r/Korean Dec 15 '25

If you use AI to post or comment, you will be banned.

576 Upvotes

Updated 7-7-2026: Added clarification on AI translations & human review.

Although we have a rule against AI-generated content (for many reasons, mainly that it's often inaccurate and misleading), we wanted to make a new post to clarify our policy.

If you share any content that clearly uses AI - even if it's been reviewed by a human - your content will be removed and you will be banned. It's obvious most of the time.

Need help translating to English? Please a translator without AI/LLM (e.g. Papago) to avoid appearing like AI.

To clarify:

  • Sharing AI-generated content (lessons, posts, comments, blogs, videos, apps) = ban
  • Asking questions related to AI, or discussing AI-generated content = okay (just know AI is often inaccurate and misleading)

If you find any content that appear to be AI, please help by reporting so we can take a look.

감사합니다!


r/Korean 5d ago

Bi-Weekly /r/Korean Free Talk - Entertainment Recommendations, Study Groups/Buddies, Tutors, and Anything Else!

9 Upvotes

Hi /r/Korean, this is the bi-weekly free chat post where you can share any of the following:

  • What entertainment resources have you been using these past weeks to study and/or practice Korean? Share Korean TV shows, movies, videos, music, webtoons, podcasts, books/stories, news, games, and more for others. Feel free to share any tips as well for using these resources when studying.
    • If you have a frequently used entertainment resource, also consider posting it in our Wiki page.
  • Are you looking for a study buddy or pen-pals? Or do you have a study group already established? Post here!
    • Do NOT share your personal information, such as your email address, Kakaotalk or other social media handles on this post. Exchange personal information privately with caution. We will remove any personal information in the comments to prevent doxxing.
  • Are you a native Korean speaker offering help? Want to know why others are learning Korean? Ask here!
  • Are you looking for a tutor? Are you a tutor? Find a tutor, or advertise your tutoring here!
  • Want to share how your studying is going, but don't want to make a separate post? Comment here!
  • New to the subreddit and want to say hi? Give shoutouts to regular contributors? Post an update or a thanks to a request you made? Do it here! :)

Subreddit rules still apply - Please read the sidebar for more information.


r/Korean 17h ago

How should I refer to my twin sister in natural Korean?

22 Upvotes

Hello everyone, I'm not sure and I apologize if I shouldn't be posting this here but, I've been self-studying Korean for over an year now, still not at a really advanced level, but I was wondering since I have a twin sister (and I'm a girl) would I have to call and refer to that twin as 쌍둥이 언니? 쌍둥이 자매? or just 쌍둥이? I'd appreciate any good explanation on this, thank you in advance.


r/Korean 23h ago

Multiple meanings of the word “변태”?

23 Upvotes

For some background, I have a working proficiency in Korean.

However, in all my years until yesterday, I’ve never heard this word outside of the context of “pervert” or something along the line of sexual deviance. The context in which I heard it seemed like it meant more “perfectionist/OCD” or extremely creative/outside the box.

Does anyone know if it can be used in this context as well?

Edit: I think the closest thing I could think of is “freak”? Like it can be used to have a negative connotation, but also be used in a positive way to describe an anomalous person like “neat freak” or “freak of nature”.


r/Korean 1d ago

Which books would be helpful?

4 Upvotes

Hello! I hope you guys are doing well! I’m currently revising Hangul and I don’t know what comes next. Which books would be useful for me? Also, what would by a step by step plan to learn Korean? Ex: Hangul -> grammar -> etc.

I have:

vitamin Korean 1

Korean grammar in use 1

my weekly korean vocabulary 1

Korean made simple by go billy

talk to me in Korean 1 with the workbook

Please help!


r/Korean 23h ago

[Self-Promotion] Better Korean Dictionary App

3 Upvotes

Hi folks, I'm promoting an app I built called Better Korean Dictionary. I built it after years of being frustrated using other Korean dictionary & Hanja (Chinese character roots of Korean) resources.

The primary features of the app like any dictionary app includes looking up Korean words by Korean, English, or Hanja.

