인사: Greetings in Korean

Hello - 안녕하세요

Yes/No - 네/아니요

Thank you - 감사합니다

Goodbye - 안녕히가세요/안녕히계세요

Nice to meet you - 만나서 반갑습니다

Other daily expressions

Practice

Hello in Korean - 안녕하세요

When you start to learn a language the first thing you want to be able to do is greet someone.

Being polite to others is also the first thing any traveler should learn when visiting a new country, and in South Korea politeness is also emphasized through its language so we will try to introduce about all these concepts simply...

Now that you can read 한글, as a start we will give you all the necessary expressions for the first bribe of communication skill you need to talk with others.

Of course, the first thing you will want to learn is how to say “Hello” as it will be through this word that you will have your first interaction with Korean people.

The word “Hello” is written안녕하세요. There are multiple other ways to say hello in different Korean politeness levels, but this word is the most commonly used for most situations. Other language learning sources might teach you the word안녕, which is also correct, but not as polite. Therefore, it's essential to use this word cautiously, as this word is more suited for close or familiar relationships.

Of course Korean people might not be too surprised with you using 안녕 right away as it is a common mistake, but understanding that there are different level of politeness and getting used to it from the start is the first step to a proper conversation in Korean.

You will often encounter “hello” written as “안녕하세요?”. The question mark reflects the politeness of the greeting, inviting a response or acknowledgment from the person being greeted

Yes & No in Korean - 네/아니요

As you saw previously in the 한글 lessons the words for “yes” and “no” are basically네and아니요. However you should know that the word 네 is sometimes used differently than in english or other languages.

It may be counter-intuitive, but it is common for Koreans to answer “yes” after receiving a “hello” or a “goodbye”. Therefore, don’t be surprise if somebody answers “네” after you wish them good bye. In a more general way, 네 is also used as a punctuation.

Again, where politeness level differs, is that when you’ll talk to someone you’re already accustomed to you’ll notice that they’re not even using 네, but just 응.

Don’t be too afraid by all the differences we’re pointing out! You should focus on learning higher politeness level and basic concepts first! But since we want to give you the keys to natural conversation, we will give you such insights throughout the lessons.

In the case of 아니요, the less polite and friendlier version is just 아니.

Thank you in Korean - 감사합니다

Next thing you will encounter a lot is감사합니다, it is the most proper way to say “Thank you” and it fits in every situation.

A less formal word for this is 고마워요, dropping the politeness particle “요” gives고마워, which is the familiar form of this word.

Goodbye in Korean - 안녕히가세요/안녕히계세요

And with “Hello” will always come a “Goodbye”, now this one might be a bit tricky at first but you’ll quickly get used to it. There are two main ways to say “Goodbye”:안녕히계세요and안녕히가세요. Let’s see the usage differences:

안녕히계세요 is what you’re staying to a person that “stays” and you're the one leaving. The literal translation of this word means ”Stay in peace” or ”Be in peace”

안녕히가세요 is what you’re staying to a person that “goes away”. In this case, the literal translation is ”Go in peace” or ”Go safely.”

What does this mean? You and someone you know are parting after a meeting, you’re both “going” back home, you can use 안녕히가세요.

Contrarily, you’re saying goodbye to a shop owner after you’re done buying something, that person “stays” at the shop then it is 안녕히계세요! See, it’s not so hard!

Above are the most basics, let’s go further now and see more useful expressions!

Nice to meet you in Korean - 만나서 반갑습니다

만나서 반갑습니다 stands for “Nice to meet you”. This words also exist in a technically less formal form; 만나서 반가워요 but the difference is negligible.

You might also encounter처음 뵙겠습니다, often used in the same context and that literally means “It’s my first time meeting you”, which might sound strange but just remember it as an expression.