안녕하세요!
Raise your hand if you’ve ever found yourself nodding and smiling because you didn’t understand what was being said. 🙋♂️🙋♀️ Yes, we’ve all been there. But imagine doing that in Korean, and instead of agreeing to help with the dishes, you’ve just committed to climb Mt. Hallasan! 😲
So today, we’re mastering the basics: “Yes” and “No” in Korean! These are the magic words that can open doors…or, sometimes, close them very quickly. They’re like the ‘Ctrl+S’ and ‘Ctrl+Z’ of language – one saves the day, the other undoes your last action.
We’ll learn how to say “yes” when you’re offered that last piece of kimchi jeon, and how to say “no” when someone challenges you to eat that dangerously spicy Korean fire noodle. We’ll help you navigate the Korean language landscape so you never find yourself accidentally signing up for a K-pop dance contest when you thought you were just buying concert tickets.
So grab your hangul hats, it’s time to master the art of agreeing and disagreeing in Korean! And remember, we’re doing this for fun, so even if you mix up your “yes” and “no” at first, there’s no big “NO!” buzzer going off here, just a lot of laughs and learning. Let’s get started! 🚀
How to say “Yes” and “No” in Korean.
Knowing how to say “Yes” and “No” is important in any language. If you are familiar with K-pop songs or K-dramas then I am sure you have heard these phrases before. However, the usage is slightly different when compared to English. In Korean, these words represent the AGREEMENT or DISAGREEMENT. This article will explain how these are used as well as different ways to say “Yes” and “No” in Korean with some examples to help you understand it quicker.
Different ways to say “Yes” in Korean
| Formality | Yes |
| Formal & Polite | 예 |
| Formal & Polite | 네 |
| Informal | 응 |
| Informal | 어 |
Just like in English, there are different ways to say Yes i.e. Yes, Yeah, Yep, Uh-huh. You can feel the difference between these can’t you? In Korean, it’s the same. There are few different ways to say “Yes” in Korean. So let’s have a look at them!
예 – (ye) and 네 – (ne)
This one should be easy to remember since it sounds like English “Yeah”. This word is interchangeable with 네 (ne) and there is no real difference between the two. The meaning of “예” and “녜” in the standard dictionary of the National Institute of Korean language is the same so we can comfortably assume that there is no difference between these two. These are used in the polite language of Korea “존댓말” (Chon-daet-mal).
응 – (eung) and 어 – (eoh)
These are both informal ways to say “Yes” in Korean. You’d only use them when you speak to a friend or when you have agreed to drop the honorifics when speaking to each other, in other words, when you speak in 반말 (ban-mal). These also can be used interchangeably, however ‘응’ has a nuance of a stronger ‘yes’ than ‘어’ but that is a very subtle difference between the two. These are equivalent to English “Yeah” or “Yep”. Informal and also would not be considered polite if speaking to someone older or someone you don’t know.
Usage
As mentioned previously, ‘Yes’ in Korean represents and agreement and so the translations can be summarised as per the below.
예/네/응/어 = That is right. / I agree. / Sounds good. / What you said is correct.
Examples
Positive question with agreement
A: Do you like Kimchi?/ 김치 좋아해요?
B: Yes, I like Kimchi. /네, 김치 좋아해요.
A: Are you from England? /영국에서 왔어요?
B: Yes, I am from England. /예, 영국에서 왔어요.
A: Can you speak Korean?/ 한국어를 할 줄 알아?
B: Yes, I can speak Korean./ 응, 한국어를 할 줄 알아.
A: Have you seen that movie?/ 그 영화 봤어?
B: Yes, I have seen it. / 어, 봤어.
Negative question with agreement.
A: You don’t like Kimchi? 김치를 안 좋아해요?
B: No, I don’t like Kimchi. 네, 김치를 안 좋아해요.
A: Are you not from England? 영국에서 안 왔어요?
B: That’s right, I am not from England. 예, 영국에서 안 왔어요.
A: Can you not speak Korean? 한국어를 할 줄 몰라?
B: Yes, I don’t know it. 응, 몰라.
A: Have you not seen that movie? 그 영화 못 봤어?
B No, I haven’t seen it. 어, 못 봤어.
Please note how in these examples, the English translation would use “No”, while the Korean says “Yes”. Therefore, when answering a question with ‘yes’ or ‘no’ just think about whether you ‘agree; or ‘disagree’ with the other person’s statement or not.
Now, let’s look at the different ways of saying “No” in Korean.
