You have seen that Korean has different styles of speech depending on the
relationship between the speakers. The four most commonly used are:
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1) 커피 좋아하십니까? (honorific, formal)
2) 커피 좋아하세요? (honorific, informal)
3) 커피 좋아해요? (polite, informal)
4) 커피 좋아해? (casual)
Styles (1) and (2) are honorific, and are used when you need to be polite and
show a certain level of respect towards the listener due to their age, status and
so on. A typical situation would be a student talking to their teacher.
You will find that style (1), which is also formal, is often used in business settings.
Style (3) is polite and informal. This is usually used when you talk quite
informally to people you do not know very well and whose age and/or status
is similar to or below you. You can also use it to speak to people whom you
feel close to, but they are older than you and/or their social status is higher
than that of yours (e.g, a uni friend who is a few years older than you).
Style (4) is used among close friends or when you speak to your siblings, in
particular, younger family members. Also, depending on how strict their
family upbringing is, some children may also use Style (4) with their parents
instead of Styles (2) or (3).
The different styles of speech used by Koreans are actually quite complex,
and it is not uncommon for people to mix the different styles of speech while
talking to the same person, depending on the context and their relationship.
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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...
