1. 뭐해? mwo-hae (What’s up?)
Instead of saying ‘Hello’, you can use the phrase when you see your friend. It literally means ‘What are you doing?’
2. 방가방가 bang-ga bang-ga (Nice to see you.)
반가워 (bangawo) is the verb meaning ‘nice to meet someone’. Instead of using the full sentence, people in 10s or 20s only take the verb-stem 반가 and say it twice to say ‘Nice to meet you’ casually.
3. 잘.. jal (Well.. (I don’t know.))
Like other Asian countries, Korean people don’t like saying “No!” directly to you. It’s the culture. Instead they’ll prefer saying ‘No’ indirectly. Instead of saying ‘잘 몰라요 (jal mollayo)’ meaning ‘I don’t know’, it’s better to say 잘 (jal) which literally means ‘well..‘ when you don’t know the answer. Next time you hear it, you’ll know you’re not getting the answer you were hoping for.
4. 잠시만요 jam-si-man-yo (Excuse me)
It sounds more natural than the formal phrase 실례합니다 (sillyehamnida) meaning ‘excuse me’. It literally means ‘wait a moment please’, so you can say the phrase when you call someone or get attention.
5. 저기요.. jeo-gi-yo (Excuse me)
Meaning: ‘over there please‘. When you call someone a little bit away from you, or waiter at a restaurant, you can simply use this phrase.
6. 정말 jeong-mal (Really?)
Good one to know! Conversations are littered with this! It means ‘Really‘ or ‘For real?’. Although they know you’re talking about the truth, they will keep saying ‘정말’ when they react. It’s just like ‘Yeah?’ or ‘Interesting’ in English, so don’t focus on the actual meaning too much.
7. 수고하세요. su-go-ha-se-yo (Work hard then)
Meaning: ‘Work hard‘, but Korean people use this phrase when they leave before someone else or say ‘Bye for now‘. You can use this phrase when you leave the office (after a long day of work) or a restaurant (eating is hard work!)
8. 별로.. byeol-lo (Not that much)
When you don’t like something, don’t say ‘싫어(sil-reo)’ meaning “No I don’t like.” Too direct. Remember, it’s all about subtlety no matter how much you want to yell 싫어 at the top of your lungs. Instead, you can say 별로 (byeollo) meaning ‘Not that much.’
9. 그럼 다음에 geureom daume (Then next time!)
Casual and friendly! Instead of saying 안녕 meaning ‘Bye‘, you can simply say 그럼 다음에 when you say bye to your friends.
10. 싸게 해주세요. ssage haejuseyo (Make it cheaper please)
You might have learned the phrase 깍아주세요 (kakajuseyo) meaning ‘Discount please‘, but some would be offensive when you use the phrase. Instead, lets go indirectly. 싸게 해주세요 is less direct than other phrases, so you will get more chances to get a discount.
11. 네? ne (excuse me? literally, Yes?)
When you want to ask someone say something one more time… because either you forgot to clean your ears this morning… or they’re a low talker, you can simply say 네? It literally means ‘Yes?’, but it’s not rude in Korean.
12. 야! ya (Hey)
To call friends, you can simply say 야 ya. It’s exactly like Hey in English. But remember that you can use it only between friends.
13. 선생님 seon-saeng-nim (Mr. Literally Teacher)
If you don’t know someone’s name, you can simply call someone as 선생님. It really means ‘teacher’, but this word can be used to mean ‘Mr’ or ‘Mrs.’ If you know someone’s family name, you can put the family name in front of the word 선생님 such as 김 선생님 (Kim seonsaengnim)
14. 나도 nado (Me too)
나 means ‘I, me’, and 도 means ‘too’. All together it means ‘me too.’ When you agree with someone’s suggestion or opinion, you can simply say 나도 twice as 나도나도.
15. 근데.. geunde (Anyway)
When someone’s boring you with complaints about their life or you just want to talk about yourself instead, you say “…..Anyyyywayyy…” Do just that in Korean! You can simply say 근데 then talk about something else. When you’re talking to someone older than you, simply put the particle 요 at the end as 근데요 (geundeyo).
16. 좋아합니다. joh-a-ham-nida (I like, I love)
This literally means ‘I like [something/someone].’ However, many people use it to mean ‘I love you’ since it’s less direct. If someone says ‘I like you’, consider yourself lucky (or unlucky)! They’re admitting love!
17. 부탁합니다. bu-tak-hamnida (Please)
In English, you can say [noun] then please to ask something. Same in Korean. Simply say nouns, then say 부탁합니다. It’s polite way to ask something in Korean.
18. 안돼요 an-dwae-yo (No, Don’t do it)
No! Don’t speak to me in English! When you want to say ‘Don’t do something’, say 안돼요 instead of 아니요(aniyo). Both means ‘No’, but you can only say 안돼요 when you ask someone not to do something.
19. 도와주세요 dowajuseyo (Help!)
You won’t use this phrase, but it’s better to remember. When you need help, simply use this one. It’s also good to ask ladies over 30s, since they are more likely help someone even if they don’t know you. There’s hope for humanity yet!
20. 괜찮아요 gwaen-chan-ayo (Okay)
It means ‘Okay’. You can use it to ask someone if he/she is okay, or answer questions. Kinda like when you type out a whole message to a friend and they reply with a “K.” >_>
Also it means ‘to like’. So when someone say ‘괜찮아요’, it means ‘I like it’, not ‘It’s okay’. Remember, that less direct is always the better in Korean.
Credits: naiji Mae yan park
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KEY TO KOREAN (키 투 코리얀)
RandomWelcome to KEY TO KOREAN! Your story of reliable korean lessons. This book will help you learn, speak, and write useful Korean words. Together, Let's Learn Korean! Some lessons are from my notes and others are come from different sources. I only co...
