Korean Greetings: Why 안녕하세요 Isn't Enough (And What Actually Matters)

You learned how to say hello in Korean from some app. You practiced 안녕하세요 (annyeongha seyo) in your bedroom. Maybe you even used this Korean greeting with a native Korean speaker once and they smiled politely.

Then you tried using 안녕 (annyeong) with someone older than you and the conversation got weird.

Here's what actually happened: you just accidentally told your Korean teacher or someone's parent that you're close friends. In the Korean language, greetings aren't just words you memorize—they're a whole system of showing who you think you are in relation to the other person. Get the greeting in Korean wrong, and you're not just mispronouncing. You're being rude.

The thing nobody tells you about Korean greetings and phrases

Most Korean learning resources teach you the words. They'll give you basic Korean greetings like 안녕하세요, maybe 안녕하십니까 for "extra formal," and 안녕 for Korean friends. Then they move on to numbers or food vocabulary.

What they don't explain is that the Korean language has seven speech levels. Seven different ways to conjugate every verb, each one signaling a different relationship between you and the person you're talking to. Common Korean greetings are just the visible tip of this system.

If you learn Korean without understanding speech levels, you'll sound like someone who walks up to strangers and immediately uses their first name. Technically you speak Korean. Practically, you're making everyone uncomfortable.

Essential Korean greetings: 안녕하세요 works in most situations

Let's start with what actually works for basic Korean greeting situations. 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo) is the standard way to greet someone in almost any context. This common greeting works for strangers in stores, coworkers, people around your age when you're meeting someone for the first time, your Korean teacher, random people you're asking for directions.

The literal meaning is something like "Are you at peace?" but native speakers don't think about that when they say hello. It's just the way to say "hello" in polite form.

If you're standing there wondering whether to use formal or informal Korean greeting, just say 안녕하세요. You'll be fine in everyday situations.

The Korean pronunciation breaks down as an-nyeong-ha-se-yo. The fourth syllable is where people mess up—that ㅂ sound turns into an "m" sound before ㄴ. Here are pronunciation tips: it's "se" not "be." If you're saying "annyeonghabseyo," your pronunciation needs work.

Learn how to say hello casually: 안녕 (annyeong)

안녕 (annyeong) is the casual way to say hello in Korean. Just those two syllables. You use this Korean phrase in informal situations with close friends, younger siblings, kids, maybe your younger cousins if you're tight.

The catch: you need to actually be close to someone before you switch to this casual greeting. Not "we met twice" close. Not "we follow each other on Instagram" close. Like, you hang out regularly and they've explicitly told you to speak informally, or they're clearly younger than you and you're in a casual setting.

Koreans take age seriously in Korean culture. If someone is even one year older than you, they're your 형 (hyeong) or 누나 (nuna) or 언니 (eonni) or 오빠 (oppa) depending on your gender and theirs. You don't just drop into 반말 (banmal—informal speech) because you feel like it.

Using 안녕 with someone older than you or someone you're not close with? That's not appropriate to use. That's basically saying "I don't respect you enough to be polite."

Learn basic Korean greeting for formal occasions: 안녕하십니까

안녕하십니까 (annyeonghasimnikka) is the super formal Korean greeting. You'll see this greeting in Korean news broadcasts, military settings, really formal business presentations in South Korean companies. Maybe if you're meeting someone for the first time—like your girlfriend's parents—and you want to go overboard on respect in formal settings.

For everyday situations? Way too stiff. Using this way to greet coworkers would be like showing up to a casual Friday meeting in a tuxedo. Technically correct, but everyone's going to think you're weird.

Answering a phone call: 여보세요 (yeoboseyo)

여보세요 (yeoboseyo) is the Korean greeting only for answering a phone. That's it. Don't use this Korean phrase when greeting someone in person. Don't text it. It's specifically the "hello" you say when you pick up a phone call.

If you walk up to someone and say 여보세요, they're going to look around confused like you're trying to get someone's attention but don't know their name.

