안녕히 주무세요
annyeonghi jumuseyo
The English phrase "good night" can be translated into Korean using several forms depending on who you are talking to. The default form is 안녕히 주무세요 (annyeonghi jumuseyo). Wiktionary also lists 안녕히 주무십시오 (annyeonghi jumusipsio) and 잘 자요 (jal jayo).
Meaning: a farewell (phrase)
Ways to say it
| Korean | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 안녕히 주무세요 | annyeonghi jumuseyo | |
| 안녕히 주무십시오 | annyeonghi jumusipsio | |
| 잘 자요 | jal jayo | [t͡ɕa̠ʎd͡ʑa̠jo] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) |
| 잘 자 | jal ja |
These phrases are used specifically as a farewell when someone is going to sleep, rather than as a general way to say goodbye.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 안녕히 주무세요 literally means "sleep peacefully", while 잘 자 literally means "sleep well".
Which one should you use?
The 안녕히 주무세요 forms are polite ways to say good night, whereas 잘 자요 is a polite but slightly less formal option. In contrast, 잘 자 is an informal way to say good night.
How does it change in a sentence?
안녕히 주무십시오 is the most formal version of the phrase.
How do you pronounce it?
annyeonghi jumuseyo
Did you know?
- The most formal version, 안녕히 주무십시오, uses the ending -십시오, which is typically reserved for military settings, news broadcasts or extremely formal business interactions.
- The root of the formal 'good night' is 안녕, which shares the same Chinese characters as the common greeting 'hello'. Both terms literally center on the idea of 'peace' and 'comfort'.
- In Korean, you cannot use the same 'good night' phrase for a grandparent that you would use for a friend. The honorific verb 주무시다 is a special word used only for people of higher social status or age.
Examples in context
- 잘 자!Good night!This example shows the use of the informal form 잘 자.Tatoeba #13174788 by atitarev, translation #426950 by Pun_intended
- 잘 자요.Good night.This example shows the use of the polite/standard form 잘 자요.Tatoeba #10622379 by Adelpa, translation #2362724 by NotApplicable
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hyunwoo is saying good night to his older sister, Jieun.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo누나, 이제 잘게요.Nuna, ije jalgeyo.Sister, I'm going to sleep now.
- 지은 Ji-eun그래, 현우야. 잘 자렴.Geurae, Hyunwoo-ya. Jal jaryeom.Okay, Hyunwoo. Sleep well.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo안녕히 주무세요.Annyeonghi jumuseyo.Good night.
- 지은 Ji-eun응, 너도 잘 자.Eung, neodo jal ja.Yes, you sleep well too.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “good night” translations and entries 잘 자요, 잘 자, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 안녕히, 자, 잘, 잘 자, 잘 자요, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
