Basic Greetings

The first conversation in any new language is greetings, and Korean greetings come with a built-in lesson in politeness levels. 안녕하세요 is the universal polite hello that works in 95% of situations — at cafés, with neighbours, with classmates you have just met, with shopkeepers. It is the form you should use by default for anyone you do not know well.

안녕히 가세요 (goodbye to someone leaving) and 안녕히 계세요 (goodbye while you yourself are leaving) are a useful pair to memorise together because the distinction is essential and trips up beginners. 감사합니다 (thank you, formal) and 고맙습니다 (thank you, slightly warmer) are interchangeable in most everyday contexts, but 감사합니다 is more common in customer-service settings while 고맙습니다 feels more personal. Korean greetings are short, frequent, and culturally heavy — Koreans expect you to greet shopkeepers, colleagues, and even apartment building staff every time you see them.