Happy Valentine’s Day (해피 발렌타인 데이)! We’ve got all the Valentine’s Day Korean phrases you’ll need to express yourself to that special someone this February 14th.
This article uses a lot of Korean words in Hangeul, the Korean alphabet. If you haven’t learned Hangeul yet, you can learn the entire alphabet in about 90 minutes! Read on to see the phrases you’ll need on that special day!
Contents
Valentine’s Day Phrase Rules
Before we kick off the Korean Valentine’s Day Korean Phrase festivities, there are three critical things you should know. Read them over so you know how to use the Valentine’s Day Korean phrases properly.
1. Ladies’ First
In Korea, women give chocolate to men on Valentine’s Day as a sign of affection. The men who receive the chocolate are supposed to give the woman a non-chocolate gift on March 14th (White Day).
2. Missing “You”
One thing that confuses people about Korean is that the pronoun “you” isn’t used often to refer to another person.
For example, the phrase “I miss you” is “보고 싶어요 (bogo sipeoyo)” in Korean. The “I” and “you” are implied.
You may see the word “당신 (dangsin)” used in phrase books or the dictionary, but it sounds a bit strange. It’s somewhat of an outdated term. Koreans don’t usually use the word “you” to refer to another person.
If you need to specify that you are referring to the other person, it’s better to use that person’s name or title. But which one to use? That brings us to #3!
3. Name That Name
The Korean language follows a social hierarchy that is based on age. What that means is that they use different forms of the language for people who are younger, the same age, and older than them.
If you’re dating someone older than you, you need to call them by the appropriate title (오빠 (oppa) or 누나 (nuna)). If your partner is the same age or younger than you, then you can use that person’s name.
For all of the Valentine’s Day Korean expressions below, use these rules and plug in the correct term for your partner. Be sure to add these to your flash card vocabulary for easier reference later!
For females:
- To older man: “오빠 (oppa)”
- Example: “좋아해요 (joahaeyo)” becomes “오빠 좋아해요 (oppa joahaeyo)”
- To younger man: Use his name
- Example: “좋아해요 (joahaeyo)” becomes “지훈 좋아해요 (ihun joahaeyo)”
For males:
- To older woman: “누나 (nuna)”
- Example: “좋아해요 (joahaeyo)” becomes “누나 좋아해요 (nuna joahaeyo)”
- To younger woman: Use her name
- Example: “좋아해요 (joahaeyo)” becomes “민지 좋아해요 (minji joahaeyo)”
Get “Korean Valentine’s Phrases” Free PDF Guide
Valentine’s Day Korean Phrases
Now, let’s head over to the different phrases you can say to your significant other on Valentine’s Day.
How to say “Happy Valentine’s Day” in Korean
To start, you can say “Happy Valentine’s Day” in Korean as 해피 발렌타인 데이! (haepi ballentain dei!). This is the greeting that you’ll mostly hear on this day. The best thing about this phrase is how easy it is to remember.
Below are more phrases you can say on February 14th.
| English | 한국어 (Korean) | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| Happy Valentine's Day! | 해피 발렌타인 데이! | haepi ballentain dei! |
| I made this Valentine's chocolate for you | 발렌타인 초콜릿 선물 만들었어요 | ballentain chokollit seonmul mandeureosseoyo |
| Shall we eat this Valentine chocolate together? | 같이 발렌타인 초콜릿 먹을 까요? | gachi ballentain chokollit meogeul kkayo? |
| Here’s a Valentine's card card I wrote for you | 발렌타인 카드 썼어요 | ballentain kadeu sseosseoyo |
| I’m your secret admirer | 나는 <이름> 을/를 짝사랑하고 있어요 | naneun |
Meeting and Matchmaking
If you’re still eyeing someone to be your Valentine, here are some useful phrases for you!
| English | 한국어 (Korean) | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| Do you have Valentine's Day plans? | 발렌타인 데이에 계획 있어요? | ballentain deie gyehoek isseoyo? |
| Shall I set you up on a blind date? | 소개팅 해줄까요? | sogaeting haejulkkayo? |
| Shall we go on a date together? | 우리 데이트 할까요? | uri deiteu halkkayo? |
| Shall we get dinner together sometime? | 언제 우리 같이 저녁 먹을까요? | eonje uri gachi jeonyeok meogeulkkayo? |
| Are you available ________? | ________에 시간 있어요? | ________e sigan isseoyo? |
| Shall we go for a short walk? | 잠깐 산책할까요? | jamkkan sanchaekalkkayo? |
| Will you be my boyfriend/girlfriend? | 우리 사귈래요? | uri sagwillaeyo? |
Caring Compliments
Make sure to shower your significant other with compliments, too!
