Understanding Korean speech levels is essential for polite communication.

Korean society places a heavy emphasis on age, status, and relationship dynamics.

This social hierarchy directly influences the way you conjugate verbs and address others.

You have two primary speech levels to choose from in daily life: banmal and jondaemal.

Using the wrong speech level can make you sound rude or awkwardly formal.

This guide will explain exactly when and how to use informal and formal Korean correctly.

The definition of jondaemal

Jondaemal (존댓말) is the formal, polite level of speech in Korean.

The word itself is a combination of jondae (respect) and mal (speech or language).

You can easily identify this speech level by looking at the end of the sentence.

Most jondaemal sentences end in either ~요 (~yo) or ~습니다/ㅂ니다 (~seumnida/mnida).

The ~요 ending is standard polite speech used in everyday conversation.

The ~습니다/ㅂ니다 ending is highly formal speech used in professional, public, or military settings.

Here’s an example of standard jondaemal:

The definition of banmal

Banmal (반말) is the informal, casual level of speech in Korean.

This word literally translates to “half speech”.

Banmal is primarily created by simply dropping the ~요 (~yo) ending from standard polite sentences.

Sentences spoken in banmal are shorter and feel much more intimate.

Because it lacks formal markers, using banmal with the wrong person is considered highly disrespectful.

Here’s the exact same conversation from above, but spoken in banmal:

Rules for using jondaemal

As a Korean learner, jondaemal should be your default speech level.

It’s always better to be overly polite than to accidentally offend someone.

You must use jondaemal when speaking to anyone older than you.

You should also use jondaemal with strangers, regardless of their age.

In the workplace, jondaemal is required when speaking to your boss, colleagues, and clients.

Service industry workers, such as cashiers and waiters, will always speak to you in jondaemal.

You’re expected to reply to service workers in jondaemal as a sign of mutual respect.

Rules for using banmal

Banmal is reserved exclusively for close relationships and specific social situations.

You can use banmal safely with your close friends who are the exact same age as you.

You’re also expected to use banmal when speaking to young children.

Older family members, such as your parents or grandparents, will use banmal when speaking to you.

You can use banmal with someone younger than you, but only after they’ve explicitly given you permission to do so.

Korean speakers also use banmal when talking to themselves or writing in a personal diary.

Transitioning from jondaemal to banmal

Moving from formal to informal speech is a major milestone in a Korean friendship.

This transition is known as 말을 놓다 (mal-eul nota), which literally means “to drop the language.”

You should never drop the language without mutually agreeing to it first.

Usually, the older person in the relationship will initiate this transition.

If you’re the older person, you can offer to speak comfortably using this phrase:

If you’re the younger person, you can politely ask the older person to drop the formalities for their own comfort:

Once permission is granted, you can change your verb endings.

Here’s a quick reference table showing how common phrases change from jondaemal to banmal.

Regional dialect variations

Standard Korean is based on the Seoul dialect, which uses the rules outlined above.

However, South Korea has regional dialects known as satoori (사투리) that change the way banmal sounds.

The most famous variation is found in the Gyeongsang province, which includes cities like Busan and Daegu.

In standard Seoul banmal, questions often end in ~아/어 (~a/eo) or ~니 (~ni).

In the Busan dialect, informal questions frequently end in ~나 (~na) or ~노 (~no).

For example, asking “What are you doing?” in standard banmal is 뭐 해? (mwo hae?).

In Busan satoori, this same informal question becomes 뭐 하노? (mwo hano?).

Understanding these regional variations will help you recognize banmal even when traveling outside of Seoul.