The word "you" can be tricky to translate into one simple word in Korean because it changes depending on whom you're talking to. If you are speaking very casually with someone that's the same age as you or younger, you can use 너, but in all the other cases, it's mostly either omitted or you have to use the other person's name or social title. The ever-elusive Korean "you"... What's the most common way you personally get to express the word "you" in Korean?
I address my friends either by their names or as 누나/형, depending on their age. Other than that, I only ever used 사장님 or completely omitted the pronoun. I once was addressed as 형님 by a guy I had never met before and still haven't found out if that's generally acceptable or not.
It really is case by case. I basically never use 너, and even names are usually considered nearly 반말. I just have to go with title, but I sometimes really struggle to come up with a title for someone. 😅
너 / 니 (casual you) 당신 (to your spouse, or when youre in a mood, or in song lyrics) 여보 (to your spouse) 자기 (to your loved one) 본인 (could be formal or condescending) 그대 (formal, in a poem, lyrics, etc... close to "thou" but contemporary) 그쪽 (when youre in a mood) ~ 씨 (formal, when you know the name) ~ 님 (formal, with name or title) 선생님 (formal, perhaps to older people, when you dont know the name or title) 사장님 (formal, perhaps to older people, when you dont know the name or title) 학생~ (to teenagers or someone looking in their 20s) 총각! (to men looking in their 20s) 아가씨 (to women looking in their 20s) 아저씨 (to older men) 아주머니 (to older women) 어머님 아버님 할머님 할아버님
I am from India and I speak Malayalam. There are many ways to say "you" in my language as well. You can increase the level of respect with each one or the otherwise. I think it's a thing in Asian countries.
Same in Swedish, very common word. Du = you (singular) *Ni = you (plural) * could also be used as a more formal and polite way of addressing a person, but it is very old-fashioned. Kind of like the German word Sie.
What doesn't help is online translators will translate it (honorifically) as 당신 which is rarely used by Koreans except in some exceptional circumstances, like a couple arguing.
Don't be scared of making a mistake when speaking - if you make a mistake, be humble enough to be corrected 😅 That's the best lesson I've learned and it's helped me to slowly overcome my fear of speaking Korean 🤷🏾♀️
As a Korean, I actually found 선생님 to be a generally safe word to use to strangers or those whom you would speak to in -입니다 or -해요 format. It might sound a bit like trying to be less friendly when speaking to someone closer, but in most of those cases, you most likely already know other ways to refer to the person like 사장님, 교수님, 과장님, 대리님, etc. Nonetheless, it is definitely complicated than just being able to say "you" without worrying about offending anyone lol. Sometimes people actually do ask each other how they prefer to be referred to.
This is why I’m mainly focusing on the most formal way of saying things in Korean…it’s better to be respectful to everyone than to have to figure out who to be respectful to individually lol
I always wonder what it's like for native Korean speakers learning English, where we use the word "you" all the time, with anyone. I know learning the word itself isn't hard, but the usage is *so* different. It must feel really strange. Do Koreans feel like they're being rude all the time in English, using "you" with someone they'd be calling "sunbaenim" (or whatever -nim) in Korean? Getting used to it in Korean has been interesting for me. Now I notice when Koreans use 너 because it can carry so much meaning, like implied intimacy, but getting used to referring to someone indirectly while talking to them was hard. There are other big differences between our languages but this was harder than sentence structure for me 😂
one of my Korean friends I first met before I could really speak any Korean (and who is older than me and I never really got that close to) told me she was surprised when I used 존댓말 the first time I had a convesation with her in korean because she always imagines all english as 반말, I'm not sure how common that is though
In my language we say du/dig that's it. We don't address anyone with formalities. Except maybe the queen lol Teachers are addressed with their first name. Even the principal is just their first name. Obviously family members you just say mom, dad etc. But older people we dont know they are just their name as well. Sometimes you may go your mom/your dad, but that is mostly when you don't know the name. Woaahhh learning honorifix is so hard when coming from a language with almost no honorifics....
