan-a-yo) – It’s ok
- 반가워요 (ban-ga-weo-yo) – Nice to meet you
- 좋은 아침이에요 (joh-eun ah-chim-i-ye-yo) – Good morning
- 안녕히 가세요 (an-nyeong-hi ga-se-yo) – Goodbye (When you are staying and the other person is leaving)
- 안녕히 계세요 (an-nyeong-hi gye-se-yo) – Goodbye (When you are leaving and the other person is staying)
- 잘 가요 (jal ga-yo) – Take care
- 오랜만이에요 (o-raen-man-i-e-yo) – Long time no see
- 천만에요 (cheon-man-e-yo) – You’re welcome
All of the above phrases are commonly used apart from the last one, 천만에요. The dictionary translation is “You are welcome”, however, Koreans themselves rarely use it. I had so many Korean people tell me that it just doesn’t sound natural and that they have probably almost never used it themselves in their own lives. Instead, people usually say 괜찮아요 or 아니에요.
Saying yes and no in Korean is a little bit different than in English, you can check out the lesson on yes and no in Korean here.
Survival Korean phrases
나중에 봐요. – See you later.
(나중에 – later, 봐요 – see)
천천히 말해 주세요. – Please speak slowly.
천천히 – slowly, 말해 – speak, 주세요 – do it for me
다시 한 번 말해 주세요. – Please say that again.
다시 – again, 한 – one, 번 – time, 말해 – speak, 주세요 – do it for me
뭐라고 했어요? – What did you say?
뭐 – what, 라고 – say, 했어요 – did
한국어 잘 못 해요. – I cannot speak Korean well.
한국어 – Korean, 잘 – well, – 못 – cannot, 해요 – do
영어로 뭐예요? – What is it in English?
영어 – English, 로 – in, 뭐예요 – what is it
영어 할 줄 알아요? – Do you know how to speak English?
영어 – English, 할 줄 – can you/are you able to, 알아요 – do you know
이해해요. – I understand.
이해 – understanding, 해요 – do
이해 못 해요. – I don’t understand.
이해 – understanding, 못 – cannot, 해요 – do
얼마에요? – How much is it?
얼마 – how much, 에요 – is it
어디에 있어요? – Where is it?
어디에 – where, 있어요 – it is
화장실 어디에 있어요? – Where is the bathroom?
화장실 – bathroom, 어디에 – where, 있어요 – it is
도와 줄수 있어요? – Can you help me please?
도와 – help, 줄 – give me, 수 있어요 – can you
Basic phrases for conversation
제 이름 사라예요. – My name is Sara.
(제 – my, 이름 – name, 사라 – Sara, 예요 – is)
이름이 뭐예요? – What is your name?
이름 – name, 뭐 – what, 예요 – is it
몇 살이에요? – How old are you?
몇 – how many, 살 – years, 이에요 – are you
저 20살이에요. – I am 20 years old.
저 – I, 살 – years, 이에요 – am
잘 지냈어요? – Have you been well?
잘 – well, 지냈어요 – been, doing
어디 나라 사람이에요? -Which country are you from?
(어디 – Which, 나라 – country, – 사람 – person -이에요 – are you)
어디 살아요? Where do you live?
(어디 – where, 살아요? – live)
만나서 반가워요. – Glad to meet you.
(만나서 – to meet, 반가워요 – glad)
좋은 하루 보내세요. – Have a nice day.
(좋은 – nice/good, 하루 – day, 보내세요 – have/spend)
밥 먹었어요? – Did you eat?
밥 – food, 먹었어요 – did you eat