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Use 예약하다 when arranging a place, room or similar use in advance; use 신청하다 when making a formal request or registering. Both may appear on a booking website, but the verb alone does not tell you that a place has been confirmed. The National Institute of Korean Language dictionary gives the meanings and sentence patterns. The dialogues and exercises below are newly written practice examples, not quotations from the dictionary. Contents 1. Start with what you are trying to do 2. Add the object, date and result question 3. Practise a short exchange without assuming success 4. Questions and dictionary references 1. Start with what you are trying to do 예약하다 focuses on arranging future use. 신청하다 can express a request to an organization and can also refer to course registration. Its dictionary entry has other uses, including asking someone out; this lesson concentrates on services and programs. Your purpose Practice sentence Meaning Arrange a table 토요일 저녁 식사 자리를 예약하고 싶어요. I would like to res...

취소하다 calls off the plan you are discussing; 미루다 can move it to a later time. When changing an appointment in Korean, name the original plan, explain the change and confirm the new date together. A proposal is not yet an agreed appointment. Contents 1. Two verbs, two different changes 2. Name the plan before suggesting a new time 3. A short dialogue and a substitution exercise 4. Common learner questions 1. Two verbs, two different changes Use 취소하다 when you mean that a planned event or promise is being called off. Use 미루다, in its scheduling sense, when the activity or time is being moved later. The National Institute of Korean Language’s Korean-English Learners’ Dictionary records these meanings separately. For a beginner, the useful contrast is “the existing plan will not happen” versus “I want it to happen later.” Neither verb, by itself, tells the listener an agreed replacement date. If you have a new date in mind, say it and ask whether it works. Practice sentence Meaning in this c...

지금 points to now. 이따가 means a little later, but it does not itself name a clock time. If you are arranging a real meeting, add a time or ask the other person when they mean. Start with two short lines: 지금 가요. — I’m going now. 이따가 가요. — I’m going a little later. The change is small in the sentence and important for the listener’s plan. Contents 1. Give the listener a time cue 2. Practise a real clarification 3. Change one part at a time 4. Common questions 1. Give the listener a time cue Korean Practical meaning What remains unclear 지금 출발해요. I’m leaving now. The arrival time 이따가 출발해요. I’m leaving a little later. The departure time 이따가 세 시에 만나요. Let’s meet at three a little later. The meeting place, if not already agreed A time word does not do every job in the message. Leaving now does not mean arriving now. “A little later” may be enough when you are in the same room; it can leave too much uncertainty when someone must travel to meet you. The National Institute of Korean Language ...

덜 맵게 해 주세요 asks for a dish to be less spicy. 안 맵게 해 주세요 asks for it not to be spicy. The useful first question is whether the kitchen can change the dish at all: 덜 맵게 할 수 있어요? These phrases help express a taste preference. They do not establish allergy safety, ingredients or whether a prepared sauce can be changed. Contents 1. Read the difference in one word 2. Ask what is possible before making the request 3. Practise a short two-choice dialogue 4. Keep the request separate from guarantees 1. Read the difference in one word 덜 means “less” in the Korean Basic Dictionary. In 덜 맵게, it reduces the degree of spiciness rather than removing the property completely. 안 adds a negative meaning: 안 맵게 asks for a non-spicy preparation. The base adjective is 맵다. In a common polite statement it becomes 매워요: “It is spicy.” Notice the spelling change; 맵어요 is not the form to memorise here. HRD Korea’s official self-study textbook presents this adjective as an example of the ㅂ irregular pattern. Kore...

