Thank you, sorry, excuse me
감사합니다 vs 고마워요; 죄송합니다 vs 미안해요.
Goals
Thanks / sorry / excuse me at the right strength.
Map
감사합니다·고마워요 / 죄송합니다·미안해요 / 실례합니다.
Practice
- Bump scenario.
- Service counter thanks.
- Interrupt for directions.
Common mistakes
- Too casual for serious inconvenience.
Study rhythm: Skim “Thank you, sorry, excuse me” for structure, then re-read aloud. Fifteen-minute sessions usually beat one long cram when you are learning Korean from scratch.
Hands-on: Write three new sentences (do not copy the examples) using this pattern. When you learn Korean, forcing fresh sentences shows gaps early.
Listening: Pair this lesson with any short clip whose Korean subtitles reuse the same grammar. Notice endings in interviews versus narrators — the same rule may sound softer or stiffer.
Examples & practice: mini conversation
Read across: English meaning → Korean sentence → romanization (Konglish-style pronunciation guide, not official MR).
| Speaker | English | Korean | Romanization |
|---|---|---|---|
| 행인 | Oh—sorry! I almost knocked your bag. | 아, 죄송합니다! 가방 밀뻔했어요. | a, joesonghamnida! gabang milppeonhaesseoyo. |
| 행인 | Really sorry—괜찮으세요? | 정말 죄송해요. 괜찮으세요? | jeongmal joesonghaeyo. gwaenchan-euseyo? |
| 피해자 | It’s fine—미안해요 on my side too, I stopped suddenly. | 괜찮아요. 저도 갑자기 멈췄어요. | gwaenchanayo. jeodo gapjagi meomchwosseoyo. |
| 행인 | 감사합니다 for being cool about it. | 감사합니다. | gamsahamnida. |
| 피해자 | If it were worse I’d say 실례합니다 first… but we survived. | 더 크게 부딪혔으면 실례합니다 먼저 했을 텐데요. | deo keuge Budichyeosseumyeon sillyehamnida meonjeo haesseul tendeyo. |
| 행인 | I’ll buy you a drink next time—고마워요 in advance! | 다음엔 커피 살게요. 미리 고마워요! | daeumen keopi salgeyo. miri gomawoyo! |