말해요
malhaeyo
In Korean, "do you speak" can be expressed as 말해요 (malhaeyo).
The phrase is used to ask if someone has the ability to communicate in a specific language.
How does it change in a sentence?
While 말해요 is common, using the pattern ~ㄹ 줄 알다 (to know how to) is a more natural way to ask about a person's ability to speak a language, such as in the phrase 말할 줄 알아요, which means "know how to speak".
How do you pronounce it?
malhaeyo
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often try to translate "speak" directly, but it is very common and natural in Korean to use the verb 하다 (to do) with a language name, such as 영어 해요? (Do you do English?).
Did you know?
- In a formal professional setting, you might use 구사하다 ('to wield') instead of 말하다 to describe someone's ability to speak a language fluently.
- The word 말 in 말해요 refers not just to the spoken language, but can also mean 'words', 'speech', or even 'animal' depending on the context and the Hanja used.
- In very casual settings, Koreans might simply say the language name with a rising intonation, such as 영어?, to ask if the other person speaks it.
Example conversation
Ji-hun meets Seo-yeon at an international airport.
- 지훈 Ji-hun안녕하세요, 혹시 영어 말해요?An-nyeong-ha-se-yo, hok-si Yeong-eo mal-hae-yo?Hello, do you happen to speak English?
- 서연 Seo-yeon네, 조금 말해요.Ne, jo-geum mal-hae-yo.Yes, I speak a little.
- 지훈 Ji-hun다행이네요. 도와줄 수 있어요?Da-haeng-i-ne-yo. Do-wa-jul su it-eo-yo?That's a relief. Can you help me?
- 서연 Seo-yeon네, 물론이죠. 지훈 씨.Ne, mul-lon-i-jyo. Ji-hun ssi.Yes, of course, Ji-hun.
