좋아하는 사람이 있어
joahaneun sarami isseo
In Korean, "I have a crush" is expressed as 좋아하는 사람이 있어 (joahaneun sarami isseo).
The phrase is used to express that you have romantic feelings for someone.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to 'there is a person (I) like'.
How does it change in a sentence?
You can adjust the level of politeness or the tense by changing the ending. The default form 좋아하는 사람이 있어 is informal. To make the phrase polite and suitable for speaking to someone you are not close with or who is older, add '요' to the end to get 좋아하는 사람이 있어요. To say you "had" a crush in the past, change the ending to 좋아하는 사람이 있었어.
How do you pronounce it?
joahaneun sarami isseo
Did you know?
- In Korea, if you have a crush on someone, you might be described as having 썸 ('some'). This refers to the ambiguous 'something' stage where two people flirt but are not yet dating.
- If your crush is a bit too 'out of your league', you might say they are 벽, which literally means 'a wall' that you cannot overcome.
- If you are talking about a celebrity crush, you might use the word 덕후, which comes from the Japanese word 'otaku' to describe an obsessive fan.
Examples in context
- 나 좋아하는 사람이 있어.na joahaneun sarami isseo.I have a crush.
- 사실은 좋아하는 사람이 있어.sasireun joahaneun sarami isseo.Actually, I have a crush.
- 나 몰래 좋아하는 사람이 있어.na mollae joahaneun sarami isseo.I have a crush that I've been keeping secret.
Example conversation
Two friends are talking about love in a cafe.
- 수빈 Su-bin지훈아, 나 좋아하는 사람이 있어.jihun-a, na joahaneun sarami isseo.Jihoon, I have a crush.
- 지훈 Ji-hun정말? 누구를 좋아하는 거야?jeongmal? nugureul joahaneun geoya?Really? Who do you like?
- 수빈 Su-bin아직은 말 못 해.ajigeun mal mot hae.I can't tell you yet.
- 지훈 Ji-hun궁금하니까 빨리 알려줘!gunggeumhanikka ppalli allyeojwo!I'm curious, so tell me soon!
