안녕
annyeong[a̠nɲʌ̹ŋ]
The Korean word for hi is 안녕 (annyeong).
안녕 is a friendly and casual way to say hi in Korean. In informal Korean, 안녕 can be used both as a greeting when arriving and as a farewell when leaving.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The word 안녕 literally means peace or well-being.
Which one should you use?
While 안녕 is used with friends or people younger than you, 안녕하세요 is the standard polite form used with strangers, elders or in professional settings.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Annyeonghaseyo (안녕하세요) is a common and respectful way to say hi in Korean. Yeoboseyo (여보세요) is used when answering a phone call.
How does it change in a sentence?
The word 안녕 can also function as an adverbial base to form part of goodbye phrases, such as 안녕히 계세요 (stay peacefully).
How do you pronounce it?
annyeong
Did you know?
- The word 안녕 is a Sino-Korean term, meaning it is derived from Chinese characters. Specifically, it combines the characters for 'peaceful' and 'serenity'.
- The polite version 안녕하세요 is technically a question, asking if you are at peace. This is why the phrase ends with the sentence-final marker 요, which marks a polite inquiry.
- In some very specific, highly formal traditional settings, a person might not even say 'hi' with words, but instead performs a deep bow to convey the same level of respect.
Examples in context
- 안녕!Hi!Tatoeba #5548647 by YUJIHEE, translation #2742244 by MTC
- 안녕.Hi.Tatoeba #8355888 by Eunhee, translation #538123 by CM
- 안녕, 잘 지냈어?annyeong, jal jinaesseo?Hi, how have you been?
- 1 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Minjun and Subin meet at a local park.
- 민준 Min-jun안녕, 수빈아!annyeong, subin-a!Hi, Subin!
- 수빈 Su-bin안녕, 민준아. 오랜만이야.annyeong, minjun-a. oraenman-iya.Hi, Minjun. Long time no see.
- 민준 Min-jun오늘 날씨 정말 좋다.oneul nalssi jeongmal jota.The weather is really nice today.
- 수빈 Su-bin응, 정말 그래.eung, jeongmal geurae.Yes, it really is.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hi” translations and entries 안녕, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 안녕, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