Reminds me of several expressions for you in Hungarian, depending on social status, age, closeness for casual language etc... Ön, maga (3rd person verb), tessék + infinitive verb... 🎉 Fun fact Korean 네가 (naega) reminds me of Hungarian maga for the same meaning of "you"
Korean is have i lot of yous like 네 or 네가 its same but its more Politely its mean you can use 네 or 네가 if you want. I'm iraqi 😂😂😂😂 i start learning korean in half week ❤❤
yes is complicated but easy at same time.. basically its always their name, or their title, how superior or older than you and i guess it can be hard to grasp at first..i am still at this level 😂😂
My sis asked me how to say brother or sis and I was like : who's talking, a male or a female? And r they younger or older and she just kept staring at me
The word "you" can be tricky to translate into one simple word in Korean because it changes depending on whom you're talking to. If you are speaking very casually with someone that's the same age as you or younger, you can use 너, but in all the other cases, it's mostly either omitted or you have to use the other person's name or social title.
The ever-elusive Korean "you"... What's the most common way you personally get to express the word "you" in Korean?
Also there's 당신
I address my friends either by their names or as 누나/형, depending on their age. Other than that, I only ever used 사장님 or completely omitted the pronoun. I once was addressed as 형님 by a guy I had never met before and still haven't found out if that's generally acceptable or not.
It really is case by case. I basically never use 너, and even names are usually considered nearly 반말. I just have to go with title, but I sometimes really struggle to come up with a title for someone. 😅
@@thegardner80 what if you don't know them at all (stranger) and want to address "you"?
아버지님 and 어머님 ?
Asking "What is 'you' in Korean?" will always be one of the hardest questions for a Korean teacher 😂😂😂
As much as I know it is do
Students who know, too.... 😂
I thought he was avoiding saying 네가 👀
Same 😂
Nuhga? Sry if im wrong I'm still learning 😅
@@medivald2nega
Of course you did lol
@@medivald2 dont worry , its nega
너 / 니 (casual you)
당신 (to your spouse, or when youre in a mood, or in song lyrics)
여보 (to your spouse)
자기 (to your loved one)
본인 (could be formal or condescending)
그대 (formal, in a poem, lyrics, etc... close to "thou" but contemporary)
그쪽 (when youre in a mood)
~ 씨 (formal, when you know the name)
~ 님 (formal, with name or title)
선생님 (formal, perhaps to older people, when you dont know the name or title)
사장님 (formal, perhaps to older people, when you dont know the name or title)
학생~ (to teenagers or someone looking in their 20s)
총각! (to men looking in their 20s)
아가씨 (to women looking in their 20s)
아저씨 (to older men)
아주머니 (to older women)
어머님
아버님
할머님
할아버님
So how can I say " I ate your cake". 😅❤
I am from India and I speak Malayalam. There are many ways to say "you" in my language as well. You can increase the level of respect with each one or the otherwise. I think it's a thing in Asian countries.
lmao the lighting change got me
it’s so hard bc it’s one of the most commonly said words in everyday english
Same in Swedish, very common word.
Du = you (singular)
*Ni = you (plural)
* could also be used as a more formal and polite way of addressing a person, but it is very old-fashioned. Kind of like the German word Sie.
What doesn't help is online translators will translate it (honorifically) as 당신 which is rarely used by Koreans except in some exceptional circumstances, like a couple arguing.
Additionally, the word 당신 is used like crazy in K-dramas....
Yeah came here to write the same )@@deirdremckprice7702
@@deirdremckprice7702 I mean, they're always arguing in the k dramas...
@@damiams1036 Sooooo true, though!!
a random very flirty Korean used 당신a lot to address me in a chat and I was confused hahaha
It's the "what" for me 😂 as the lighting goes "gray"...indicating the gray and murky waters surrounding the usage of the word, "you" in Korean..😅
Don't be scared of making a mistake when speaking - if you make a mistake, be humble enough to be corrected 😅 That's the best lesson I've learned and it's helped me to slowly overcome my fear of speaking Korean 🤷🏾♀️
As a Korean, I actually found 선생님 to be a generally safe word to use to strangers or those whom you would speak to in -입니다 or -해요 format. It might sound a bit like trying to be less friendly when speaking to someone closer, but in most of those cases, you most likely already know other ways to refer to the person like 사장님, 교수님, 과장님, 대리님, etc. Nonetheless, it is definitely complicated than just being able to say "you" without worrying about offending anyone lol. Sometimes people actually do ask each other how they prefer to be referred to.