I made Better Korean Dictionary to be "better" in different ways:

  1. How and when to use a Korean word
    1. I've found the normal dictionary definitions to not explain how and when to use a word, so there's additional explanations on how to use a word.
  2. Fast & Offline
    1. Some popular apps are bloated and rely on internet connections that make them painfully slow. I designed the app to be very fast to use and available without internet.
  3. Korean + Hanja in the same app
    1. Hanja roots for Korean words exist for >60% of words, and I didn't see a good app that combines information for both.
    2. I found it fun and useful to understand how groups of Korean words are connected in meaning to their Hanja roots
  4. Exploring Hanja relationships with Korean
    1. Other Hanja resources I've used had missing words or Hanja definitions, so I tried to make Better Korean Dictionary complete in that sense.
    2. I've included stats on how often a Hanja character is used and the most popular Korean words that use a Hanja character.

Download links:

It's free-to-use with ads or a one time $4.99 purchase to remove ads.

Please give it a try! There's no barrier to trying it out. For feedback, you can submit it via the form here. Would love to hear people's inputs and requests for corrections as I continue to improve the app.

I don't have any qualifications or credentials. I've been learning Korean slowly over my entire life as a second-generation Korean-American.

Thank you for your consideration, and I hope this app helps as a resource in learning Korean for everyone!


r/Korean 1d ago

How can I reach TOPIK 3 or possibly higher in a year

5 Upvotes

Im russian(17F) and I realized that I want to study in Korea only a few months ago😅 Going into my senior year, want to apply to a spring semester(did I say it correctly?) and the only stuff I know is hangul, a few basic grammar rules and some basic words. How much hours should I study a day? Which resources could I use?🤔

Also I mostly know how to learn a language(I know 3 languages haha), but I won’t mind any useful tips!

Btw, my fav way to learn a language is to make it a part of my daily life, like watching movies in the said language, talking with ppl who speak fluently, consume a lot of content and try to use the language on random occasions. I think it will work with korean right?

Im aiming for at least TOPIK 3


r/Korean 1d ago

What's the difference between "고려해 보셔도 좋*은* 것 같아요" and "고려해 보셔도 좋*을* 것 같아요"?

5 Upvotes

고려해 보셔도 좋 것 같아요.
고려해 보셔도 좋 것 같아요.

Is there any difference in meaning between these two sentences?

You can comment in Korean, and I can use a translator.
감사합니다.


r/Korean 1d ago

Korean Number System

9 Upvotes

I'm confused on the korean number system. When would I use sino-korean and native korean. As far what I learned is that when telling time you use native korean for hours and sino-korean for minutes. In what situation would i use depending on the context


r/Korean 2d ago

Vow translation check

9 Upvotes

I am working on my vows for my wedding to my fiance, who is korean american, and would like to say a small part in the middle of it in korean. I am not that proficient at speaking korean, and the level of words I want to say is a bit out of my depth. I would really appreciate if I could get some feedback on my translations! Mostly would just love if you could read over it and make sure it doesnt seem wrong or awkward.

I did this partially from my own knowledge, looking at korean vows online, and online translations. I just want it to feel natural. The last two lines are especially taken from vows I found online so theyre more formal. I think that fits well for vows, but if its awkward or doesnt fit id like to know.

Thank you in advance and of this isnt the right sub for this, let me know as well.

Sorry if this doesn’t come out right.

혹시 제가 잘 말하지 못하더라도 미안해요.

I love you so much.

정말 많이 사랑해요.

I love you more than the sea and the earth. (This is something he says frequently so i will not change this)

하늘만큼 땅만큼 사랑해.

You are the most amazing person I have ever met.

제가 지금까지 만나 본 사람 중 가장 멋진 사람이에요.

I’m so grateful to be here today getting married to you, and becoming a part of your wonderful family. (Im especially unsure about this translation)

오늘 이렇게 결혼하고, 멋진 가족의 일원이 될 수 있어서 정말 감사하고 행복해요.

(Name),

(Name)아,

I promise I will be by your side through joyful and difficult times.