“No” in Korean.
| Formal and standard | 아니요 |
| Informal | 아니 |
Learning how to say No in Korean is a little bit easier than Yes since there are only really two ways how to say No. You might see “아뇨” or “아니오” which also mean no, but they are grammatically incorrect so they are not covered in this lesson. There is also “아니에요” (it’s not) but that will be covered in another lesson.
Usage
Just like with “Yes”, “No” in Korean represents the ‘Disagreement’ and so the translations can be summarised as per the below.
아니요. = That is not right. / I do not agree. / What you said is not correct.
Examples
Positive question with disagreement.
A: Do you like Kimchi? 김치 좋아해요?
B: No, I don’t like Kimchi. 아니요, 김치 안 좋아해요.
A: Are you from England? 영국에서 왔어요?
B: No, I am not from England. 아니요. 영국에서 안 왔어요.
A: Can you speak Korean? 한국어 할 줄 알아?
B: No, I cannot speak Korean. 아니, 한국어 할 줄 몰라.
A: Have you seen that movie? 그 영화 봤어?
B: No, I haven’t seen it. 아니, 못 봤어.
Negative question with disagreement.
A: You don’t like Kimchi? 김치를 안 좋아해요?
B: Yes, I like it. 아니요. 김치 좋아해요.
A: Are you not from England? 영국에서 안 왔어요?
B: Yes, I am from England. 아니요. 영국에서 왔어요.
A: Can you not speak Korean? 한국어를 할 줄 몰라?
B: Yes, I can speak it. 아니, 할 줄 알아.
A: Have you not seen that movie? 그 영화 안 봤어?
B: Yes, I have seen it. 아니, 봤어.
Cultural note
Cultural context is very important when using “yes” and “no” in Korean. Here are some key cultural nuances to keep in mind:
Formality and Respect
In Korean culture, showing respect to people who are older or in a higher position than you is of utmost importance. This is reflected in the language, with different levels of politeness used depending on who you’re talking to. Always be sure to use the appropriate level of politeness when saying “yes” or “no”. For example, use “네” or “예” when speaking to elders or superiors, while “응” can be used with close friends or people of the same age.
Body Language and Intonation
In Korean culture, non-verbal cues play a significant role in communication. For example, nodding while saying “yes” reinforces your affirmation. Be aware of your tone of voice as well. Korean language relies a lot on intonation. The same word can have a different meaning if pronounced with a different tone.
Activity 1
Choose the correct form of “yes” or “no” for the given situation.
- Your teacher asks you if you’ve done your homework. How do you respond “yes”?
- A) 응
- B) 네
- C) 아니
- Your best friend asks if you’d like to go to a K-pop concert. How do you respond “yes”?
- A) 예
- B) 아니
- C) 응
- You are at a restaurant and the waiter asks if you want more water. How do you respond “yes”?
- A) 응
- B) 아니요
- C) 네
- A kid your age asks you if you are new in this class. How do you respond “no”?
- A) 아니
- B) 예
- C) 응
- Your peer at university asks if you’d like to study together for the test. How do you respond “yes”?
- A) 아니
- B) 응
- C) 아니요
Activity 2
Indicate whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
- ‘아니’ is a formal way to say ‘no’ in Korean.
- ‘응’ can be used to say ‘yes’ to your boss.
- ‘네’ is a casual way to say ‘yes’ among close friends.
- ‘아니요’ is a polite way to say ‘no’.
- It’s okay to use ‘응’ when speaking to a stranger.
Activity 1 Answers
- B
- C
- C
- A
- B
Activity 2 Answers
- FALSE
- FALSE
- FALSE
- TRUE
- FALSE
Wrap up
Well, we’ve come to the end of today’s journey into the realm of Korean affirmatives and negatives! We’ve learned how to say “yes” and “no”, and more importantly, we’ve navigated the treacherous seas of formality levels in the Korean language. I’m confident that you can now fearlessly answer “네”, “예”, or “응”, and shake or nod your head with the best of them!
Remember, you can now wield these powerful words with responsibility. Don’t go randomly agreeing or disagreeing with everyone in Korean! Keep the context and your relationship with the other person in mind. If a street vendor asks if you want to buy something, don’t respond with a casual ‘응’, unless you’re looking to start an international incident!
Keep practicing your newly learned skills, and don’t forget, practice makes perfect. Or in our case, practice makes a Korean language master!
Before we wrap up, I must ask: Are you having fun with these lessons? You can answer in Korean now! 응? 네? Share your thoughts in the comments below and let us know what else you’d like to learn in our upcoming adventures.
Thanks for joining today’s lesson, and until next time, 안녕히 계세요.
In the next lesson, we will cover the pronouns 이, 그, 저 and learn new vocabulary. You can check it out here.