THANK YOU FOR VALIDATING MY PAIN 감사합니다. I’m legit terrified of it 😅
Lolll this is so well done 👏🏻 thank you guys for making me laugh!
I learned "Haneul" is Sky from watching "Doctor Slump" ☺️ (also nabi as butterfly from watching "Nevertheless"
Very true.. its why i always struggle speaking to new people in korea lol
I’m black American, it’s fine lol say it … I love the Korean language! A challenge to learn tho!
The best solution is trying to pronounce 'ㅔ' in very procedure way. then it would be ''Ne̞ɡʷa" instead of... that word.
This is why I’m mainly focusing on the most formal way of saying things in Korean…it’s better to be respectful to everyone than to have to figure out who to be respectful to individually lol
Hanuel is a kiss of life member and now ik her names meaning
I always wonder what it's like for native Korean speakers learning English, where we use the word "you" all the time, with anyone. I know learning the word itself isn't hard, but the usage is *so* different. It must feel really strange. Do Koreans feel like they're being rude all the time in English, using "you" with someone they'd be calling "sunbaenim" (or whatever -nim) in Korean?
Getting used to it in Korean has been interesting for me. Now I notice when Koreans use 너 because it can carry so much meaning, like implied intimacy, but getting used to referring to someone indirectly while talking to them was hard.
There are other big differences between our languages but this was harder than sentence structure for me 😂
one of my Korean friends I first met before I could really speak any Korean (and who is older than me and I never really got that close to) told me she was surprised when I used 존댓말 the first time I had a convesation with her in korean because she always imagines all english as 반말, I'm not sure how common that is though
진짜 신기하고 좋아하는 부분이에요 😅 한국어 정말 재미있네요
Short, funny, and right to the point! Good job!!
(How many takes did the fast talking take….with a straight face! ㅋㅋㅋ)
Same in Hindi we have three ways to say YOU depending to whom we r talking 😅😂
I immediately answer 너 and 당신 without thinking 😂
Makes sense. You wouldn’t say “you” to an elder. But to a stranger round ur age you would.
Yup that pretty much sums it up 😂😂😂
Omgggg that's the thing we are dealing 😂😂
Hahahha, that's accurate :-D Everybody has this talk at one point.
NOT THE LIGHTTTSSSS 😭😭😭😭💀💀💀💀💀💀
I legitimately ran all those situations in my mind in order to answer his question.
As a vietnamese person myself I can understand this. You talk differently to other people depending on thire age and gender. 😅
same for Chinese
The struggle 😂😅
너 is the way of saying in korean
Welcome to Vietnamese (bạn, mày, ông, cậu, cu, cháu, chú, cô, etc)
In my language we say du/dig that's it. We don't address anyone with formalities. Except maybe the queen lol Teachers are addressed with their first name. Even the principal is just their first name. Obviously family members you just say mom, dad etc. But older people we dont know they are just their name as well. Sometimes you may go your mom/your dad, but that is mostly when you don't know the name. Woaahhh learning honorifix is so hard when coming from a language with almost no honorifics....
Swedish?
@@Herp234 nah, Danish. But I guess same same but different.
This is funny. I wish ppl would understand that languages chabges depending on the country. Nega=you
That’s actually “I” as in me. Ni ga=you, as well as noe, and dangshin
Exactly 😅
Literally 😂
I'm dying 😅😅😅😂😂😂😂❤
In my language and norms
Awak : formal.
Kamu : formal.
Kau: not appropriate to use to older or unknown person.
