Korean words that don't translate
Phrases you can't just look up in a dictionary — what Koreans really mean when they say them. A new one every day.
- 아깝다akkapda
Roughly ‘what a waste!’ We say it over leftover food, a goal that hits the post — or a friend who’s too good for the person they’re dating.
the sigh for anything good going to waste - 들어가세요deureogaseyo
Literally ‘please go on in.’ It means ‘get home safe’ — and we even say it to end phone calls, when nobody’s going anywhere.
a goodbye that sends you home, even by phone - 시원하다siwonhada
Literally ‘cool and refreshing.’ Yet we say it after a spoonful of boiling-hot soup — meaning it hits the spot and clears you right out.
yes, even when the soup is still bubbling - 손이 크다soni keuda
Literally ‘to have big hands.’ We say it about someone generous — like a mom who cooks for ten when only four are coming over.
half compliment, half gentle teasing - 밥 먹었어?bap meogeosseo?
In Korea, we don’t always say ‘I love you.’ We ask, ‘Have you eaten?’
a greeting you will hear every day in KoreaRead the story → - 잘 먹겠습니다jal meokgetseumnida
Before the first bite, we say ‘I will eat well’ — a thank-you to whoever cooked or paid.
said at almost every Korean table - 수고하셨습니다sugohasyeotseumnida
‘You’ve worked hard.’ We say it leaving the office, paying a taxi driver, or after any job well done.
the Korean way to say goodbye and thank you at once - 정jeong
Jeong is the warm, sticky bond that grows between people over time — even with people you argue with.
a word Koreans say has no exact translation - 눈치nunchi
Nunchi is reading the room — sensing what others feel before anyone says a word.
a skill every Korean kid is told to have - 빨리빨리ppalli-ppalli
‘Hurry, hurry!’ Food in minutes, paperwork the same day — speed is part of everyday life here.
maybe the first Korean words many visitors learnRead the story → - 우리uri
We say ‘our mom’, ‘our house’, ‘our country’ — even when we mean ‘my’. In Korea, life is shared.
why ‘we’ comes before ‘I’ in Korean - 화이팅!hwaiting!
It comes from the English ‘fighting’, but it means ‘You can do it!’ We shout it before exams, games and job interviews.
Korea’s favorite word of encouragement - 다음에 밥 한번 먹자daeume bap hanbeon meokja
‘Let’s grab a meal sometime.’ Often it’s a warm goodbye, not a real plan — so don’t wait by the phone.
a friendly promise you hear all the time - 괜찮아요gwaenchanayo
‘It’s okay.’ No thanks, I’m fine, don’t worry, sounds good — one phrase, a dozen meanings.
the most useful phrase you’ll learn in Korea