안녕
annyeong[a̠nɲʌ̹ŋ]
The English phrase 'hi to a friend' in Korean is 안녕 (annyeong).
안녕 can be used both as a greeting when arriving and as a farewell when leaving among friends.
What does it mean word for word?
The word 안녕 literally means 'peace' or 'well-being'.
Did you know?
- Using 안녕 with someone even slightly older or higher in social rank can be seen as a serious insult. In Korea, the age difference of a single year can make this casual greeting socially inappropriate.
- While 안녕 means 'peace', the word for 'hello' used in formal settings, 안녕하세요, adds a polite suffix that changes the grammar to a question. It literally asks if you are in a state of peace.
- There are other ways to say 'hi' to friends that ignore 'peace' entirely, such as 왔어?, which literally means 'did you come?' This is often used instead of 안녕 when a friend arrives at a known location.
Examples in context
- 안녕! 어떻게 지냈어?Hi! How have you been?
- 안녕!annyeong!Hi!
- 안녕, 오랜만이야!annyeong, oranmaniya!Hi, it's been a long time!
Example conversation
Minjun and Subin meet by chance on the street.
- 민준 Min-jun안녕, 수빈아!annyeong, Subin-a!Hi, Subin!
- 수빈 Su-bin어, 민준아! 안녕.eo, Minjun-a! annyeong.Oh, Minjun! Hi.
- 민준 Min-jun어디 가?eodi ga?Where are you going?
- 수빈 Su-bin그냥 집에 가.geunyang jibe ga.I'm just going home.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 안녕, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