Reminds me of several expressions for you in Hungarian, depending on social status, age, closeness for casual language etc... Ön, maga (3rd person verb), tessék + infinitive verb... 🎉
Fun fact Korean 네가 (naega) reminds me of Hungarian maga for the same meaning of "you"
I think only this one thing makes it so hard to be sociable in Korea. Make a new friends etc
This is soooooo true!!😂
Lmaoooooooo amazing 👏
Meanwhile the german ''you''
du
dir
dein
dich
Polite form of ''you''
Sie
Ihr
Euch😅
Exactly, that aint the easy thing to know but to take the honorific to everyone to stay safe and not take the casual way. This is a hard 1
Korean is have i lot of yous like 네 or 네가 its same but its more Politely its mean you can use 네 or 네가 if you want. I'm iraqi 😂😂😂😂 i start learning korean in half week ❤❤
I kind of cringe when I see people commenting on Korean idols' SNS things like "당신을 사랑합니다"
Japanese has the same difficulty too😅.
I’m waiting for a native to write a song.
I can think of 너/네, 당신, 그대, 자네, and there's one more that's extremely honorific but i forgot what it was
yes is complicated but easy at same time..
basically its always their name, or their title, how superior or older than you and i guess it can be hard to grasp at first..i am still at this level 😂😂
Welcome to Asia
Even in Hindi there is more than one translation of 'you', this happens in many languages.
It's so difficult for English speakers to understand this concept. 😞
Good save 😂
너는(넌)
네가
당신
그쪽
____씨
____님
As an intermediate level korean learner learning what's 'you' is in korean was way easier with kdramas than books 😂😂
너/네, 당신, 그대, 자네, 귀하
lol I love this
너
Neo means you in Korean language 😊 ln my language 😅😅
"That/The" in Chinese:
Thank you for telling me what is 하늘 의 집. I was kinda curious after watching pyramid game
WOW!!!!!!!!
I'm speechless 😳
I always ask, how do you like me to call you? And they lead me. 😂 otherwise whatever i call will me disrespectful or unfriendly 😅
Meanwhile Italian
one does not simply address another in korean
I'll just say "noyaaaa" 😅
learning Japanese is similar to this. You just get advised to find out what their name is lol
In Nepali;
You= ta (to younger)
You= timi (to the similar age)
You= tapaai ( to older)
Nega, dangshin, neo... it can be different depending on the sentence structure or degree of formality.. from what i learnt from kdrama, that is😂
I think in korean "you" is only used with friends
I thought if was gonna make a joke about how it sounds similar to the English n-word
So unexpected from TTMIK but so funny 🤣🤣🤣
It's so similar to Vietnamese 😅
한국어가 너무 어려워서 미안해ㅠ.ㅠ
Even the word difficult is difficult. ㅋㅋ
근데 진짜 재니있어요! 한국어를 배우는 긋을 좋아해요.
You in korean means "너" (neo), which in English, it sounds like "No".
It's same in Hindi
Tu- It's very very informal
Tum- Person of a same age
Aap- Respectful and usually addressed to the elder or unknown people
my flex is that i know how to use you at this point in my korean language learning journey haha 🤍🤍
재미있는 영상을 감사합니다!! 당신 it is always problem with that word ...
Naega😮
Asian languages be like-
Lol!😂😂😂
that's my problem 😂
💯% 😂
Individual and collective culture difference can sometimes be seen so well in languages, esp their pronouns.
haneul from kiof
This is why Korean is the one language in the world with the most words 😭
ok i learn korrean and call all of them just dude xDDDD
Ok. How i can say something like "Im working with u already 2 years" to my boss in Korean?
If I'm not mistaken, his/her title would be used instead of the word, "you"..(Title + 우리는 벌써 2년 동안 함께 일해 왔습니다.)
Ex: 과장님 우리는 벌써 2년 동안 함께 일해 왔습니다.
My sis asked me how to say brother or sis and I was like : who's talking, a male or a female? And r they younger or older and she just kept staring at me
meanwhile me :
"do"
너😅
you means 너
너, 당신
당신?
I need to buy gypsum for my 집 repairs.
Nega
I thought he was scared to say the n word cause it sounds similar to u in Korean 😂
niba is what i would prefer to say
Neo
"Is that person black?"