Default to the polite -요 ending (haeyo-che) with anyone you don’t know well, including shop staff, coworkers, and people older than you. Use the formal -ㅂ니다 ending (hamnida-che) for presentations, interviews, and first business meetings. Use banmal, casual speech without 요, only with close friends your age or younger, or when a Korean speaker invites you to.
In English, politeness lives mostly in extra words: please, could you, sir, a softer tone. In Korean it lives in the verb ending, which means you cannot finish a single sentence without choosing a level. Here is the same handful of words at each one.
| Meaning | Formal (hamnida-che) | Polite (haeyo-che) | Casual (banmal) |
|---|---|---|---|
| to go | 갑니다 (gamnida) | 가요 (gayo) | 가 (ga) |
| to eat | 먹습니다 (meokseumnida) | 먹어요 (meogeoyo) | 먹어 (meogeo) |
| Are you going? | 갑니까? (gamnikka?) | 가요? (gayo?) | 가? (ga?) |
| I’m a student. | 학생입니다. (haksaengimnida.) | 학생이에요. (haksaengieyo.) | 학생이야. (haksaengiya.) |
| thank you | 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida) | 고마워요 (gomawoyo) | 고마워 (gomawo) |
| yes | 네 (ne) | 네 (ne) | 응 (eung) |
Notice that haeyo-che uses one form for statements, questions, and suggestions. 가요 can mean I’m going, are you going?, or let’s go, depending on intonation. That flexibility is a big reason it is the best level for learners.
해요체 (haeyo-che) is named after 해요 (haeyo), the polite form of do. If you only learn one level, learn this one. It is polite without being stiff, and it is what most adults use with strangers, neighbors, café staff, taxi drivers, and coworkers they see every day. Nobody will think you are rude for using haeyo-che with someone younger, though they may eventually invite you to relax.
English speakers often assume that adding 주세요 (juseyo), please give, is what makes a request polite. 주세요 helps, but it is already a haeyo-che form. The politeness is in the ending 요, not in a separate please word. That is why dropping 요 is a bigger deal than forgetting please in English. Saying 물 줘 (mul jwo), give me water, to a server sounds like you are talking to your little brother.
The -ㅂ니다 / -습니다 ending is formally called 하십시오체 (hasipsio-che), or 합쇼체 (hapsyo-che) for short. You hear it in subway announcements, news broadcasts, speeches, the military, and from staff in hotels, banks, and department stores. Use it when you introduce yourself to a room, give a presentation, or speak in a job interview.
Two set phrases are hamnida-che that everyone uses all day: 감사합니다 (gamsahamnida), thank you, and 죄송합니다 (joesonghamnida), I’m sorry. Using them does not make you sound cold. What would sound odd is running an entire relaxed conversation with a coworker in hamnida-che. Koreans mix the two levels freely, often starting formal and sliding into haeyo-che as a conversation warms up.
Banmal (반말, banmal) means half speech. You use it with close friends of your own age, with younger siblings, and with children. Using it uninvited with an adult stranger, especially an older one, is one of the few language mistakes that can genuinely offend.
The age question is the key. Koreans often ask your age early, politely with 나이가 어떻게 되세요? (naiga eotteoke doeseyo?), because it helps decide who speaks how. An older person may switch to banmal with you quickly. That does not mean you switch back. Wait for the invitation, which usually sounds like one of these:
If you are the older one and want to offer, 말 놓을까요? is the polite way to ask. Even with permission, many younger Koreans keep using haeyo-che with someone several years older. When unsure, staying polite is never the mistake.
Speech level is about how you treat the person you are talking to. Korean also has an honorific marker, -시- (-si-), that shows respect for the person doing the action, even if they are not in the room.
| Sentence | What it shows |
|---|---|
| 친구가 와요. (chinguga wayo.) | A friend is coming. Polite to the listener. |
| 선생님이 오세요. (seonsaengnimi oseyo.) | The teacher is coming. Polite to the listener and respectful toward the teacher. |
| 할머니가 주무세요. (halmeoniga jumuseyo.) | Grandma is sleeping. Uses the honorific verb for sleep. |
| 많이 드세요. (mani deuseyo.) | Please eat a lot. Honorific verb for eat, common at meals. |
The most common learner error here is the reverse: putting -시- on yourself. 제가 오세요 is wrong, because you never honor your own actions. Say 제가 갈게요 (jega galgeyo), I’ll go.
English speakers lean on you constantly. In Korean, the dictionary words for you are traps. 너 (neo) is banmal only. 당신 (dangsin) is used between spouses, in song lyrics, or in arguments, and aimed at a stranger it can sound confrontational. Instead, use the person’s name with 씨 (ssi), a title, or no pronoun at all.
The same goes for I. In haeyo-che and hamnida-che with people you don’t know well, use the humble 저 (jeo). The plain 나 (na) belongs with banmal. Mixing them, as in 나는 학생이에요 to a stranger, is understandable but sounds slightly off.
| Situation | Level |
|---|---|
| Ordering food, shopping, taxis | Haeyo-che |
| Job interview, presentation | Hamnida-che |
| New coworker | Haeyo-che, with hamnida-che for formal moments |
| Language exchange partner | Haeyo-che until they suggest otherwise |
| Close friend the same age | Banmal, once agreed |
| Partner’s parents | Haeyo-che with honorifics, hamnida-che for greetings |
Speech levels are hard to learn from a textbook because the choice depends on who is in front of you. Practicing out loud in role plays, a shopkeeper one day and a new coworker the next, gets your ending choice to happen without stopping to think.
No. Haeyo-che is polite but not distant, and adults use it with younger strangers all the time. The worst that happens is that they invite you to speak more casually.
Many people make allowances for learners, but a polite ending still matters. Speaking banmal to an older stranger can land badly even from a foreigner, while haeyo-che is safe everywhere.
감사합니다 (gamsahamnida) is formal and works with anyone, including strangers and staff. 고마워요 (gomawoyo) is polite but warmer and more personal, often used with acquaintances. 고마워 (gomawo) is banmal for close friends.
Relative age shapes how people address each other, including whether banmal is appropriate and which titles to use. Since June 2023, Korea uses international age for official purposes, so your international age is the standard answer.
