Ways to say it
| Korean | Romanization (Wiktionary) | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 말하다 | malhada | [ˈma̠(ː)ɾɦa̠da̠] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) | |
| 말씀하다 | malsseumhada | [ˈma̠(ː)ɭs͈ɯmɦa̠da̠] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) | honorific |
| 이야기하다 | iyagihada | [ija̠ɡiɦa̠da̠] (SK Standard, Seoul, narrow) |
말하다 covers the general act of speaking or saying something. 이야기하다 puts the focus on the content of a conversation or on telling a story. Related nouns include 이야기 and 대화 for conversation and 강의 for a lecture.
Which one should you use?
말하다 is about speaking itself. 이야기하다 is about talking with someone or telling something. 대화하다 means having a dialogue, 이야기를 나누다 means sharing a conversation and 상담하다 is for a consultation. 얘기하다 is a casual word for chatting, and 수다 떨다 means gossiping or talking a lot.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
말씀하다 is honorific and is used for the speech of someone of higher status or someone you respect. 얘기하다 is informal and 수다 떨다 is colloquial.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun form of the honorific verb is 말씀, used for the words or speech of a respected person.
How do you pronounce it?
말하다 is romanized as malhada.
Did you know?
- The word 말 for 'word' or 'speech' is a homonym for the Korean word for 'horse'. Depending on the context, 말하다 could jokingly be interpreted as 'doing a horse'.
- The casual expression for chatting, 수다 떨다, literally translates to 'to shake chatter', where 'to shake' (떨다) is used to describe the rhythmic or continuous nature of much talking.
- The honorific word 말씀 is unique because it is used both to elevate the speech of a superior and to humble one's own speech when talking to a superior.
Examples in context
- 한국어로 말하자!Let's talk in Korean! (colloquial)말하자 is a casual let's form, so the sentence means let's talk in Korean.
- 잠깐 이야기하자.Let's talk for a short time.이야기하자 suggests having a short talk together.
- 오늘 회의에서 이야기를 나누었어요.We had a conversation during today's meeting.
- 얘기 좀 해볼까?Shall we have a chat?
- 진실을 말하다.jinsireul malhada.To tell the truth.
Example conversation
Minjun and Subin are discussing a project together.
- 민준 Min-jun수빈 씨, 지금 말하다 보면 시간이 너무 늦어요.Subin ssi, jigeum malhada bomyeon sigani neomu neujeoyo.Subin, if we keep talking now, it will be too late.
- 수빈 Su-bin그럼 내일 다시 이야기할까요?geureom naeil dasi iyagihalkkayo?Then shall we talk again tomorrow?
- 민준 Min-jun네, 내일 다시 말해요.ne, naeil dasi malhaeyo.Yes, let's talk tomorrow.
- 수빈 Su-bin좋아요. 내일 봐요!joayo. naeil bwayo!Great. See you tomorrow!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “talk” translations and entries 말하다, 말씀하다, 이야기하다, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Wiktionary CC BY-SA 4.0.
