How to Respond During Conversations | Korean Interjections List

KSJ 쌤
7 hours ago
4 min read

안녕하세요 리더님! Koreanstudyjunkie에서 Junie입니다. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to respond during conversations like native Koreans do. Typically, Koreans aren’t just silently listening in conversations there are a whole lot of “short phrases” or interjections that they use to be polite and respectful and show they are actively listening.

Korean Interjections List

1. Surprise / Shock / Realization

Used when you’re startled, impressed, or just realized something.

어! / 어? — “Oh!” / “Huh?” (neutral surprise or realization)
어머! / 어머나! — “Oh my!” (usually used by women, gentle or shocked tone)
헐! — “What the—!” (modern slang; disbelief or shock, often online)
세상에! — “My goodness!” / “Heavens!” (polite surprise, older or formal)
우와! / 와! — “Wow!” (pure amazement or admiration)
아이구! / 아이고! — “Oh dear!” / “Oh my!” (older generation or when tired/shocked)
허걱! — “Gasp!” / “Yikes!” (comic or exaggerated shock)
헉! — “Gasp!” / “What?!” (sharp shock, often typed or spoken when speechless)
오잉? — “Huh?” (cute or confused tone, used in text or informal speech)
앗! — “Ah!” / “Oops!” (small surprise or when you drop something)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 나 복권 당첨됐어!

(I won the lottery!)

B: 헐! 진짜야?

(Wow! Really?)

2. Admiration / Excitement / Joy

Used when you’re impressed, happy, or hyped.

우와! / 와! — “Wow!” / “Awesome!” (general excitement)
오! — “Oh!” (can mean impressed, approving)
이야! / 이야~! — “Yay!” / “Wow!” (cheerful excitement)
좋아! — “Nice!” / “Good!” (approval or enthusiasm)
대박! — “Awesome!” / “Epic!” (slang; amazement, disbelief, or approval)
꺄악! — “Aah!” (scream of excitement, often playful or fangirl-like)
야호! — “Yahoo!” / “Yay!” (childlike excitement, victory cry)
오예! — “Oh yeah!” (borrowed from English, youthful)
짱! — “The best!” / “Cool!” (slang, strong approval)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 이 그림 내가 그렸어!

(I drew this painting!)

B: 우와! 정말 예쁘다!

(Wow! It’s really beautiful!)

3. Disappointment / Frustration / Disgust

Used to express annoyance, failure, or negative reaction.

아휴… / 하휴… — “Sigh…” / “Geez…” (tired or exasperated)
아이씨! / 아씨! — “Damn!” (mild curse, frustration; be careful, informal)
젠장! — “Damn it!” (stronger, but not obscene)
아이고… — “Oh dear…” (tired, regretful, or sympathetic sigh)
에휴… / 하… — “Ugh…” / “Sigh…” (frustration or disappointment)
참나… — “Honestly…” / “Oh please…” (sarcastic disbelief)
쳇! — “Tch!” (clicking tongue in disappointment)
휴… — “Phew…” (relief or exhaustion)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 아까 시험 망쳤어…

(I totally failed the test earlier…)

B: 아이고… 힘들겠다.

(Oh dear… that must be tough.)

4. Humor / Embarrassment / Playfulness

Used in joking, teasing, or silly contexts.

ㅎㅎ / 하하 / 호호 — “Haha” (light laugh; ㅎㅎ is the text form)
ㅋㅋ / 크크 / 킥킥 — “Hehe / lol” (more mischievous or casual laugh)
푸하하! / 하하하! — “Hahaha!” (big laugh)
헤헤 / 에헤헤 — “Hehe” (embarrassed or shy laugh)
으하하! — “Bwahaha!” (exaggerated or mock villain laugh)
풉! / 푸핫! — “Pfft!” / “Burst out laughing”
아하! — “Aha!” (realization or playful “Got it!”)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 나 길 가다가 넘어졌어.

(I tripped while walking.)

