We need to sleep every day and saying “goodnight” and “hi” in Korean is essential, but how to say good night in Korean.
And here’s how
The standard way to say good night in Korean is “잘 자요[jal jayo]” which translates to “sleep well”. Like good morning, there are multiple ways to express it. Here are the 7 common ways to say “good night” in Korean, depending upon politeness and situation level.
- 안녕히 주무세요 (annyeonghi jumuseyo)
- 잘 자요 (jal jayo)
- 좋은 꿈 꿔요 (joeun kkum kkwoyo)
- 안녕히 주무십시오(Ahnyeonghi joomoosipsioh)
- 잘 자 (Jalja)
- 내 꿈 꿔(nae kkum kkwo)
- 굿나잇
Sometimes one word can be too short for a greeting, and it can give you away as a tourist.
because Korean say “goodnight” a bit differently depending on how well you know them or their age.
In this article, we will go over 15 different ways to say good night in Korean, as well as other common greetings and related vocabulary with real-life examples and exercises.
Alright world, Let’s begin with the basics.
How to say good night in Korean?
안녕히 주무세요 (annyeonghi jumuseyo) is the standard and respected way of saying good night in korean means “sleep peacefully”. 잘 자요 (jal jayo) is also the polite way to say good night (made up 잘 (good/well) and 자요 (verb 자다- to sleep)). 좋은 꿈 꿔요 (joeun kkum kkwoyo) also means good night which translated as “have a sweet dream”. you can also use 잘 자 (Jalja) with the people who are very close to you or younger than you.
Let’s see in details
Good Night In Korean Standard–잘 자요 (jal jayo)|What is Jaljayo Korean?
This is the most common standard way to say Good Night in Korean잘 자요[jal jayo] means “sleep well”. It is made of two words which are 잘 (jal)means “well” and the word 자요[jayo] comes from The Korean verb 자다 (jada) means “to sleep”. You might use this with someone of the same age but are not exactly close to you.
Good night In Korean Informal
There are two ways to say Informal “Good Morning” in Korean in a casual way with your close friends.
잘 자 (jal ja)
잘 자 (jal ja) is an informal way of saying “good night” in Korean and literally means sleep well or sleep tight. It is made up of two words i.e. 잘 (jal) means “well” and 자 is from the basic form 자다 (jada) means “to sleep”. You can typically use it with close friends or people who are younger than you.
However, if you want to say goodnight in Korean cutely to your boyfriend/girlfriend, you can say 잘 자, 내 꿈 꿔(jal ja nae kkum kkwo), which literally means good night and dream of me.
Another common cute way to say good night would be “굿나잇, which is pronounced gut-nait.” or you can simply say “굳밤” [good-bam].
좋은 꿈 꿔 (joeun kkum kkwo)|What is the Korean word for “sweet dreams”?
The direct translation of sweet dream in Korean is 좋은 꿈 꿔 (joeun kkum kkwo)as 좋은 (joeun) means “good” and 꿈 꿔 means “morning”. It is an informal & sweeter way to wish good night and you can use this with your close friends or people younger than you. Formally, one would say 좋은 꿈 꾸세요 (jo·eun kkoom koo·se·yo) literally means “have a sweet dream”.
Good Night In Korean Formal
There are three ways to say formal “Good night” in Korean with your parents, grandparents, and someone older than you.
안녕히 주무세요 (annyeonghi jumuseyo)
안녕히 주무세요 (annyeonghi jumuseyo) is a formal and polite way of saying good night in Korean and it means “please sleep peacefully”. 안녕히(annyeonghi) means “peacefully” and 주무세요 (jumuseyo)) means “ “please sleep”. It is the honorific form of 자다 (jada) meaning “to sleep”. You can use this phrase with elders, your parents, and someone older than you.
Korean also use 안녕히 주무십시오(Ahnyeonghi joomoosipsioh) which is a little too formal. natives rarely say it. You can use the phrase 안녕히 주무세요 when you say it to your parents, teacher, and so on.
Example
편안한 밤 되세요 (pyeonanhan bam doeseyo)
Another horrific and common formal way to say good night in Korean is 안녕히 편안한 밤 되세요 (pyeonanhan bam doeseyo) with meaning “peaceful night for you”. 편안한 means peacefully and 되세요the past tense of the verb 되다 means to become/have with ending -세요 makes some verbs formal.
Good night in Korean in internet/chat slang form.
