How to Say Thank You in Korean

(Korean) 고마워, 고마워요, 감사해요, 고맙습니다, 감사합니다
(English) Thanks, Thank you, I appreciate, and etc...
(Japanese) ありがとう、ありがとうございます、感謝します


반말 Casual language タメ口
고마워

비격식 존댓말 Polite language for daily conversation 非格式体の敬語
고마워요, 감사해요

격식 존댓말 Formal language for writing and business 格式体の敬語
고맙습니다, 감사합니다


대화 Conversations 会話
우빈: 혼자서 도서관까지 갈 수 있겠어요?　Can you get to the library by yourself?
엠마: 실은 저 길치예요. 도서관까지 데려다줄 수 있나요?　Actually, I have no sense of direction. Can you take me to the library?
우빈: 그럼요.　Of course.
엠마: 감사합니다.　Thank you.
우빈: 에이, 아니에요.　You're welcome.


감사합니다 is the most common way to politely say “Thank you.” 감사 means “gratitude”, and 합니다 means “I do” or “I am doing” in 존댓말 (polite/formal language). Together, the two mean “Thank you.” You can use 감사합니다 whenever you find yourself in a situation where you want to say “Thank you.”

In English, when you say “Thank you”, the expression has the word “you” in it. In Korean, however, people just say 감사합니다, but the word does not have an object (“you”) in it. You do not have to say “you” in Korean because it is easy to guess to whom you are offering thanks. As you learn more Korean expressions, you will see that there are many that need not include the object within the sentence.


「감사합니다」 は「感謝します」という丁寧な言い方です。「감사」は「感謝」という意味で、「합니다」は「する」という意味の 존댓말（敬語）です。二つを合わせると「感謝します」という意味になります。お礼を言いたい時は、「감사합니다」を使うことができます。

また、韓国語の「고맙습니다」は日本語の「ありがとうございます」と完全一致する表現です。以下は、英語を母国語として使っている方のための説明です。

英語では、「Thank you」と言うとき、表現の中に「you」という単語が入っています。しかし、韓国語では、「감사합니다」と言うだけで、目的語の「You」は入っていません。韓国語では「you」を言わなくても、誰に感謝の気持ちを伝えているのかが簡単に推測できるからです。これから韓国語を勉強していくと、文の中に目的語を使わない表現がたくさんあることに気づくと思います。