멋있다
meositda[mʌ̹ɕʰit̚t͈a̠]
The English phrase 'something is cool' is expressed in Korean as 멋있다 (meositda).
멋있다 is used to describe a person's appearance, a person's behavior or an object's design.
Which one should you use?
While 멋있다 often refers to being 'cool' or 'stylish' in appearance or attitude, 멋지다 is a slightly stronger synonym meaning 'wonderful' or 'splendid'. Additionally, 짱이야 is an enthusiastically informal way to express that something is the coolest or the best.
How does it change in a sentence?
The default form is 멋있다. You can use the polite form 멋있어요 or the informal/casual form 멋있어. To talk about the past, use the past tense form 멋있었다. To emphasize that something or someone is the coolest or the most impressive, you can use 가장 멋있어요.
How do you pronounce it?
meositda
Did you know?
- When someone is exceptionally 'cool' in an effortless or charismatic way, Koreans may use the word 간지나다, which is a loanword derived from the Japanese word kanji.
- 멋있다 shares the same grammatical structure as 맛있다, which means 'delicious'. Literally, 멋있다 means 'to have style' just as 맛있다 means 'to have taste'.
- In modern slang, 짱 in the phrase 짱이야 originally referred to a 'boss' or 'leader' of a group.
Examples in context
- 그들은 정말 멋있습니다They look really cool.
- 이번 공연은 가장 멋있어요This performance is the coolest.
- 와, 차 멋있어!Wow, the car is cool!
- 진짜? 그거 짱이야!Really? That sounds awesome!
- 정말 멋있다!jeongmal meos-itta!It's really cool!
- 그 옷 진짜 멋있다.geu ot jin-jja meos-itta.Those clothes are really cool.
- 그의 스타일은 참 멋있다.geu-ui seu-ta-il-eun cham meos-itta.His style is very cool.
Example conversation
Minjun and Minji are looking at a new car in a showroom.
- 민준 Min-jun이 차 진짜 멋있다!i cha jin-jja meos-itta!This car is really cool!
- 민지 Min-ji맞아요, 디자인이 정말 멋있네요.ma-ja-yo, di-ja-in-i jeong-mal meos-it-ne-yo.You're right, the design is very cool.
- 민준 Min-jun민지 씨는 어떤 색이 멋있어요?Min-ji ssi-neun eo-tteon saek-i meos-is-seo-yo?Minji, which color looks cool to you?
- 민지 Min-ji검은색이 제일 멋있어요.geom-eun-saek-i je-il meos-is-seo-yo.The black one is the coolest.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry 멋있다, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 멋있다, CC BY-SA 4.0.
