Most of you reading this have probably seen this word "생일 축하합니다" or heard Koreans sing it to each other on their birthdays🎉. This post will help you understand how to say your age in Korean. When dealing with ages, we usually Native Korean numbers (#koreannumbers).
Simplified Explanation: Add -살
Age (In Native Korean Numbers) +
살입니다/살이에요/살이야
Example:
저는 열 여덟살입니다!
I am 18 years old!
Questions You Might Encounter:
몇 살이에요? (Polite/Casual)
나이가 어떻게 되세요? (Formal)
연세가 어떻게 되세요? (Honorific)
살 vs 세
살 and 세 have the same meaning, but there is a difference in when to use it and who to use it with. We use 세 when we talk about an elder person's age and 살 is used when talking about oneself, younger people, & friends.
세 is only used when you ask about and talk about someone's age older than you.
So you can say your age like this:
I am 20 years old.
나는 20(스무)살이다
세 Is used with sino-korean numbers only and 살 Is used with native-korean numbers only. (#KoreanNumbers)
Also, for using 세 :
Only use 세 for someone's age older than you or someone who you meet at first.
Example:
1: How old are you?
연세가 어떻게 되세요.
2: He is 70 years old.
그는 70(칠십)세 입니다.
For Number 1-4 & 20, the form of the number changes If a counter comes after it.
하나 becomes 한
둘 = 두
셋 = 세
넷 = 네
스물 = 스무
Example:
두 살이다 = to be 2 years old
스물 다섯살이다 = to be 25 years old
List Of Native Korean Numbers (1-99)
*reminder: the native/pure korean number system only goes up to 99. After that, numbers 100 and up are sino-korean numbers
하나 - 1
둘 - 2
셋 - 3
넷 - 4
다섯 - 5
여섯 - 6
일곱 - 7
여덟 - 8
아홉 - 9
열 - 10
열 하나 - 11
열 둘 - 12
열 셋 - 13
열 넷 - 14
열 다섯 - 15
열 여섯 - 16
열 일곱 - 17
열 여덟 - 18
열 아홉 - 19
스물 - 20
서른 - 30
마흔 - 40
쉰 - 50
예순 - 60
일흔 - 70
여든 - 80
아흔 - 90
아흔 아홉 - 99
나이가 어떻게 되세요? (Comment below your age in Korean)
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