B: ㅋㅋ 괜찮아? 너무 웃기다!

(Haha! Are you okay? That’s so funny!)

This is more for text conversations ;)

5. Anger / Irritation

Used when upset, annoyed, or losing patience.

야! — “Hey!” (angry or attention-getting tone)
이봐요! / 이봐! — “Hey, look here!” (formal vs informal scolding tone)
에이! — “Ugh!” / “Come on!” (disapproval or annoyance)
쳇! — “Tch!” / “Hmph!” (small anger)
흥! — “Hmph!” (childish or pouty annoyance)
아이 참! — “Oh, come on!” (frustrated but not harsh)
참나! — “Seriously?!” (sarcastic annoyance)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 또 내 음식을 먹었어!

(You ate my food again!)

B: 야! 왜 그래?

(Hey! Why would you do that?)

6. Sadness / Sympathy / Regret

Used when someone feels sorry, mournful, or moved.

에구… / 에이구… — “Oh dear…” / “Poor thing…” (sympathetic sigh)
아이구야… — “Oh no…” (concerned or pained reaction)
흑… / 흐윽… — “Sob…” / “Sniff…” (crying sounds)
아… — “Ah…” (sad realization or quiet regret)
하아… — “Sigh…” / “Oh man…” (disappointed or sorrowful tone)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 우리 강아지가 아파…

(Our puppy is sick…)

B: 흑… 안됐구나.

(Sob… that’s awful.)

7. Hesitation / Thinking / Awkwardness

Used to fill pauses or express uncertainty.

음… / 음… 글쎄… — “Um…” / “Hmm, not sure…”
어… / 저기… — “Uh…” / “Well…” (searching for words)
그… / 그러니까… — “So, um…” (stalling or organizing thoughts)
뭐랄까… — “How should I put this…” (thoughtful hesitation)
음흠. — “Mm-hmm.” (agreement or listening sound)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 저… 내일 시간 괜찮아요?

(Uh… are you free tomorrow?)

B: 음… 글쎄, 확인해봐야 할 것 같아요.

(Hmm… I’m not sure, I need to check.)

8. Relief / Exhaustion

Used after tension, hard work, or stress.

휴… / 후… — “Phew…” (relief)
하아… — “Sigh…” (tired or relieved)
에휴… — “Man…” / “Sheesh…” (mixed exhaustion + mild complaint)
어휴… — “Oh boy…” / “Jeez…” (strong sigh)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 드디어 프로젝트 끝났다!

(The project’s finally done!)

B: 휴…이제 좀 쉬자.

(Phew… let’s rest now.)

9. Agreement / Acknowledgment / Reaction

Used in conversation to show engagement or response.

응. / 어. / 그래. — “Yeah.” / “Okay.”
아하! — “Aha!” (understanding)
오오~ — “Ooh~” (admiration or impressed reaction)
음~ — “Mmm~” (agreeing, interested, or thinking sound)
그렇구나! / 그렇네요! — “I see!” / “Ah, that’s how it is!” (reaction)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 오늘 날씨 진짜 좋다.

(The weather’s really nice today.)

B: 응. 나도 그렇게 생각해.

(Yeah. I think so too.)

10. Traditional / Old-fashioned Interjections

Still heard in dramas, older speech, or polite forms.

이런! / 이런이런! — “Oh dear!” (mild reprimand or regret)
저런! / 저런이런! — “Oh no!” / “What a shame!” (sympathy)
참말로! — “Really!” (dialectal or old-fashioned emphasis)
이보게! — “Hey, you!” (archaic or formal tone)
오호! — “Oh-ho!” (grand or knowing realization)
허허 / 호호 — “Heh heh / Ho ho” (older men/women’s light laughter)

DIALOGUE EXAMPLE:

A: 아버지가 칭찬해 주셨어!

(My dad praised me!)

B: 이런! 잘했구나!

(Oh my! Well done!)

That’s it for today’s post!

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