What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 좋은 비행 되세요 literally means 'be a good flight', where 좋은 means 'good', 비행 means 'flight' and 되세요 means 'please be' or 'please become'.
Which one should you use?
While 좋은 비행 되세요 is a direct translation, you can also use 안전한 비행 되세요 or 안전한 비행을 빕니다 to emphasize safety. For a more casual tone with friends, 안전한 비행 잘 하고 와 or 비행기 잘 타고 와 can be used, the latter of which implies 'Have a good flight and come back safely'.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
좋은 비행 되세요 is a standard way to express the sentiment. For highly formal or respectful situations, you may use 안전한 비행 되세요 or 안전한 비행을 빕니다. In informal settings with close friends or younger people, you can use 안전한 비행 잘 하고 와 or 비행기 잘 타고 와. For a polite but more natural alternative to the direct translation, many speakers use 조심히 가세요, which means 'go safely'.
How does it change in a sentence?
When speaking to a close friend or someone younger, you can use the informal version of 'go safely', which is 조심히 가.
How do you pronounce it?
joeun bihaeng doeseyo
When do people say it?
A very common and natural way to say goodbye to someone leaving for a trip is 잘 다녀오세요, which means 'go and come back well' and implies 'have a good trip and return safely'.
Did you know?
- The word 비행 can have two completely opposite meanings depending on the Chinese characters used. It can mean 'flight' as in flying through the air, but it can also mean 'misconduct' or 'wrongdoing' in a legal or moral sense.
- For a very high level of formality, such as in business, you can use the verb 빕니다. This means 'to pray' or 'to earnestly wish', making the wish for a safe flight feel much more weightier.
- When using the word 비행 for 'flight', you are using a Sino-Korean word derived from Chinese characters. This makes it a more formal term than purely native Korean expressions for traveling.
Examples in context
- 여행 잘 가시고 좋은 비행 되세요.yeohaeng jal gasigo joeun bihaeng doeseyo.Have a good trip and have a safe flight.
Example conversation
Minji is seeing Hyunwoo off at the airport.
- 민지 Min-ji현우 씨, 이제 가셔야 해요.Hyeon-u ssi, ije gasyeoya haeyo.Hyunwoo, you have to go now.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo네, 곧 탑승 시작하네요.Ne, got tapseung sijakhane-yo.Yes, boarding is starting soon.
- 민지 Min-ji조심히 잘 다녀오시고 좋은 비행 되세요.Josimhi jal danyeo-osigo joeun bihaeng doeseyo.Travel safely and have a safe flight.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo고마워요, 민지 씨. 나중에 봐요.Gomawoyo, Minji ssi. Najunge bwayo.Thank you, Minji. See you later.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 비행, CC BY-SA 4.0.
