그가 보고 싶어요
geuga bogo sipeoyo
To miss him in Korean, you say 그가 보고 싶어요 (geuga bogo sipeoyo).
In Korean, the concept of 'missing someone' is expressed through the desire to see them.
What does it mean word for word?
In the phrase 그가 보고 싶어요, 그가 refers to 'he' as the subject and 보고 싶어요 means 'want to see'.
Which one should you use?
You may also see 그를 보고 싶어, which translates to 'I want to see him' and is used interchangeably with 'miss him' in an informal context.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Use 그가 보고 싶습니다 for a highly formal and polite tone. 그를 그리워해 and 그를 보고 싶어 are informal and suited for close friends or younger people. The formal way to say 'miss him' is 그를 그리워합니다.
How does it change in a sentence?
The particle 가 attached to 그 marks 'he' as the subject of the sentence. The structure -고 싶어요 is used to express a desire or longing to do an action.
How do you pronounce it?
geuga bogo sipeoyo
Did you know?
- Korean has a specific term 정 ('jeong') to describe the unique feeling of attachment and bond that leads one to miss another person, which has no direct equivalent in English.
- In natural Korean speech, the word 그 for 'he' is rarely used. Using it can make a sentence sound like a translated Western novel rather than a natural conversation.
- To avoid sounding cold or impersonal, you might replace 그 with a title like 오빠 ('older brother/older male') or 선생님 ('teacher') instead of using a generic pronoun.
Examples in context
- 그가 보고 싶어요.geuga bogo sipeoyo.I miss him.
- 정말 그가 보고 싶어요.jeongmal geuga bogo sipeoyo.I really miss him.
- 매일 그가 보고 싶어요.maeil geuga bogo sipeoyo.I miss him every day.
Example conversation
Subin is talking to Minjun about her brother who lives abroad.
- 민준 Min-jun형은 잘 지내고 있나요?hyeongeun jal jinaego innayo?Is your brother doing well?
- 수빈 Su-bin네, 하지만 그가 보고 싶어요.ne, hajiman geuga bogo sipeoyo.Yes, but I miss him.
- 민준 Min-jun곧 만날 수 있을 거예요.got mannal su isseul geoyeyo.You will be able to see him soon.
- 수빈 Su-bin그랬으면 좋겠어요.geuraesseumyeon jokgesseoyo.I hope so.