You can use “굿밤 / 굳밤” [good-bam] to say good night in Korean to someone while chatting. Young Koreans in their teens and twenties often use 굿밤 (good bam) which is a mixture of ‘굿(good) and ‘밤(night),’. It is basically a slang way. So be sure to use it with close friends or people younger than you.
내 꿈 꿔(nae kkum kkwo)| The Romantic & cute way to say good night in Korean
내 꿈 꿔(nae kkum kkwo) is a romantic and cute way to say good night in Korean which literally means have a dream about me. This was very popular in the 1990s. 내 means My, 꿈means dream, and 꿔 means have a dream .you can use this as your boyfriend/girlfriend at the end of the phone call or email.
You’ll usually hear this phrase in Korean TV commercials and in real-life conversations, people use it to their special someone.
44 Must-Know Korean Words Related To Night
- Sleep- 잠(jam)
- Dream-꿈꾸다(kkum kkuda)
- Nightmare – 악몽(angmong)
- To sleep- 잠을 자다(jam-eul jada)
- Sleepy- 졸리다(jollida)
- Dawn – 새벽(saebyok)
- Middle Of The Night – 한밤중(hanbamjung)
- Alarm clock – 자명종(jamyongjong)
- Early – 빠른 ppareun
- Nighttime -야간(yagan)
- Pajamas – 잠옷(jamot)
- sleeping socks-수면 양말(sumyon yangmal)
- Insomnia – 불면증(bulmyeongjeung)
- Sleeping pills – 수면제(sumyeonje)
- Lucid dream- 자각몽(jagangmong)
- Sleep talking- 잠꼬대(jamkkodae)
- Sleep walking – 몽유병(mongyubyong)
- late night snacker – 야식을 즐기는 사람(yasigeul jeulgineun saram)
- On friday night – 금요일 밤에(geumyoil bame)
- Night shift-야간 근무(yagan geunmu)
- Special night discount rate – 야간특별할인요금
- Night owl-올빼미형 인간(olppaemihyong ingan)
- Bed – 침대(chimdae)
- This night- 오늘아침(oneurachim)
- Yesterday night – 어제 아침(oje achim)
- Tomorrow night – 내일 아침(naeil achim)
- At 11 o’clock in the night- 아침 6시에(achim yuk si e)
- Midnight – 자정.(jajong)
- dinner- 저녁(jonyok)
- Brunch – 아침 겸 점심(achim gyom jomsim)
- Sun – 태양.(taeyang)
- Moon-달(dal)
- Afternoon – 오후(ohu)
- sleep problem – 불면증(bulmyonjeung)
- Sunset -일몰(ilmol)
- evening-저녁(jeonyeog)
- Sky – 하늘(haneul)
- When did you wake up today? -오늘 몇 시에 일어났어요? (oneul myot sie ironassoyo)
- I get up at 6 o’clock – 나는 6시에 일어나요.(naneun yuk sie ironayo)
- Did you sleep well? – 잘 잤어요? (jal jasseoyo)
- please turn off the lights – 불 좀 꺼주세요(bul jom kkojuseyo)
- What’s for dinner tonight? -오늘 저녁은 뭐야?
- I’ll skip dinner. – 저녁은 사양할게(achimsikssaneun sayanghalkke)
- Did you have dinner? – 저녁 먹었어요?(achim mogossoyo)
Conclusion
Great job. You finally know how to say good night in Korean.
So, once you have learned the different ways to say “good night” in Korean, and the particular scenarios that they are used for, you will be able to confidently wish someone a good night.
however,
It can be hard to remember which phrase to say and when to use it, but as long as you understand that잘 자 (jal ja) is only used when someone is a friend of yours/younger than you and 안녕히 주무셨어요? (annyeonghi jumusyeosseoyo) with elders, teachers or people older than you, you shouldn’t have any problems.
All these words are widely used and accepted in Korea as ways to greet someone “a peaceful good night and sweet dream.
Well, it’s time for you to apply it in real life and improve your pronunciation.
so go out and next time you meet a Korean speaker at the night!be sure to wish them good night.
Want to practice and remember all the phrases you have just learned? Here are some of the resources I found on the web
https://quizlet.com/571540853/good-morningnight-in-Korean-flash-cards/
https://www.studystack.com/flashcard-100724
https://quizlet.com/210349792/Korean-greetings-flash-cards/
If you want to look further into greetings in Korean, here is a list of articles that can help you:
Here are some recommended lessons:
- How To Say Sorry In Korean
- How Korean Celebrate New Year And Wish Happy New Year In Korean
- How to say happy birthday in Korean
That’s it for today’s lesson. I hope you enjoyed it