English “excuse me” can introduce a small interruption or acknowledge a mistake. Korean separates those situations more clearly. 실례합니다 is useful when your action may be an imposition, such as interrupting to ask a question. 죄송합니다 directly expresses a serious apology. Context and tone still matter, but this distinction gives beginners a reliable starting point. Try this: Asking a stranger for directions? “실례합니다. 지하철역이 어디예요?” Spilled a drink on someone? “죄송합니다. 괜찮으세요?” Contents Two meanings Choose by situation Practice dialogues A short exercise Common questions 1. Two meanings The National Institute of Korean Language's Korean–English Learners' Dictionary defines 실례하다 as behaving or speaking in a way that breaches etiquette. The fixed polite expression 실례합니다 can therefore soften a brief interruption. You can extend it with 실례합니다만 (“Excuse me, but...”) before a question or request. The same dictionary defines 죄송하다 as feeling very sorry. 죄송합니다 is a respectful apology when ...

Use 이거 주세요 to ask for “this one,” and 포장해 주세요 to ask for an action: packing something to take away. Both are useful polite requests, but the word before 주세요 does a different job. Learning that difference helps you build a small set of practical phrases instead of memorizing a long list. The dialogues and exercise below are original learning examples. Meanings depend on the situation, so start with the whole phrase and its context. Contents Ask for an item Ask for an action Three short practice dialogues Try the substitution exercise Common questions 1. Ask for an item 이거 주세요. means “This one, please.” Here, 이거 points to a thing. At a counter, point clearly at the item or the menu entry so the listener knows what “this” refers to. If three items are grouped together, the phrase alone may not identify the one you want. You can replace 이거 with a familiar noun: 물 주세요. — “Water, please.” Do not add an English-style “me” just because it appears in a literal translation. Practice these sh...

잠시만요 (jam-si-man-yo) is a polite way to ask for a brief moment, pause someone gently, or get attention before a short request. It works when you need a second to check something; it is not a universal replacement for every English “excuse me.” A short pause can make a request feel considerate and clear. Quick guide Say 잠시만요 when you need a moment or want to pause a conversation politely. Add what you need— 잠시만 기다려 주세요 (“Please wait just a moment”)—when the listener needs a clear request. Contents What 잠시만요 means Three everyday situations Choosing a clearer phrase Short dialogues to practice Common questions 1. What 잠시만요 means A useful first translation is “Just a moment, please” or “One second, please.” The phrase signals that you need a short pause. Your next words and the situation show whether you are checking something, askin...

괜찮아요 (gwaenchanayo) is one of the most useful Korean expressions—and one of the easiest to misread in translation. Depending on the situation, it can mean “I’m fine,” “That’s okay,” “No, thank you,” or “Would that be okay?” The surrounding question and your tone tell listeners which meaning you intend. Quick guide: use 괜찮아요? to check on someone; 괜찮아요 to reassure them or politely decline an offer; and ~아/어도 괜찮아요? to ask permission. On this page The core meaning Four everyday contexts Asking permission politely Short dialogues to practice Common questions 1. Start with the core meaning The dictionary form 괜찮다 describes something as fairly good or having no particular problem. In conversation, the polite present form is 괜찮아요 . The National Institute of Korean Language’s Korean-English Learners’ Dictionary also lists its use for saying that something is acceptable or allowed, as in 앉아도 괜찮아요 (“It’s okay to sit”). That range explains why one English equivalent does not f...

Use -네요 when a fact feels newly noticed, discovered, or striking to you. “밖이 춥네요” does more than report that it is cold: the speaker is reacting to the cold they have just noticed. In a second use, especially with -겠네요 , the ending can invite agreement with a guess. These uses are described in the National Institute of Korean Language’s Basic Korean Dictionary . Reference checked: 23 September 2026. The short dialogues below are learning examples, not transcripts of real conversations. A new observation is a natural setting for -네요. Contents The meaning of -네요 -네요 compared with -어요 How to form it A two-minute practice 1. The meaning of -네요 The dictionary gives two useful patterns. First, a speaker reacts to something newly learned or experienced: “음식이 맛있네요!” can express a discovery after tasting the food. Second, a speaker can use the ending to check an inference with a listener: “내일 바쁘겠네요?” after hearing about a packed schedule. The dictionary notes that this second pattern commonl...