Good morning in Korean (and why it's not really used)

You can technically use the phrase 좋은 아침이에요 (joeun achimieyo) as a way to say "good morning" in Korean, but Korean speakers don't really use time-specific greetings like English speakers do at different times of the day. There's no standard way to say "good afternoon" or "good evening" as separate greetings in the Korean language.

What native Korean speakers actually say in the morning: 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo). Same greeting. All day. The time doesn't change the greeting in Korean—your relationship with the person does.

If you want to sound more natural with this morning greeting for Korean friends or family, you'd ask 잘 잤어요? (jal jasseoyo?)—meaning "Did you sleep well?" That's way more common than any good morning greeting.

How to say hello with proper bowing in Korean culture

Korean greetings aren't complete without the bow. It's not optional cultural flavor. When you greet someone in Korean culture, you add a small bow. It's part of the greeting.

A slight head nod works for casual greetings—saying hello to a coworker in the hallway, thanking the convenience store clerk. About 15 degrees if you're measuring, but nobody's standing there with a protractor. Just a polite acknowledgment when you say hello.

For more formal Korean greeting situations—when you're meeting someone for the first time, greeting your boss, thanking someone for a favor—you bow from the waist about 30 degrees. Hold it for a second. Keep your back straight.

The deepest bow (45 degrees) is for serious apologies, showing extreme gratitude, or greeting elders during holidays. You'll know when this way to greet is appropriate.

Here's what messes people up: younger people bow lower than older people. If you're meeting someone older than you when greeting in Korean, you bow lower and they might just nod. That's normal in South Korean culture. If you're older and someone bows to you, you nod back or do a smaller bow. The whole thing is calibrated by age and social status.

Nice to meet you: First meeting with someone in Korean

You know what's awkward? Learning 안녕하세요 and then having no idea what Korean greeting comes next.

When you're meeting someone for the first time, after 안녕하세요, you'll usually say 처음 뵙겠습니다 (cheoeum boepgesseumnida). This common Korean greeting literally means "I'm meeting you for the first time" but functions as "nice to meet you."

Another way of saying this is 만나서 반갑습니다 (mannaseo bangapseumnida)—another way to say "nice to meet you" that Korean speakers use.

Then you introduce yourself: 저는 name이라고 합니다 (jeoneun nameirago hamnida)—"I'm called name."

The formula for these greetings and phrases is straightforward. The problem is most language learning apps teach you the Korean greeting and then jump to ordering food or asking for directions. They don't teach you how actual conversations start when using Korean.

This is exactly what we talked about in our post on Japanese honorifics—Asian languages build politeness and respect into the grammar itself. You can't just learn Korean words. You need to see how they're actually used in context.

Common Korean greetings for different situations

Korean has different greetings for various contexts beyond basic "hello in Korean." Here are some useful Korean phrases:

식사하셨어요? (siksa hasyeosseoyo?) - "Have you eaten?" This Korean greeting isn't weird. It's not an invitation to lunch. It's just another way of asking "how are you?" that reflects how important food is in Korean culture. This way of asking shows care and is appropriate to use in everyday situations.

수고하세요 (sugohaseyo) - "Good work" or "Keep it up." You say this Korean phrase to people who are working. The person behind the counter at a cafe. The delivery person. Your coworker who's staying late. It's a way of acknowledging someone's effort.

오랜만이에요 (oraemanieyo) - "Long time no see." When greeting someone you haven't seen in a while, this Korean greeting works perfectly. Native speakers use this all the time.

These different ways to say hello in Korean show how context shapes communication in the Korean language.

Saying goodbye in Korean: 안녕히 가세요 vs. 안녕히 계세요

Saying goodbye in Korean is more complex than saying goodbye in English. There are different ways of saying goodbye depending on who's leaving.

안녕히 가세요 (annyeonghi gaseyo) - "Go in peace." You say this Korean phrase to someone who is leaving when you're staying.

안녕히 계세요 (annyeonghi gyeseyo) - "Stay in peace." You say this when you're leaving and someone else is staying.

