In today’s lesson, we will cover a phrase used when you enter a business establishment. In Korea, when you enter a place of business, you will usually hear the phrase, 어서 오십시오 (eoseo osipsio). This means welcome. One more time, it’s 어서 오십시오 (eoseo osipsio). One time slowly, 어서 오십시오 (eoseo osipsio). And now by syllable, 어-서 오-십-시-오 (eo-seo o-sip-si-o). And now one more time, 어서 오십시오 (eoseo osipsio)/ This is said at almost any business institution. Most people don’t respond and just go about doing their own business but to be polite, you can acknowledge them by giving a short quick bow and say 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo). But they won’t be hurt if you don’t even look in their direction. This is because there is a saying in Korea that goes like this: 손님이 왕이다 (sonnimi wangida), the customer is king. |
In America, the customer is always right. In Korea, the customer is king and boy, do they mean it. I am telling you, they will treat you like royalty. Even if you are just eye shopping, employees will follow you. It may freak you out at first but just know that they want to make sure if you need something, they are right next to you to answer any questions you might have. Now, when you leave a place of business, you will usually hear the phrase 안녕히 가십시오 (annyeonghi gasipsio). Sounds familiar, doesn’t it. This means goodbye or if you remember, go in peace. But this version is a super, super, super, super, polite form. So it’s not used very often. It has the same meaning as what we learned before but just a different level of respect. All right, let’s hear it again. 안녕히 가십시오 (annyeonghi gasipsio). One time slowly, 안녕히 가십시오 (annyeonghi gasipsio). Let’s break it down by syllable, 안-녕-히 가-십-시-오 (an-nyeong-hi ga-sip-si-o). |
Okay. To close our today’s lesson, we’d like for you to practice what you’ve learned. I will provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible for shouting it out loud. You will have a few seconds before I give you the answer. So 화이팅 (hwaiting)! |
Welcome - 어서 오십시오 (eoseo osipsio). |
Goodbye, the really polite version - 안녕히 가십시오 (annyeonghi gasipsio). |
The customer is king - 손님이 왕이다 (sonnimi wangida). |
All right, that’s going to do it for today. |
18 Comments
HideWhere can you use "어서오십시오" and "안녕히 가십시오." :)
Hi Kat,
Thank you for posting. You are correct--the words with (honorific) written next to it are the 'polite/formal' way of saying the word.
Please let us know if you have any other inquiries.
Best,
Lyn
Team KoreanClass101.com
I've noticed that there are parentheses with the word "honorific" next to vocab words. I was wondering if that means that means it is the formal way of saying that word.
Hello Tiff,
I am glad to hear that this lesson helped you understand the situation better : ) Thank you!
Jae
Team KoreanClass101.com
This makes so much sense when I'm in Korean restaurants or shops, I always thought it was to keep an eye on me. Thanks for clearing it up!:grin::grin:
Hi Ben,
Thanks for posting, and you're very welcome! Please let us know if you have any other inquiries. :smile:
Sincerely,
Lyn
Team KoreanClass101.com
Gotcha. Thanks Lyn! :)
Hi Ben,
Thanks for posting. The pronunciation is tricky even for native Koreans because if you say it quickly it can sound like '요'. However, the correct way to write and pronounce it is '오' so please keep it in mind! :smile:
Cheers,
Lyn
Team KoreanClass101.com
Though the words in the lesson end in "오", it sounds like Keith is saying "요". I'm somewhat confused about this. How should it be said?
Hi Duke,
If you have a Premium membership, you can use My Feed to download multiple files at once. My Feed allows Premium Members to fully customize personal feeds and choose specific lessons and files. Please check it out. :)
Thanks,
Claire
Team KoreanClass101.com
hello
thank you for your great site & great learning. but download all these parts are too hard. can you please send theme to my Gmail?