부모님
bumonim[pumo̞nim]
The phrase for mother and father in Korean is 부모님 (bumonim).
부모님 is used to refer to parents.
Which one should you use?
While 부모님 is a formal/polite term for 'parents', 엄마와 아빠 is the more colloquial and intimate way to say 'mom and dad'.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The form 부모님 is the standard polite way to refer to parents in both speech and writing. Adding the suffix 님 to terms for parents adds a sense of respect and politeness.
How does it change in a sentence?
Removing the suffix 님 from 부모님 results in the word 부모, which also means parents but lacks the honorific respect used when speaking about one's own or others' parents.
Did you know?
- The word 부모 consists of two characters: 부 for 'father' and 모 for 'mother'. This fixed order reflects a historical Confucian social hierarchy where the father was listed first.
- While 부모님 refers to biological parents, Koreans often use the same honorifics when referring to parents-in-law to show a high level of filial piety.
- In Korean, the concept of 'parents' is deeply tied to 효 'filial piety', a virtue that makes the use of the honorific 부모님 a moral duty rather than just a grammatical choice.
Examples in context
- 부모님께 선물을 드렸어요.bumonimkke seonmulreul deuryeosseoyo.I gave a gift to my mother and father.
- 부모님은 서울에 사세요.bumonimun seoure saseyo.My mother and father live in Seoul.
- 부모님 건강이 제일 중요해요.bumonim geongangi jeil jungyohaeyo.My mother and father's health is the most important.
Example conversation
Hyunwoo and Minji are talking about their weekend plans.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo이번 주말에 뭐 해요?ibeon jumare mwo haeyo?What are you doing this weekend?
- 민지 Min-ji부모님 댁에 방문할 거예요.bumonim daege bangmunhal geoyeyo.I am going to visit my parents' house.
- 현우 Hyeon-woo정말 좋겠네요!jeongmal jokenneyo!That sounds great!
- 민지 Min-ji네, 부모님을 빨리 뵙고 싶어요.ne, bumonimeul ppalli boepgo sipeoyo.Yes, I want to see my parents soon.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 부모님, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