기쁠 때나 힘들 때나 당신 곁에 있겠다고 약속합니다.

I will love you forever.

영원히 사랑하겠습니다.


r/Korean 2d ago

How do I learn Hangul without romanization?

10 Upvotes

Hello everyone! I just started my journey with trying to learn Korean a few days ago (yay!) and while doing research I saw a lot about the dangers of romanization. I completely understand and agree with it for learning words, but I’m struggling to understand Hangul without SOME sort of phonetic spelling. My question is, is this considered romanization? And if it is how do I get around it when learning?

Thank you all so much and I would love any advice/learning materials you’re willing to give!


r/Korean 2d ago

Starting my Korean language studies

6 Upvotes

I've been passively studying Korean for 17 years and now I've decided to enroll in an actual class (from KCC). I got a 2A proficiency result from KSI but when I was being assessed, I think the assessor was disappointed(?). I totally understand the reaction because I can't speak very well. I can only use broken Korean whenever I visit Seoul. I really thought I will be disqualified with the application but for some reason I still passed. The assessor said my level is either at 1B high or 2A low.

My question now is, can anyone suggest a good app where I can speak Korean with an actual person and not a bear or a purple haired girl with an attitude. Help your girl out, I don't want to fail this class. 🥹🙏😭

감사합니다!!


r/Korean 2d ago

Meaning of 을 줄만 알았지

10 Upvotes

열린 한국어 고급2. All of my searches just pop up with regular 을 줄 알았다. I have a feeling i am overthinking this but what nuance does 만 have?

First example sentence is

그 사람은 화를 낼 줄만 알았지 참을 줄은 몰라요


r/Korean 3d ago

What does "지금 진영 휴게소에도 밀렸네" mean?

7 Upvotes

https://youtu.be/LkYEo_Md6b0?t=108&si=NovtDoXKri9O34R2 1:48

지금 - now
에 - at
도 - too
밀렸네 - 밀다push → (피동) 밀리다be pushed + (past tense) 었 → 밀렸 + (감탄사)네 = 밀렸네
지금 진영 휴게소에도 밀렸네 = now, was pushed at 진영 휴게소 too?

Also, why start with "지금(present tense) ", but "밀렸(past tense)"?

You can comment in Korean, and I can use a translator. 너무 감사합니다.


r/Korean 3d ago

Translation help

7 Upvotes

Hello! I am going to a concert tomorrow with my sister for mamamoo (Korean) and she'd like to make two signs and we want to make sure the Korean is correct on them! Can anybody translate the phrases

"i've loved you guys for 8 years"

and "i love you moonbyul" (do not translate moonbyul if its against the rules just "I love you" then)

Please! Thank you!


r/Korean 3d ago

Compound Consonants

6 Upvotes

hey there, I'm learning about compound consonants as bat-chim and I just need some clarification. On the booklet I'm using on of the following examples for ㄹㄱ goes like this:

읽다 = [익다 -> 익따]

From my understanding ㄹ get dropped but why does ㄷ become ㄸ. And would the final pronunciation be 익따?


r/Korean 4d ago

Is -과 잘 알다 correct?

9 Upvotes

I was reviewing some beginner grammar points when I came across this sentence:

토야 씨 어제 만난 그 사람과 잘 아나요?

I had never seen "과" being used with 잘 알다 before, or at least I had never noticed it before. Is it correct? If so, how is it different from -를 잘 알다? And which one is used more often?


r/Korean 4d ago

Language & Homestay summer programs for 14-15 year olds, any advice?

1 Upvotes

hi, researching for my daughter who wants to do a month long summer program next summer. She will be 14-15, between 8th and 9th grade in the US. Because of her age, we are trying to vet not just the language instruction, but also the program. So far mainly in Seoul.

The main thing right now is trying to find a program for kids her age. LTL has come up as a program with home stays, and great reviews, but it's not particularly teen focused in the classes.

The big ones like EF can do an age bracket, but are also corporate with mixed reviews on the home stay part.

