잘 자
jal ja
The phrase 'sleep well' in Korean is expressed as 잘 자 (jal ja).
This phrase is used to wish someone a good night's sleep.
What does it mean word for word?
The expression 잘 자 is composed of the adverb 잘, meaning 'well' and the informal verb 자, meaning 'sleep'.
Which one should you use?
잘 자 is used for casual, close relationships, whereas 안녕히 주무세요 is the standard honorific way to wish someone a good night.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
잘 자 is an informal expression used with friends, siblings or people younger than you. For a slightly more polite version in informal situations, you can use 잘 자요. When speaking to elders or in a formal setting, you should use the honorific forms 안녕히 주무세요 or 안녕히 주무십시오.
How does it change in a sentence?
Adding the particle 요 to the end of 잘 자 to create 잘 자요 makes it a polite form suitable for people you are not intimate with.
How do you pronounce it?
jal ja
Did you know?
- In romantic relationships, couples often replace the standard 잘 자 with 내 꿈 꿔, which means 'dream of me'.
- The root verb 자다 used in 잘 자 is one of the few basic verbs in Korean that has a completely different honorific counterpart, 주무시다, rather than just adding a polite ending.
- The word 잘 meaning 'well' in 잘 자 is a native Korean word, whereas many other common Korean words are borrowed from Chinese.
Examples in context
- 안녕히 주무세요. 내일 일찍 일어나셔야 해요.Sleep well. You have to wake up early tomorrow.
- 잘 자! 내일 놀러 가자.Sleep well! Let's go out and have fun tomorrow.
- 내일 봐, 잘 자.naeil bwa, jal ja.See you tomorrow, sleep well.
- 이제 그만 자, 잘 자.ije geuman ja, jal ja.Go to sleep now, sleep well.
Example conversation
Jihoon and Minji are finishing a phone call late at night.
- 지훈 Ji-hun민지야, 이제 자야겠다.Minji-ya, ije jaya-getda.Minji, I should go to sleep now.
- 민지 Min-ji응, 지훈이 너도 잘 자.Eung, Jihoon-i neodo jal ja.Yeah, you sleep well too, Jihoon.
- 지훈 Ji-hun고마워, 잘 자.Gomawo, jal ja.Thanks, sleep well.
- 민지 Min-ji잘 자!Jal ja!Sleep well!
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 잘 자, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 자, 잘, 잘 자, CC BY-SA 4.0.
