Korean Politeness Levels Explained: 존댓말, 반말 and -요

Korean shows politeness at the end of the sentence: the same verb gets a different ending depending on who you are talking to. For everyday life you need three levels, formal (-습니다), polite (-요) and casual (no ending), and if you are not sure, the polite -요 form is almost always safe.

Textbooks list up to seven speech levels, but four of them are rare or old-fashioned. This guide covers the three you will hear every day, plus the plain written style you will see in books and news.

The three levels side by side

Korean grammar calls these 합쇼체 (hapsyo-che, formal polite), 해요체 (haeyo-che, polite) and 해체 (hae-che, casual). Koreans usually just say 존댓말 (jondaenmal, respectful speech) for the first two and 반말 (banmal, “half speech”) for the casual one.

Notice the pattern. The polite form is the casual form plus 요. The formal form swaps the ending for -ㅂ니다 or -습니다, and it sounds different from how it looks: 갑니다 is said gam-ni-da and 먹습니다 is said meok-sseum-ni-da, because ㅂ before ㄴ turns into ㅁ. Our post on Korean sound changes explains why.

Formal: -습니다 / -ㅂ니다

This is the most respectful everyday level. You hear it in announcements on the subway, from shop and bank staff, in news broadcasts, in speeches, at job interviews and in the army. Questions end in -습니까 / -ㅂ니까: 맞습니까? (mat-seum-ni-kka, “is that right?”).

Learners meet it first through two set phrases, 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida, thank you) and 죄송합니다 (joesonghamnida, I’m sorry). These are fine to use with anyone. Speaking only in -습니다 in a casual chat, though, can sound stiff, like answering a friend in the style of a press release.

Polite: -요

The -요 level is the workhorse of Korean. It is polite but warm, and it is what adults use with people they don’t know well: a taxi driver, a coworker, a neighbor, someone you just met, a person older than you. The same ending works for statements, questions and suggestions, so the tone of your voice does the work:

• 가요. (gayo) I’m going.
• 가요? (gayo?) Are you going?
• 가요! (gayo!) Let’s go!

If you only learn one level, learn this one. Every phrase on our how to say it in Korean pages shows the -요 form first for that reason.

Casual: 반말

반말 is the plain form with no 요. You use it with close friends of the same age, with people clearly younger than you once you know them, with children, and with family members your own age or younger. Many families also use it with parents.

Using 반말 with a stranger or an older person is rude, not just informal. In a K-drama, someone suddenly dropping into 반말 with a stranger usually signals anger or a picked fight.

Who uses which level

Three things decide the level: age, how close you are, and the setting.

Age matters more than in English. One or two years can change how two people talk, which is why Koreans often ask your age early on. If you want to check who counts as older, our Korean age calculator shows birth-year age, which is how many people still compare age socially.

Closeness changes it over time. Two adults who meet at work start in -요. If they become friends, one of them, usually the older one, may suggest switching: 말 놓을까요? (mal noeul-kkayo, “shall we drop the formal speech?”) or 말 편하게 하세요 (mal pyeonhage haseyo, “speak comfortably with me”). Don’t switch to 반말 on your own; wait to be invited.

The setting can override both. Two friends who are coworkers may use 반말 over lunch and -요 or even -습니다 in a meeting with their boss present.

Honorific -시-: respect for the person you talk about

Separate from the sentence ending, Korean can add -시- to the verb to show respect to the person doing the action. That is why “please go” is 가세요 (gaseyo) and why “he goes” changes when “he” is your grandfather: 할아버지가 가세요 (harabeojiga gaseyo), not 할아버지가 가요.

A few common verbs have their own honorific word instead of -시-:

• 먹다 (eat) → 드시다 (deusida): 맛있게 드세요, “enjoy your meal”
• 자다 (sleep) → 주무시다 (jumusida): 안녕히 주무세요, “good night” to an older person
• 있다 (be, stay) → 계시다 (gyesida): 안녕히 계세요, “goodbye” when you are the one leaving

You will hear these in set phrases long before you need to build them yourself.

The plain written style: -다

Books, newspapers, signs, diaries and essays use one more style, called 해라체 (haera-che): 간다 (ganda, goes), 먹는다 (meongneunda, eats), 학생이다 (haksaengida, is a student). It is neither rude nor polite, because it isn’t addressed to anyone in particular. If a sentence in your textbook’s reading passage ends in -다, this is why. In speech, it mostly appears when talking to oneself or to someone much younger.

A quick decision guide

1. Talking to staff, strangers or anyone older? Use -요, or -습니다 for set phrases like 감사합니다.
2. Giving a speech, presentation or formal email? Use -습니다.
3. Talking to a close friend your age or younger, or a child? 반말 is fine.
4. Not sure? Use -요. Nobody is offended by it.

To practise, the Korean vocabulary flashcards cover the verbs above, and each phrase page lists the formal, polite and casual forms side by side with audio.

Sources: National Institute of Korean Language (국립국어원), Standard Language Etiquette (표준 언어 예절); Standard Korean Language Dictionary (표준국어대사전).

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