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50 Random Korean Words – Your Best Checklist To Start Learning Korean

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Editorial Team

By Editorial Team
Published on December 13, 2022

Table Of Contents

After several months of a harsh and severe lockdown, South Korea is finally open for tourism! You can finally explore the dazzling history of the city of Seoul, visit the impressive pagodas of Suwon, or relax at the beaches of Busan. Korea is an incredible country filled with incredible landscapes and rich culture, desperate to receive tourists and visitors once again.

During my last visit to Korea, I was lucky enough to learn a few random Korean words that made my everyday life in this country much more pleasant and easy. When I needed to communicate with someone, I’d look up simple Korean words or expressions. However, if I’d known then how much I would need and use these words, I would have learned them much sooner, and my life in Korea would have been much smoother.

Learning a few words and expressions in Korean will help you express yourself and ensure you don’t get the wrong order in a restaurant (which has happened to me several times, unfortunately). You’ll also be able to connect with the friendly locals.

Korean Thank You

As an example, one of the first Korean words I learned was 감사합니다 (gamsahabnida), which in English means “thank you.” I used it everywhere! When I would receive my food – Bam! 감사합니다 (gamsahabnida); Somebody gave me a smily look – Bam! 감사합니다 (gamsahabnida). Every time I used it, I got a smile and even some words of appreciation for the fact I was trying to learn their language! From that moment on, I kept adding words to my vocabulary and feeling more and more integrated into society!

I can’t stress enough how important it is to learn a few basic Korean words. A few words can be the essential tool you can have to get along with people and make your trip much more enjoyable!

That is what this article is all about: I want to teach some random and useful words you can take on your next trip. When you come back from your trip, come back to this article and tell me how many times you used them and the funny stories you’ll definitely have if you use these terms!

So, let’s move on and get to the good stuff!

Random Korean Words That You Must Learn

What are the most important Korean words you should know, even if you can’t form a sentence? In the table below are a set of random words in Korean that you most certainly will hear or see written somewhere during your trip to Korea. This includes some of the most common Korean words you can use, and if you can’t memorize all of them, save this article on your phone and return to it to refresh your memory.

Even if you can’t form a complete sentence using these basic Korean words along with some kind of hand gesture, you’ll eventually be able to transmit the message and get understood.

EnglishKorean (Hangul)Korean (Romanized)Pronunciation
Hello (Formal)안녕하십니까
/
안녕하하세요
annyeonghasibnikka
/
annyonghahaseyo
안녕하십니까
/
안녕하하세요
Goodbye
1st: when the other person is leaving.
2nd: when you are the one leaving.
안녕히 가 세요/
안녕히 계세요
annyonghi ga seyo/
annyonghi gye seyo
안녕히 가 세요 /
안녕히 계세요
Yesye
No아니ani 아니
Maybe아마도amado 아마도
Please
(Rarely used in daily conversations, it conveys a desperate feeling.)
제발jebal 제발
Please부탁드립니다/부탁드리겠습니다butaktteurimnida/
butaktteurigetsseumnida
부탁드립니다
/
부탁드리겠습니다
Thank you고맙습니다gomabseubnida 고맙습니다
You’re welcome천만에요cheonman-eyo 천만에요
Okay괜찮아gwaenchanh-a 괜찮아
I’m sorry죄송합니다joesonghabnida 죄송합니다
Excuse me실례합니다sillyehabnida 실례합니다
Good좋은joh-eun 좋은
Bad나쁜nappeun 나쁜
And그리고geuligo 그리고
Left왼쪽oenjjog 왼쪽
Right오른쪽oleunjjog 오른쪽
Korean (Person)한국인hangug-in 한국인
Go가다gada 가다
Careful조심josim 조심
Attention주목jumog 주목
Exit출구chulgu 출구
Entrance입구ibgu 입구
Help돕다dobda 돕다
Here여기yeogi 여기
There거기geogi 거기
Repeat반복하다banboghada 반복하다
Name이름ileum 이름
Bathroom화장실hwajangsil 화장실
Coffee커피keopi 커피
Restaurant레스토랑leseutolang 레스토랑
Train Station기차역gichayeog 기차역
Watermul
Food음식eumsig 음식
Price가격gagyeog 가격
Supermarket슈퍼마켓syupeomakes 슈퍼마켓
Hotel호텔hotel 호텔
Taxi택시taegsi 택시
Hospital병원byeong-won 병원
Police경찰gyeongchal 경찰
Lost잃어버린ilh-eobeolin 잃어버린
Moneydon
Daynaj
Nightbam
Lunch점심jeomsim 점심
Dinner저녁jeonyeog 저녁
Wi-Fi와이파이waipai 와이파이
Airport공항gonghang 공항
Up위로wilo 위로
Down아래alae 아래
Emergency비상bisang 비상

Basic Words Learned: What’s next?

I can’t believe it took me about 2 weeks to learn all these basic Korean words! I learned them by necessity as I encountered some communication difficulties, but once I did, I would use them almost every day in my daily life in Korea.

If your goal is to become fluent in Korean, then learning only these 50 words is definitely not enough. Do you know how many words you need to know in Korean to be considered fluent? Well, it is much more than 50, but you can discover how much in our blog post that tells you all about it.

In the meantime, why don’t you invest in learning a language spoken by over 75 million people worldwide and start building your fluency in this beautiful language? There are many incredible online tools to improve your Korean; nevertheless, I have the best one for you to start immediately!

Learn Korean With Ling App Cta

Learn Korean With Ling App

Let me introduce you to Ling app, a language-learning application that has changed my whole idea of what it is to learn languages.

Ling app is a language learning application where you can learn over 60 languages worldwide through fun and interactive games, quizzes, and puzzles. With this application, you can learn any language you want at your own pace, be that 15 minutes a day or 2h a day. You define your own rhythm and decide when you want to practice and improve your fluency.

Sitting perfectly on your smartphone, this application is available for you 24/7, anywhere you want. You can learn while waiting for a doctor’s appointment, on your way to work, or while eating good ’Korean barbecue. From the most basic Korean phrases to the most advance, you can learn how to speak Korean based on your own level!

This application was my best friend while I learned several languages from all across the world, and it is ready to teach you the ins and out’s of the Korean language!

The question is: Are you ready to embark on this journey? Download Ling app from App Store or Google Play today and start speaking Korean!