These Korean salutations matter. Using the wrong one doesn't make sense to native Korean speakers—like saying "have a safe flight" to someone who's not traveling.

The speech level system that affects every Korean greeting

The Korean language has seven speech levels. You don't need to memorize all seven—four of them are basically obsolete. But you need to understand the concept because it affects every single Korean phrase you say.

The main split is between 존댓말 (jondaemal—polite speech) and 반말 (banmal—informal speech).

존댓말 is what you use when greeting someone with formal speech: people older than you, people you just met, people in positions of authority, strangers, coworkers (until you're told otherwise), your friend's parents, basically anyone you want to show respect to when you greet someone.

반말 is the casual greeting level: close friends your age or younger, younger siblings, kids, sometimes your parents (though some people use 존댓말 with parents too—depends on the family).

The problem is that Korean greeting levels aren't isolated. Every verb ending changes. If you say 안녕 but then use formal verb endings, you sound confused. If you say 안녕하세요 but then drop into informal verb endings when using Korean, you're sending mixed signals.

This is why learning Korean from random phrases doesn't work. You need to hear how Korean speakers actually talk in different situations. You need to see a Korean drama where a character switches from formal to informal speech with their friend, or uses extra-polite speech with their boss.

Why textbook Korean greetings don't help your fluency

Textbooks will teach you essential Korean greetings but they won't show you how native speakers actually use them. They'll give you basic Korean greetings in neat categories but won't explain when South Korean people switch between them.

You won't find context-dependent Korean phrases in a "10 Essential Korean Greetings" guide because it's too cultural. Too situational. But it's what actually makes you sound like you speak Korean, not just like you memorized some Korean characters and their pronunciation.

This is similar to what we covered in is Korean hard to learn—Korean's difficulty isn't really about the grammar rules. It's about the cultural context baked into every interaction when you learn how to say hello and greet people properly.

Take your Korean to the next level: Learn greetings in context

Look, you can read about speech levels and bowing etiquette and basic Korean greetings at a basic level until you understand the theory perfectly. But that's not how Korean language learning works when you want actual fluency.

You learn Korean greetings by hearing them used correctly, over and over, in real situations where native speakers use these Korean phrases naturally. Not from a textbook dialogue where two people meet and exchange Korean salutations with perfect Korean pronunciation. From actual Korean content where people use different greetings depending on who they're talking to.

Watch a Korean drama and pay attention to how characters greet someone. The way a student says hello to a teacher versus how they greet their Korean friends. How someone talks to their boss versus their younger sibling. The different bowing depths. The speed and tone changes when using different Korean greetings and phrases.

That context is what makes the patterns stick when you learn basic Korean. You're not memorizing "use 안녕하세요 when greeting in Korean with strangers"—you're absorbing the feel of when formal Korean greeting is appropriate by hearing it used naturally hundreds of times by native Korean speakers.

Pronunciation tips for Korean greetings

Korean pronunciation matters when you want to say hello in Korean. Here are key pronunciation tips for common Korean greetings:

Listening to how a native speaker says these Korean phrases is crucial for language learning goals. You can't learn Korean pronunciation from reading Korean characters alone.

If you want to learn Korean greetings the way they're actually used by native Korean speakers, not the way textbooks present basic Korean greetings, you need to hear them in real Korean content. Migaku's browser extension lets you watch Korean dramas with instant word lookups—so when someone switches from 존댓말 to 반말 mid-conversation, you can click on those verb endings and see exactly what changed and why.

The mobile app syncs everything. Those Korean greetings and phrases you looked up while watching a drama? They're already in your flashcard deck with the actual Korean pronunciation from a native speaker. You're not drilling "안녕하세요 = hello" in isolation. You're learning how that Korean greeting sounds when a character uses it with their teacher versus their Korean friends.

That's how you actually take your Korean language learning to fluency. Not from rules. From context, repeated until your brain stops translating and just knows how to greet someone appropriately in any Korean greeting situation.

There's a 10-day free trial if you want to check it out.