안녕
annyeong[a̠nɲʌ̹ŋ]
In Korean, the word for hi is 안녕 (annyeong).
안녕 is a friendly, informal greeting used among close friends or with people who are of a similar age or younger.
Meaning: friendly, informal greeting (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, 안녕 means 'peace' or 'well-being'.
Which one should you use?
While 안녕 is a shortened version of the polite form 안녕하세요, it is specifically used for informal situations. In contrast, 안녕하세요 is the standard polite form used when speaking to strangers or superiors.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
안녕 is an informal greeting used with friends, people of lower social status or those younger than you. For formal situations, the most common and widely used way to say hi is 안녕하세요.
How do you pronounce it?
annyeong
When do people say it?
When greeting someone in different contexts, remember that 여보세요 is used specifically when answering the phone and 만나서 반갑습니다 is used to say 'Nice to meet you'.
Did you know?
- In many Western cultures, 'hi' is a neutral greeting, but in Korea, using the informal 안녕 with a stranger can be seen as a direct social insult.
- The word 안녕 is composed of two Chinese characters, 安 meaning 'peaceful' and 寧 meaning 'serenity'.
- While 안녕 is used to say 'hi', it is also the standard way to say 'bye' in informal settings.
Examples in context
- 안녕!Hi!This example shows the use of 안녕 as an exclamation.Tatoeba #5548647 by YUJIHEE, translation #2742244 by MTC
- 안녕.Hi.This example shows the use of 안녕 as a standard greeting.Tatoeba #8355888 by Eunhee, translation #538123 by CM
- 안녕, 잘 지냈어?annyeong, jal jinaesseo?Hi, how have you been?
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Two friends meet at a cafe.
- 지은 Ji-eun현우야, 안녕!Hyeon-u-ya, annyeong!Hi, Hyeon-u!
- 현우 Hyeon-woo어, 지은아 안녕!Eo, Ji-eun-a annyeong!Oh, hi Ji-eun!
- 지은 Ji-eun여기서 보네?Yeogiseo bone?I see you here?
- 현우 Hyeon-woo그러게, 반가워!Geureoge, bangawo!Yeah, good to see you!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “hi” translations and entries 안녕, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 안녕, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
