Saying Thank You in Korean: An Informative Guide

Nehakumari
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Want to learn how to say thank you in Korean? Then this article is exclusively for you all.

Thank you is a formal word that we mostly use. Everyone knows how to say thank you in English and their native language. But besides being a native speaker of English, do you know how to say thank you in Korean?

We all know there are so many discontiguous languages in India and worldwide. This world is full of different cultures, beliefs, and regions.

We all know how this Korean music and dramas have become exponentially popular in recent times; people have started taking a new interest in learning the Korean language, and for that, many of them have already joined language learning apps on which they can learn the Korean language, Korean slang, Korean phrases, and few casual phrases.

So, without further ado, let us learn how to show gratitude in Korean.

About the Korean language

Saying Thank You in Korean: An Informative Guide 1
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Hangul is the Korean standard form of the alphabet, as Chosongul is in North Korea. For Korean native speakers, Korean may be easy to speak as they are natives, but for others, it seems easy to learn, but it is not the case. Korean is one of the more difficult languages to remember, even in a formal version.

Perhaps, people have a craze over them for the language while watching Korean dramas and the way they talk formally or use phrases they want to use.

So, let us start with thank you in Korean with polite words!

How to say thank you in Korean?

We usually use thank you daily and have heard this word in shops, hospitals, or on different occasions. But, when it comes to the Korean language, it’s not that easy to say on every occasion. Korean culture has various forms of speech, and knowing where to use formal and polite language is essential.

Gam sa ham ni da is a formal way to say thank you very much in Korean, and there are many other traditional versions to show thankfulness in Korean, and we will teach you all of them. In Korea, there are many ways to express gratitude.

The first form of saying Thank you in Korean is gam sa ham ni da. It is used to greet elders and to show respect and politeness.

In the same way, when someone says thank you in the Korean version with formal phrases or polite form, they also show respect in more profound gratitude to someone older than them.

The Second way to pay tribute in Korean is less formal: go map seum ni da, but it depends on whom you are speaking to.

The third formal Korean phrase is an informal version of saying thank you in Korean: go ma wo yo. It is a casual way to say thank you in Korean. It can be used between friends of the same age and peers.

How to use thank you in typical conversations?

When two people interact, thank you is said to show appreciation to others, but others have to say some words to return the appreciation or to complete the sentence. So, before learning other words, let’s read a conversation between two strangers who met at college while filling out their exam forms and understand how to use thank in typical conversations.

Sam- Hello, sir, Can I have the Exam form to fill out?

He got the Exam form and went to the sitting table to fill it out, but when he started searching for a pen, he didn’t have it to fill the form. At that time, another guy, Mike, came to fill out the form. He took the paper and went to the same table to complete the form.

Mike sat there and finished filling out the form, and then Sam asked him, Hey, I’m Sam, Can I borrow your pen?

Mike- Hello, I’m Mike. Yeah, you can use it; here you go!!!

Sam took the pen and filled out the form, and in return, he showed his gratitude by saying

Sam- Thank you!

Mike- It’s ok, no need to say it.

Sam: Still, thanks, dude, you saved me; Thank you very much

Sam used formal and polite forms of thank you in this conversation. This conversation was in the form of speaking English.

Learning other phrases

Saying Thank You in Korean: An Informative Guide 2
Image Source: katemangostar/ Freepik

Now, let’s learn how to say welcome, I’m ok or similar phrases in Korean.

When some Korean shows his gratitude towards you and says thank you in Korean, after that, you have to say something in return which expresses that you are taking an interest in that conversation.

In the conversation, when Sam said, Thank you, in return, Mike replied, it’s ok! So, in Korean, when some say, “It’s ok”, then they say ” gwen chan ah yo“, which means they are ok to help you, and it’s nothing serious to ask for help or to borrow something.

Another word to express is a ni ae yo. This “a ni ae yo” is even expressed as an expression to show like annie, which means no and have used in most situations. When someone is shocked, they say Jung mal or Jeong mal.

To say welcome, you can say Chun man in Korean.

After all this learning, there is time to have a simple conversation.

If you go to South Korea for a meeting or to explore it, you can easily find them using Korean phrases to talk, you went there and had your first encounter in a Korean restaurant, and you want something,

The most common way to introduction is

Person 1- Jeo gi yo, Annyeong haseyo, Choeum Boepgasseumnida (Excuse me, Hello, Nice to meet you or How do you do?)

Jeo neun Kabir imnida (My name is Kabir)

This is an example of polite conversation.

Ban gap seum ni da (Pleasure to meet you or pleasure to see you) is the other way of introducing after the first and secondary introductions.

Bottom Line

To encapsulate,

  1. Gam sa ham ni da – Thank you in a more formal form.
  2. Go map seum ni da – Thank you in standard form.
  3. Go ma wo – paying tribute in an intimate form or casual way.
  4. Gam sa ha da – means thankfulness in Korean.
  5. A ni ae yo – it’s nothing.
  6. go map da – it used to be thankful.
  7. Jeong mal – really
  8. Gwen chan ah yo – It’s ok!!

Hopefully, this article helped in learning how to say thank you in Korean in both formal and informal situations. Keep practising, and you will be able to speak the beautiful Korean language fluently soon.

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Last Updated on by Sathi

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