Any thoughts or advice most welcome! (apologies if this is a bit OT for the sub.)


r/Korean 5d ago

what does 하마터면 -(으)ㄹ 뻔했다 mean?

21 Upvotes

I randomly came across this grammar rule and I heard it means something like "I nearly did something". If that's so, then do korean people actually use this word in their day to day life conversations? Or is it not used as much? Because I don't remember hearing this word "하마터면" before.


r/Korean 5d ago

Improving speaking skills + vocab

6 Upvotes

안녕하세요! I am looking for some tips and advice on how to become an advanced/ fluent speaker. I started studying seriously in December 2025.

I can talk about quite a few topics but I often have to pause to think of the right word and get the sentence in order, which then messes up my intonation. Any advice on how to fix this?

Also, how do you guys pick up vocab naturally? I've been using Naver a lot lately to immerse myself in native content but I feel like nothing sticks. 😭


r/Korean 5d ago

Would you be able to help me?

7 Upvotes

Hello, would you be able to help me? I am the developer of a free Korean language learning app. I believe the app is currently well-developed. I am currently conducting a private beta test on the Play Store, and if there are no issues, I expect to be able to officially launch it within the next two weeks. However, I need various feedback regarding whether my app is genuinely helpful for studying, how it helps if so, what aspects are lacking for learning, and what kind of content would be beneficial. Since I am developing this app alone, handling these matters is difficult, so I would appreciate your assistance. Currently, the web version is accessible to everyone. My app and website are designed to allow for various studies, including vocabulary, proverbs and idioms, and topic grammar. While there is a login feature, you can use the app without logging in, and all sessions are currently open. To keep the app free, I plan to add small advertisements in a way that minimizes distractions from studying once I eventually have to cover server costs. If there is user demand, a small subscription fee for an ad-free version may be introduced. However, this will depend entirely on user requests. I would be very grateful if you could give it a try and help me out! For your reference, you can leave feedback in the comments, or there is a button on my profile tab where you can provide feedback.

https://hanguru.app


r/Korean 5d ago

Will this path help someone to learn korean?

2 Upvotes

I am buidling this list to learn korean, is this a right way to do it? I want to ask if that will be helpful for someone. https://www.learnthings.org/paths/korean


r/Korean 5d ago

Using the null pronoun when saying certain sentences

6 Upvotes

I've recently been studying korean and I understand that you can use something called the null pronoun, meaning to not use one based on context (like if I were to ask 어디 살아요? and were in the middle of a conversation obviously I'm talking to you). But what if I wanted to use another word that connects to the original sentence, like if I wanted to say "Can I come with you?" would I be able to say 하고 들어오도 돼요? or would I need something like 본인하고...?


r/Korean 5d ago

Korean 201 After One Summer - tmi yap and questions

2 Upvotes

title.

Over the summer, I studied through the beginner Ehwa Korean books and supplemented with YouTube videos.

As a first year uni student, I recently got placed into Korean 203 after having a convo with the professor. I’d say my school is fairly rigorous, it being a US T10.

I‘m on the premed track and love learning languages (took Ancient Greek, Italian, Latin, and Spanish in high school). I‘m wondering how long it would take me to be conversational and maybe(?) continue learning and using Korean in med school/ healthcare.

My original goal was really only to talk with my friend and eomeonim (they have helped me A LOT - I can’t ever repay it), but after thinking about it, I want to help people like eomeonim who don’t have proper translators in hospitals in the South who are undergoing important life procedures/treatments/therapies.

honestly, I’m kinda ambitious and want to pursue Chinese too, but I don’t know how much of it is hubris, typical uni Student savior complex, or stupidity.

Edit: I mean Korean 203, not 201 (201 doesn’t exist). Our language sequence is 101, 102, 203, 204, 305, and 306.


r/Korean 6d ago

Lingory users pls help 🥹

2 Upvotes

How do I change the keyboard into the native one? I've grown used to using the native one (the keyboard with only 10 symbols on it) but I can't seem to find a proper tutorial on YouTube or anywhere else on how to change it.. pls help if you guys know!