Ways to say it
| Korean | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA |
|---|---|---|
| 회원 | hoewon | [ˈɸwe̞(ː)wʌ̹n] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) [ˈhø̞(ː)wʌ̹n] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) |
| 멤버 | membeo | [me̞mbʌ̹] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) |
In Korean, 'member' refers to someone who officially belongs to a group. The choice of word depends on whether you are discussing official institutional membership or casual group affiliations.
What does it mean word for word?
The term 회원 is composed of 회 (meaning meeting or assembly) and 원 (meaning member or person), literally meaning a person in an assembly.
Which one should you use?
In contrast, 멤버 is a loanword from English used to refer to members of a group of people, such as a K-pop group or a group of friends, rather than formal institutional membership.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
회원 is a formal term used in contexts like organizations, clubs or associations. There is also the formal term 구성원, which is used when referring to members of a group, team or organization. 멤버 is an informal loanword used in casual, everyday conversation and pop culture contexts, such as when discussing boy bands, girl groups or fandoms.
How do you pronounce it?
hoewon
Did you know?
- In Korea, the concept of a 'member' is deeply linked to the culture of 회식, or company dining, because both share the root 회 meaning 'assembly'.
- The suffix -원 used in 회원 is also found in words for professionals like 의원 (member of parliament or doctor) and 교원 (teacher/faculty), emphasizing a person's status within a specific body.
- In many modern digital contexts, you might see the term 회원가입 (member join) used on websites to mean 'sign up' or 'register'.
Examples in context
- 나는 수영 클럽의 회원이다.I'm a member of the swimming club.This sentence shows how to express being a member of a specific club using 회원.Tatoeba #11105119 by intertime, translation #258913 by CK
- 난 아직도 회원이야.I'm still a member.This sentence uses 회원 to state that someone is still a member.Tatoeba #8367691 by Eunhee, translation #5166512 by CK
- 저희 테니스 클럽에 새로운 회원이 되고 싶으세요?Would you like to become a new member of our tennis club?
- 프로젝트 구성원들은 모두 노력하고 있습니다.All members of the project are making an effort.
- 이 그룹의 멤버들은 매우 인기가 있습니다.The members of this group are very popular.
- 너도 게임 일원이 되자!Join us as a member of the game!
Example conversation
Minji and Hyunwoo are talking about a gym membership.
- 민지 Min-ji현우 씨는 헬스장 회원이에요?Hyeon-u ssi-neun helseujang hoe-won-i-e-yo?Hyunwoo, are you a member of the gym?
- 현우 Hyeon-woo네, 지난달부터 회원이에요.Ne, jinan-dal-buteo hoe-won-i-e-yo.Yes, I have been a member since last month.
- 민지 Min-ji시설이 정말 좋아요.Siseol-i jeongmal jo-ayo.The facilities are really good.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo맞아요, 추천해요.Maj-ayo, chu-cheon-hae-yo.That's right, I recommend it.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “member” translations and entries 회원, 멤버, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
