American Learns Korean Day35: Politeness Level (-요 Style Overview)

Day35 Goal: Make -요 your default setting

Here’s the practical conclusion for American Learns Korean Day35:

For beginners, the -요 style (해요체) is the safest default.
It’s not too formal (like 합니다체), and not too casual (like 반말). That means it works in most daily situations—travel, shops, restaurants, basic work interactions, and first meetings.

Today is about speaking immediately with -요 endings. Verb transformation rules (dictionary form → -요) will be handled more deeply in Day36.

What is the -요 style? (one-line definition)

The -요 style is a polite speech level where you end sentences with -요.

Common endings you’ll use constantly:

가요 / 와요 / 먹어요 / 마셔요 / 공부해요
예요 / 이에요
있어요 / 없어요
맞아요 / 아니에요 / 괜찮아요

When should you use -요? (5 real-life rules)

Use -요 when:

You meet someone for the first time
You don’t know the relationship/age/status
You’re in service situations (store, café, hotel, hospital, etc.)
You’re in most workplace conversations
You’re chatting online with some distance (comments/DMs)

In short: If unsure, use -요.

-요 vs casual vs formal: the “tone difference” matters

1) -요 style (해요체): daily polite default

지금 가요. / 괜찮아요. / 몰라요.

2) Casual speech (반말/해체): close relationships only

지금 가. / 괜찮아. / 몰라.

Beginners often sound unintentionally rude when they mix in casual endings. For now, avoid casual speech.

3) Formal speech (합니다체): official and more distant

지금 갑니다. / 괜찮습니다. / 모르겠습니다.

Used in announcements, presentations, news, and formal workplace documents.

15 “survival -요” phrases (memorize these first)

These phrases keep conversations moving even with limited grammar.

안녕하세요
네 / 아니요
맞아요 / 아니에요
괜찮아요
몰라요 / 알아요
있어요 / 없어요
좋아요 / 싫어요
지금요? (“Now?” / “Right now?”)
잠깐만요
주세요
어디예요?
얼마예요?
감사합니다
죄송합니다
도와주세요

If you master these, you can survive a large portion of everyday interactions.

5 beginner mistakes to avoid

Dropping -요 → suddenly sounds casual/rude
Using “네” like strict English “yes” → “네” often means “okay/I see/that’s right”
Saying “아니” instead of “아니요” → keep “아니요” as default
Underusing 감사합니다/죄송합니다 → in Korean, these are not “too much”
Requesting without 주세요 → “___ 주세요” is the standard request pattern

6 sentence frames you can use immediately

Use these as templates (don’t overthink grammar):

저는 ___예요/이에요. (I am …)
저는 ___을/를 ___해요. (I do …)
지금 ___에/에서 ___해요. (I do … at/in … now)
___ 있어요/없어요. (There is/There isn’t / I have/don’t have)
___ 좋아해요/싫어해요. (I like/dislike …)
___ 주세요. (Please give me …)

Examples:

저는 제임스예요.
저는 한국어를 공부해요.
지금 카페에서 커피를 마셔요.
시간이 없어요.
김밥을 좋아해요.
물 주세요.

Mini Dialogue 1: Café order (-요 only)

A: 안녕하세요. 주문 도와드릴까요?
B: 네, 아메리카노 주세요.
A: 따뜻한 거예요? 아이스예요?
B: 아이스요.
A: 여기서 드세요? 가져가세요?
B: 가져갈게요. 감사합니다.

Key: even short answers sound polite when they end properly.

Mini Dialogue 2: Asking directions (survival set)

A: 죄송합니다. 화장실 어디예요?
B: 저기예요.
A: 감사합니다.
B: 네, 괜찮아요.

Speaking Drill 1: “End everything with -요” (3 minutes)

Convert quickly into -요 style:

지금 가__ → 지금 가요
커피 마셔__ → 커피 마셔요
한국어 공부해__ → 한국어 공부해요
괜찮__ → 괜찮아요
몰라__ → 몰라요
있어__ → 있어요
없어__ → 없어요

Speaking Drill 2: Make 주세요 automatic (3 minutes)

Requests should default to “noun + 주세요.”

물 주세요.
커피 주세요.
메뉴 주세요.
영수증 주세요.
천천히 말해 주세요. (Very useful in real life.)

Quiz + Answer Key

1) Rewrite into polite -요 style

지금 가.
괜찮아.
몰라.
물 줘.

Answers

지금 가요.
괜찮아요.
몰라요.
물 주세요.

2) Fill in the blanks

커피 ___ (please give)
화장실 ___? (where)
괜찮___ (it’s okay)