Korean · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 12 of 12
Your first conversation
첫 대화Cheot daehwa
A longer conversation on a Korean train that brings together all of A1, plus how to address people without “you” and how to accept food.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Follow and take part in a longer everyday conversation
- Address people politely without a word for “you”
- Offer, accept and thank for food
- Review the particles and verb forms of A1
Listen
On the KTX train from Seoul to Busan, Daniel from chapter 1 chats with an older woman, Mrs Choi. The last line is on arrival in Busan. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Daniel
실례합니다. 여기 앉아도 돼요?
Sillyehamnida. Yeogi anjado dwaeyo?
Excuse me. May I sit here?
Mrs Choi
네, 앉으세요. 어디 가세요?
Ne, anjeuseyo. Eodi gaseyo?
Yes, please sit down. Where are you going?
Daniel
부산에 가요. 친구를 만나요.
Busane gayo. Chingureul mannayo.
I'm going to Busan. I'm meeting a friend.
Mrs Choi
한국어를 잘하시네요. 어디에서 왔어요?
Hangugeoreul jalhasineyo. Eodieseo wasseoyo?
Your Korean is very good. Where are you from?
Daniel
아니에요, 아직 잘 못해요. 캐나다에서 왔어요. 저는 영어 교사예요.
Anieyo, ajik jal motaeyo. Kaenadaeseo wasseoyo. Jeoneun yeongeo gyosayeyo.
Not at all, I'm not good at it yet. I'm from Canada. I'm an English teacher.
Mrs Choi
아, 선생님이세요? 우리 손녀도 영어를 배워요.
A, seonsaengnimiseyo? Uri sonnyeodo yeongeoreul baewoyo.
Oh, you're a teacher? My granddaughter is learning English too.
Daniel
할머니, 손녀는 몇 살이에요?
Halmeoni, sonnyeoneun myeot sarieyo?
How old is your granddaughter?
Mrs Choi
열 살이에요. 이거 제주 귤이에요. 좀 드세요.
Yeol sarieyo. Igeo Jeju gyurieyo. Jom deuseyo.
She's ten. These are tangerines from Jeju. Have some.
Daniel
감사합니다. 잘 먹겠습니다.
Gamsahamnida. Jal meokgetseumnida.
Thank you. I'll enjoy them.
Mrs Choi
부산이에요. 선생님, 조심히 가세요.
Busanieyo. Seonsaengnim, josimhi gaseyo.
Here's Busan. Take care, teacher.
Understand
Talking to people without “you”
Korean has words for “you”, but using them with adults usually sounds rude or strange. Instead, people use a name or a title, or leave “you” out. Daniel calls Mrs Choi (halmeoni), grandmother, a friendly and respectful word for any elderly woman. She calls him (seonsaengnim), teacher, as soon as she hears his job.
Use name + (ssi) for colleagues and people about your age. Don't use it for people clearly older than you, and never for yourself. Titles like (seonsaengnim) also work for doctors and other respected professionals.
| Word | Use it for |
|---|---|
| name + (ssi) | colleagues, people your age: (Minjun ssi) |
| (seonsaengnim) | teachers, doctors, respected professionals |
| (halmeoni) | an elderly woman, also a stranger |
| (ajeossi) | a middle-aged man, e.g. a taxi driver |
| (sajangnim) | the owner of a shop or restaurant |
Offering and accepting
Older people and staff often speak to you with polite forms ending in -세요. Understand them as fixed phrases: (anjeuseyo), please sit down; (deuseyo), please have some, eat; (eodi gaseyo?), where are you going?; (seonsaengnimiseyo?), are you a teacher?, a respectful ; (josimhi gaseyo), take care, have a safe trip.
When someone offers you food, say (jal meokgetseumnida), literally “I will eat well”, before you eat. To ask permission, use … (dwaeyo?) as in chapter 9: (yeogi anjado dwaeyo?), may I sit here?
A1 at a glance
This conversation uses almost everything from A1. Here are the main patterns in one place.
| Pattern | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 은 / 는, topic | (sonnyeoneun myeot sarieyo?) | How old is your granddaughter? |
| 이에요 / 예요, is | (jeoneun yeongeo gyosayeyo) | I'm an English teacher. |
| 이 / 가 + | (Busane chinguga isseoyo) | I have a friend in Busan. |
| 을 / 를, object | (chingureul mannayo) | I'm meeting a friend. |
| 에, destination | (Busane gayo) | I'm going to Busan. |
| 에서, place of action | (Seoureseo ilhaeyo) | I work in Seoul. |
| -아요 / -어요 | (yeongeoreul baewoyo) | She's learning English. |
| , not | (gogireul an meogeoyo) | I don't eat meat. |
| -(으)ㄹ 수 있어요, can | (hangugeoreul jogeum hal su isseoyo) | I can speak a little Korean. |
Question words
You've met most question words one by one. Here they are together, with four new ones: (eotteoke), how; (wae), why; (eoneu), which; and (museun), what kind of. The rules stay the same: the question word goes where the answer goes, the verb stays last, and a question word that is the subject takes 이 / 가, never 은 / 는: (mwoga), (nuga).
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (mwo) | what | (ireumi mwoyeyo?), what's your name? |
| (nugu); (nuga) as subject | who | (i sarameun nuguyeyo?), who's this? |
| (eodi) | where | (eodi gaseyo?), where are you going? |
| (eonje) | when | (eonje mannayo?), when shall we meet? |
| (myeot) + counter | how many, what number | (myeot sarieyo?), how old are you? |
| (eolma) | how much | (igeo eolmayeyo?), how much is this? |
| (eotteoke) | how | (Busane eotteoke gayo?), how do you get to Busan? |
| (wae) | why | (wae hangugeoreul baewoyo?), why are you learning Korean? |
| (eoneu) + noun | which | (eoneu nara saramieyo?), which country are you from? |
| (museun) + noun | what (kind of) | (museun eumsigeul joahaeyo?), what food do you like? |
More in the grammar: Word order: the verb comes last
New words
- 여기 앉아도 돼요?Yeogi anjado dwaeyo?May I sit here?
- 자리jariseat, place · (yeogi jari isseoyo?), Is this seat taken?
- 어디 가세요?Eodi gaseyo?Where are you going? (polite)
- 한국어hangugeoKorean (the language)
- 잘하시네요jalhasineyoyou're very good at it · a polite compliment; answer modestly with (anieyo), not at all
- 아직ajikstill; (not) yet · (ajik jal motaeyo), I'm not good at it yet
- 영어yeongeoEnglish (the language)
- 선생님seonsaengnimteacher; sir, madam (respectful title)
- 손녀sonnyeogranddaughter · grandson: (sonja)
- 할머니halmeonigrandmother; an elderly woman · grandfather, elderly man: (harabeoji)
- 귤gyultangerine · Jeju is famous for them.
- 드세요deuseyoplease have some, please eat
- 잘 먹겠습니다jal meokgetseumnidathank you for the food (before eating)
- 조심히 가세요josimhi gaseyotake care, have a safe trip
Practise
1.You want to talk to an elderly woman you don't know. What do you call her?
2.You want to ask a new friend why they're learning Korean. What do you say?
3.Put the words in order: ask how old her granddaughter is.
Tap the words below in the right order.How old is your granddaughter?
4.Match the Korean with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
5.Put the words in order: say you can speak a little Korean.
Tap the words below in the right order.I can speak a little Korean.
6.Which sentence means “I don't eat fish”?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
여기 앉아도 돼요?
Yeogi anjado dwaeyo?
May I sit here?
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.