Hello, 안녕하세요: A Guide to Polite and Effective Phone Talk in Korean

For those looking to navigate the world of Korean phone conversations, understanding the essential vocabulary and phrases is crucial. I am Vaibhavi from India. In this blog, we'll explore the key words, phrases, and sample dialogues to help you confidently engage in Korean phone conversations.

Korean Phone Vocabulary:

1. 전화 : Phone

2. 통화 : Call

3. 휴대폰 : Mobile phone

4. 번호 : Number

5. 거절하다 : To reject/decline

6. 통화 중 : In a call

7. 음성 메시지 : Voicemail

8. 벨소리 : Ringtone

9. 수신 : Reception/signal

10. 충전하다 : To charge (the phone)

Basic Phrases for Phone Conversations:

1. 여보세요 : Hello (used when answering the phone)

2. 안녕하세요 : Hello (more formal)

3. 누구세요? : Who is this?

4. 전화번호가 몇 번이에요? : What is your phone number?

5. 통화중이에요 : I am in a call.

6. 통화를 걸다 : To make a call

7. 통화를 받다 : To answer a call

8. 통화를 끊다 : To end a call

9. 다시 전화할게요 : I will call you back.

10. 음성 메시지를 남기세요 : Please leave a voicemail.

Important phrases for having a Korean phone conversation

1)How to answer the phone:

When answering the phone in Korea, it's customary to greet the caller politely. The standard greeting is "여보세요".

2) “How may I help you?”

If you want to inquire about the purpose of the call, you can use the phrase "무엇을 도와드릴까요?".

3) How to ask for someone over the phone:

If someone is looking for a specific person, you can use the phrase "전화를 기다리고 계세요?" meaning "Are you waiting for a call?" To inquire about someone, you can ask "누구세요? which means "Who is it?"

4) How to respond when the caller is looking for someone else :

If the caller is looking for someone who is unavailable, you can politely inform them. For example, you can say "그(녀)는 지금 부재 중이에요" meaning "He (She) is currently unavailable."

5) “I couldn’t quite hear that, could you please repeat it?”

In case the caller's voice is unclear or the connection is poor, you can ask them to repeat themselves by saying "조금 알아들리지 않아서 다시 말해 주시겠어요?" which means "I couldn't quite hear that, could you please repeat it?"

6) “Please hold on a moment” :

If you need a moment to check something or attend to another matter, you can say "잠시만 기다려 주세요", translating to "Please hold on a moment."

7) “Can you hear me?”:

To ensure a clear connection, you can ask "제 소리 들리세요?", which means "Can you hear me?"

Sample Phone Conversation Dialogues:

Dialogue 1: Making a call

Person A: 여보세요, JISOO 씨에게 전화 걸었어요. (Hello, I called for Ms. JISOO

Person B: 네, 안녕하세요! Yes, hello!

Person A: 어제 오후에 약속이 있어서 확인하고 싶었어요. I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon, and I wanted to confirm.

Person B: 네, 알겠습니다. 어떤 내용인지 말씀해 주세요. Sure, I understand. Please tell me the details.

Dialogue 2: Receiving a call

Person A: 여보세요? Hello?

Person B: 네, 안녕하세요. LISA 씨예요. Yes, hello. This is Ms. lisa

Person A: 안녕하세요, Jessi 씨. 오랜만에 전화해서 미안해요. Hello, Ms. Jessi I'm sorry for not calling in a long time.

Person B: 아니에요. 반가워요. No problem. It's good to hear from you.

Hope you enjoyed today's lesson. if you drop a heart!!