좋아 보여요
joa boyeoyo
In Korean, "it looks good" is expressed as 좋아 보여요 (joa boyeoyo).
This phrase is used to say that something has a pleasing appearance or seems to be in a positive state.
Which one should you use?
You can use 좋아보여 in casual settings. If you want to emphasize that something looks charming or cute, you can use 이뻐 보여. For highly respectful situations, 멋지시네요 can be used to say something looks good while adding a layer of respect.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase is used in its polite form (ending in –요) to express an observation about appearance or state in 좋아 보여요. The phrase can be adjusted to a formal/polite version as 좋아 보입니다 or an informal/casual version as 좋아 보여.
How do you pronounce it?
joa boyeoyo
Did you know?
- Koreans often respond to the compliment 좋아 보여요 with a humble denial, such as 아니에요 (no it is not), as accepting praise too directly can be seen as lacking modesty.
- The structure of 보여요 comes from 보이다, the passive form of 'to see'. This means 'it looks good' literally translates to 'it is seen as being good'.
- If you are complimenting food that 'looks good', it is very common to use the word 맛있어 보여요 which means 'it looks delicious', rather than just 'it looks good'.
Examples in context
- 아기가 이뻐 보여!The baby looks adorable!
- 새 옷이 좋아 보여요.sae osi joa boyeoyo.The new clothes look good.
- 오늘 기분이 좋아 보여요.oneul gibuni joa boyeoyo.You look in a good mood today.
- 이 디자인이 좋아 보여요.i dijini joa boyeoyo.This design looks good.
Example conversation
Dohyun and Minji are looking at a cake in a bakery.
- 도현 Do-hyeon민지 씨, 이 케이크 어때요?Minji ssi, i keikeu eottaeyo?Minji, how about this cake?
- 민지 Min-ji우와, 정말 좋아 보여요!uwa, jeongmal joa boyeoyo!Wow, it looks really good!
- 도현 Do-hyeon그럼 이걸로 살까요?geureom igeollo salkkayo?Then shall we buy this one?
- 민지 Min-ji네, 그렇게 해요.ne, geureoke haeyo.Yes, let's do that.
