“I’m sorry” in Korean: 죄송합니다 (joesonghamnida)

죄송합니다

joesonghamnida

Situation: Greetings & basicsLevel: Starter (just learning Hangul)

Meaning

I’m sorry.

A polite way to apologize to elders and customers, and in formal situations.

Romanization follows the Revised Romanization system and is a guide to pronunciation.

Use it for a real apology: bumping into a stranger, arriving late to a meeting, or making a mistake with a customer. Adding 정말 shows you mean it.

It is heavy for tiny slips, and a bit stiff with friends, who say 미안해. For small everyday mistakes, 미안해요 sounds more natural.

Syllables: 5 · Words: 1

Said aloud, it sounds like [죄송함니다].

Syllable	Letters (consonant + vowel + final)	Romanization
죄	ㅈ+ㅚ	joe
송	ㅅ+ㅗ+ㅇ	song
합	ㅎ+ㅏ+ㅂ	[함] ham
니	ㄴ+ㅣ	ni
다	ㄷ+ㅏ	da

A ㅇ at the start of a syllable is silent; at the end of a syllable it sounds like “ng”.

Nasalization: a final ㄱ, ㄷ or ㅂ becomes ㅇ, ㄴ or ㅁ before ㄴ or ㅁ (and a ㄹ after ㅁ or ㅇ becomes ㄴ). 합니 → [함니]

Style: Formal polite (합쇼체)Sentence type: Statement or set phrase

Ends in -ㅂ니다 or -습니다. The most formal polite style, used for announcements, presentations, business and first meetings.

Test yourself before you move on. Tap an answer.

Question 1 What does “죄송합니다” mean?

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Answer: I’m sorry

Question 2 How is “죄송합니다” pronounced?

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Answer: [죄송함니다]

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