| English | 한국어 (Korean) | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| You are handsome! | 잘 생겼어요! | jal saenggyeosseoyo! |
| You are pretty! | 예쁘네요! | yeppeuneyo! |
| You are so cute! | 너무 귀여워요! | neomu gwiyeowoyo! |
| You look great! | 멋지네요! | meotjineyo! |
| You are so sweet! | 정말 친절하네요! | jeongmal chinjeolhaneyo! |
| You are the man of my dreams | 내가 꿈꾸던 남자예요 | naega kkumkkudeon namjayeyo |
| You are the woman of my dreams | 내가 꿈꾸던 여자예요 | naega kkumkkudeon yeojayeyo |
Lovey Dovey Expressions
Express how much you love your boyfriend/girlfriend, wife/husband with these phrases!
| English | 한국어 (Korean) | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| I like you | 좋아해요 | joahaeyo |
| I like you a lot | 많이 좋아해요 | mani joahaeyo |
| I want to see you | 보고 싶어요 | bogo sipeoyo |
| I love you | 사랑해요 | saranghaeyo |
| I love you a lot | 많이 사랑해요 | mani saranghaeyo |
| I love you too | 나도 사랑해요 | nado saranghaeyo |
| I want to hug you | 안아주고 싶어요 | anajugo sipeoyo |
| I will give you a hug | 안아줄게요 | anajulgeyo |
| I want to kiss you | 뽀뽀하고 싶어요 | ppoppohago sipeoyo |
| Kiss me please | 뽀뽀해 주세요 | ppoppohae juseyo |
| I want to be with you | 같이 있고 싶어요 | gachi itgo sipeoyo |
| I would like to spend more time with you | <이름>랑 더 오래 같이 있고 싶어요 |
Deep From the Heart Expressions
Here are more expressions that you can say to your significant other. Sincerity is key!
| English | 한국어 (Korean) | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| I love you with all my heart | 진심으로 사랑해요 | jinsimeuro saranghaeyo |
| I love you more than you know | 생각하고 있는 것 이상으로 사랑합니다 | saenggakago inneun geot isangeuro saranghamnida |
| I love you more than words can express | 말로 표현할 수 없을 만큼 사랑해요 | mallo pyohyeonhal su eopseul mankeum saranghaeyo |
| I love you more and more everyday | 시간이 지날수록 더 사랑해요 | sigani jinalsurok deo saranghaeyo |
| You don’t know how much I love you | 내가 얼마나 사랑하는지 모르는 것 같아요 | naega eolmana saranghaneunji moreuneun geot gatayo |
Korean Love Lingo
Below are Korean words related to love and relationships.
| English | 한국어 (Korean) | Romanization |
|---|---|---|
| baby | 자기 | jagi |
| honey | 여보 | yeobo |
| secret crush | 짝사랑 | jjaksarang |
| couple | 커플 | keopeul |
| boyfriend | 남친 | namchin |
| girlfriend | 여친 | yeochin |
| kiss (quick peck) | 뽀뽀 | ppoppo |
| kiss | 키스 | kiseu |
| blind date | 소개팅 | sogaeting |
| lover | 연인 | yeonin |
| love | 사랑 | sarang |
Korean Romance Calendar
Besides Valentine’s Day, there are other special events in Korea that are for couples (or single people!). Find out more about them below.
February 14: Valentine’s Day – Women give men chocolate
March 14th: White Day – Men give women non-chocolate candy
April 14th: Black Day – Single people eat 자장면 (jajangmyeon) at a Chinese-Korean restaurant
November 11th: Pepero Day – Couples give each other Pepero snacks. The date “11/11” resembles four Pepero sticks standing up.
Wrap Up
And that’s it for the Korean Valentine’s Phrases. Need other Korean phrases to study? Check out our list!
Have some stories about Valentine’s Day in Korea? Share it with us in the comments below!
